Starring: John Lithgow, Alfred Molina, Marisa Tomei, Cheyenne Jackson
Love Is Strange
Director: Ira Sachs
Rating: 4.5/5
Ira Sachs was last seen in the director's chair with the terrific Keep The Lights On and now he is back with new drama Love Is Strange - which is already one of the most acclaimed movies of 2015. The movie burst on to the festival circuit last year at Sundance and Berlin where it won over critics and audiences.
I have to say that Love Is Strange is a movie that I had been looking forward to for some time - mainly because of all of the buzz that was coming from the festival circuit - and it really is a movie that did not disappoint.
After nearly four decades together, Ben (Lithgow) and George (Molina) finally tie the knot in an idyllic wedding ceremony in lower Manhattan. But when George loses his job soon after, the couple must sell their apartment and - victims of the relentless New York City real estate market - temporarily live apart until they can find an affordable new home.
While George moves in with two cops (Jackson and Manny Perez) who live down stairs, Ben lands in Brooklyn with his nephew (Darren Burrows), his wife (Tomei), and their temperamental teenage son (Charlie Tahan), with whom Ben shares a bedroom. While struggling with the pain of separation, Ben and George are further challenged by the intergenerational tensions and capricious family dynamics of their new living arrangements.
If you are looking for the perfect film to enjoy this Valentine's Day, forget Fifty Shades of Grey and go and check out the very beautiful and touching Love Is Strange. Trust me when I say you really will not regret it.
From start to finish, Love Is Strange is one of the most beautiful films of love and devotion that you are ever likely to see, with John Lithgow and Alfred Molina on top form in the central roles of Ben and George. I have been huge fans of both Lithgow and Molina for many years and they have delivered some wonderful performances during their careers - however, Love is Strange is quite possibly their finest work to date.
Couple that with a director that understands relationships and really knows how to capture them on film, and you are ally on to a truly wonderful winner. Sachs has delivered a funny, intimate, and touching portrayal of love with this film, as we see the couple in the good times as well as the bad.
This is not a movie that is laden with false sentiment, along with Lithgow and Molina, Sachs has captured something that is realistic and true and it really will touch the heart of everyone who watches it.
Love Is Strange is a universal story of a relationship put to the test and it explores themes and ideas that we can all identify with and relate to. The central characters of Ben and George are so engaging that you find yourself rooting for them from the word go. Lithgow and Molina really do bring these characters and this relationship to life - it really is a joy to watch two great actors at work. Marisa Tomei also gives a terrific performance in a supporting role.
Love Is Strange is a powerful, emotional and yet understated film that feels so incredibly real and raw that you can' help but get swept away in the story and the journey. This is one that really is not to be missed this weekend.