This weekend my friends and I took the hike up to East 19th street to the AMC theater to see Manchester by the Sea. Going in, I didn’t know much about the film, but I was excited to see Casey Affleck and Michelle Williams in a movie together.

The opening scene shows Casey’s character, Lee Chandler, showing up to fix people’s plumbing and electricity problems. Right away, there is a somber tone set for the rest of the movie. And without knowing his past, the audience can see the sadness and hurt in Lee’s eyes.

Shortly after, Lee recieves a call that his brother has passed away. Immediately, he leaves to go to Manchester to see his brother, but being in his hometown brings a flood of memories. Upon arriving to arrange the services, he finds out he is now the legal guardian of his nephew, something he did not see coming at all.

Throughout the film, something I really appreciated was the honesty of it all. All of the characters in the movie were portrayed in such a genuine, heartfelt way. I felt like I had just watch a real family lose a brother. Even the way the movie was filmed felt honest. The scene in the police station where Lee recalls what happened. The encounter Lee has with his ex. The fire and his wife’s reaction to being pulled out.

This film was able to capture what so many films can’t: real life. Sitting in the theater and watching this didn’t feel like a billion dollar movie with big name celebrities, shot in Hollywood; it felt real.

Another thing I enjoyed about the film was watching Lee and his nephew’s, Patrick, relationship develop. A relationship that was once so pure and close, has turned into awkward interactions and seeing each other once every few years. Once Patrick’s Dad dies, they quickly have to get used to living with each other. Over time, they each get used to their new reality. Patrick learns to live with what Lee asks of him. While Lee learns what it’s like to deal with a child again, after the accident.

It’s almost as if Lee is getting a second chance at parenting. Lee tries so hard to block out what is bothering him the most, and it is something that consumes his everyday life. His kids were his everything, and now he has to live with the guilt of what he did for the rest of his life. Once his brother died and he has to take care of Patrick, I interpreted as him finally being distracted from the guilt. I do believe that their hometown of Manchester is tied to tragedy, and that is why he desperately wants to leave Manchester, even though nothing is holding him back from staying there.

Overall, this is a film of heartbreak, death, love, and guilt, all of which I, and many others, find important to discuss. These topics are often skipped over for being too heavy to talk about, but this film was able to touch upon these subjects in such a way that we would all approach them. This film was so interesting to me, and made me want to watch it again. I would recommend that this movie is something everyone watches, because we can all relate to the heartbreak, the experiences with death and love, and the guilt that comes along with it.