Another Year

Movie: Another Year

Cast:    Jim Broadbent             (Tom)

            Ruth Sheen                 (Gerri)

            Lesley Manville           (Mary)

            Oliver Maltman           (Joe)

Genre: comedy, drama

Synopsis: Tom and Gerri probably in their 60’s, have been married forever and are extraordinarily happy.  Tom is a geological engineer and Gerri is a mental health counselor.  Mary (40-something) is a secretary who has worked with Gerri for 20 years.  They have a son, Joe, who is single and 30 years old.  The thing with Tom and Gerri (yes, I thought of the cartoon every time I heard their names together) is that they are so happy together and so comfortable in their relationship and are basically really good people.  They have extraordinary patience with and love for their friends.  Friends who are not anywhere near as happy as Tom and Gerri.

The movie follows the couples interactions with friends and family during all four seasons of the year.  In “Spring”, Tom and Gerri invite Mary over for dinner and we learn that she has a tendency to drink too much. We also learn that although she tries to put on a show of being happy, she is desperately lonely.  We also see a hint that she may have a thing for their son, Joe.

During the other three seasons we meet a horribly unhappy friend of Tom’s, Joe’s new girlfriend (much to the dismay of Mary), Tom’s newly widowed older brother and his brother’s unpleasant son. We also see the “fun” Mary has when she becomes a car owner.

The movie seems to be as much about Mary and her unhappiness as it is about Tom and Gerri’s love for each other.

My two cents: A truly fabulous movie.  About a third of the way in, I found the movie was causing me to relax.  I never did figure out exactly why it had this effect.  I have seen Jim Broadbent before, but the rest of the cast was new to me.  They all did a great job.

If you want a lot of action and yelling and screaming, this is not for you.  If you want to see a great slice-of-life covering a year in the life of a loving couple, this is the movie for you.  I keep talking about how loving they are. . .  but the writers and director get this across without a lot of emotional displays or sappy scenes.  Very good writing here.  The feeling it engendered in me is similar to what I get when I watch an episode of the old Andy of Mayberry.  Not a lot happens, I laugh and chuckle a lot – and I feel a lot better after watching it.

[17]