We Live in Time is a sentimental, emotional and devastating portrayal of ordinary romance and ordinary heartbreak starring Andrew Garfield and Florence Pugh. If you know these sort of movies and what they’re capable of, then there’s nothing new here – it tells you how it’s going to end after all, from the very first frame. Yet that doesn’t stop John Crowley tugging at the heartstrings in an affectionate, emotional way – a meet-cute starts with vehicular manslaughter – Florence Pugh’s Almut, an ultra-competitive super chef; hits Garfield’s Tobias, newly divorcee, with a car and takes him to hospital. From there, their chemistry is instant the only way good movie stars can make the magic look natural – Almut and Tobias fall in love, but Tobias is the one that’s keener on kids than Almut, and that creates early friction – but it’s all about watching these two characters get over their arguments and work together in a relationship to solve a solution: with a ticking clock against her head, Almut’s finding herself running out of time faster than she expected – and believes she must achieve everything that she set out to in just a few short months to give her daughter something to remember her by.
It's hindsight and memories that make the magic work here – it’s less a series of storylines neatly told, but more recollections as and when you remember them. The linear narrative is far from present, but there are times when you can see the Richard Curtis influence shining all over this film and it never really tries to do anything new. Yes we know what’s going on with these characters but why should we care about them? I felt a tad distant, a tad detached. And part of that rests on the shoulders of Almut’s actions, who never feels believable as a character who wants to be remembered for something other than dying as if there isn’t enough of an achievement in her life already. This comes at a cost between ambition and success, and what makes this film even more unreliable is that I never really bought why these two got together in the first place – they feel like completely different characters and personalities. I kept asking myself “why should I care?” and We Live in Time never gave me that answer. It’s the strength of Pugh and Garfield alone that this is even watchable.
The humour is where the film has moments of enjoyment amidst the doom and gloom and it shines through in the gas station – the unique awkwardness of having strangers help a woman about to give birth was hilarious, in a deeply moving scene – it blends the line between funny and seriousness in a way that doesn’t quite work out as it should, could’ve been a little longer to maybe convey more emotions and maybe give Garfield’s character more leeway – he feels like he has to make sacrifices at every turn and we never really learn much about his personality – and ultimately, given how soppy the script is – it really feel like Richard Curtis should be on the writing credits somewhere, but that goes to writer Nick Payne. Ultimately the whole thing is a missed opportunity that I never really connected with, but if you allow yourself to be embraced with the emotional sucker punch of it all, it may move you – and I appreciate it brings a sense of maturity to its handling of grief that Garfield is oh so good with. I was never truly moved – but I’m also now being more open to getting hit by a car than I was before, and I think there are few movies that can make that a positive thing.
Had Garfield and Pugh been allowed to be a touch more charismatic, as two of the most charismatic working actors in the game right now – this would’ve worked for me but it never really did.
