From the moment I first saw the trailer for We Live in Time from director John Crowley and screenwriter Nick Payne, I knew it would be a tearjerker. The film closely follows Almut (Florence Pugh) and Tobias (Andrew Garfield) across their entire relationship, from the moment they meet after Almut hits Tobias with her car, through bits of their dating, both blissful and rocky, to having their first child, a devastating cancer diagnosis, and its aftermath.
Almut and Tobias’s story is told non-linearly throughout We Live in Time, and while it feels a bit erratic at first – jumping from them enjoying a simple morning together, to a pregnant Almut wondering if she’s about to give birth, to the doctor’s office where Almut receives her cancer diagnosis, and then to the scene of Almut hitting Tobias with her car – each of these jumbled scenes gives the audience an idea of exactly who these characters are, both as individuals and as a couple. Jumping around with little to no overt exposition should be jarring, but it works very well as an introduction to these two people and their relationship.
As the film progresses, the randomness of the shifting timelines becomes less jarring, as it becomes clear that various scenes are connected and expertly placed, either emotionally or thematically. For example, we see scenes of Tobias clearly trying to figure out what the future holds for him and Almut, whether he’s wondering about having children together or worrying about how best to handle Almut’s cancer diagnosis, with Almut becoming frustrated that Tobias won’t just see her as she is and enjoy the present moment with her. This culminates with a jump to what is perhaps my favorite scene in the film, where a tearful Tobias understands and admits that he is guilty of looking ahead to the future too often, instead of right in front of him at Almut and seeing who she is as a person and what she’s going through.
We Live in Time offers us a full picture of exactly who Almut is. As we watch this story unfold across its different timelines, we learn that Almut is a whole person, not just one thing. She isn’t just a chef, just her cancer, just a mother, or just Tobias’s partner, she is Almut as a whole. She needs to be seen and remembered as more than just one thing, and this is the driving force behind Almut’s journey throughout the film. We learn that her father died of cancer when she was young, and that she is desperate for her daughter to remember her as more than her cancer diagnosis.
Every single step of the way, Almut is allowed to make her own choices as a strong individual, even if they’re not necessarily the right choices, what matters is that she is allowed to make them, big and small. She chooses to have a child with Tobias, without him having to convince her to, despite the cancer diagnosis she chooses to compete in an international cooking competition, despite actively being in labor, she chooses to leave a traffic jam to go get snacks. We Live in Time is a film about Almut’s choices and her ability to make them, to be seen and remembered on her own terms.
We Live in Time is also a film about making something fun, hopeful, and memorable out of a situation that is inconvenient, sad, or even tragic. In an early scene, Almut and Tobias tell their daughter about Almut’s cancer as cheerfully as they can while still treating the subject matter tactfully and seriously. In one of the film’s most powerful scenes, the family chooses a day to shave Almut’s head before her chemotherapy treatment starts, and they make an event of it, laughing and playing and hugging as they deposit clumps on Almut’s hair into a bright pink box. Even the beginning of their relationship supports this theme, with Almut hitting Tobias with her car leading to the rest of the beautiful relationship we see on screen.
What really makes this film work is the fact that Florence Pugh and Andrew Garfield have incredible chemistry and are extremely talented actors in their own right. We feel Almut and Tobias’s joy and devastation and everything in between, just as well as we can see their electric connection and love for one another. They are a team, from beginning to end, even at their lowest moments.
We Live in Time offers us a look not only at two complete lives, but also how those two lives intersect and complement one another in a really touching way as a relationship with highs and lows. It showcases the excitement and bliss of both small and big moments, and the challenges that accompany those same moments. The choice to show this family making something beautiful and lasting out of horrible circumstances is a really powerful one, elevating We Live in Time to be one of the strongest romance films in recent memory.
Score: 10/10
We Live in Time
Directed by: John Crowley
Release Date: October 18, 2024
Starring: Andrew Garfield, Florence Pugh, and more.
Rating: R
Running Time: 1h 47 minutes
Synopsis: An up-and-coming chef and a recent divorcée find their lives forever changed when a chance encounter brings them together, in a decade-spanning, deeply moving romance.
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