45 Anos

titular four and half decades and we meet them less than a week before a party to celebrate this special anniversary. That morning, Geoff receives a letter in German which over the next few days provokes a profound re-evaluation of their marriage. Although based on a short story of only 12 pages by David Constantine, the cinematic translation has all sorts of subtle changes, notably adopting the female rather than the male viewpoint.

Technically this is a wonderful film. It is shot entirely in the unusual ambiance of Norfolk and writer/director Andrew Haigh offers us many long shots of the flat terrain and even flatter broads. Above all, the acting is superb with both Courtenay and (especially) Rampling at the top of their game. The final scene, focused so long on Rampling's face is as evocative as anything since the camera clung to Geta Garbo's visage at the conclusion of "Queen Christina".

Emotionally, however, this is a tough piece of work. It is so slow, so understated, and ultimately so profoundly melancholic. In the cinema, my wife and I - together for three and a half decades - were surrounded people of the same vintage, most of them couples. I think that we were all looking for an affirmation that living with the same person decade after decade after decade, in spite of its trials and tribulations and irritations, is richly rewarded by so many shared memories and such deep love. This is not that film.

Kate (Charlotte Rampling) is preparing her 45th anniversary party married to Geoff Mercer (Tom Courtenay). They live comfortably childless in rural England. Geoff reveals something about a previous relationship with Katya who died long ago hiking a glacier but the body was only recently discovered. Kate is a little perplexed and struggles to understand the true nature of their relationship.

Charlotte Rampling is one of the greatest actresses around. I get the idea of an old couple with a secret. There isn't enough danger or drama for the tension to be truly raised. The major drama should occur after the big discovery. This is a quiet drama with buried emotions. I'm not complaining that nothing happens. It's just that the drama is interior and doesn't amount to that big. If you like quiet character study, this one is for you.

45 Years is a almost a theatrical film, with not many characters and a slow-burning, subtle but powerful exploration of couple dynamics, the nature of love and trust, the weight of the past on the present, and who truly are those people with whom we share our lives. There is also a pointy finger to the social façade that many couples show to the world, which is not always as rosy or perfect when they are behind closed doors.

We get to know this apparently exemplary couple, Geoff and Kate Mercer, who have been married for 45 years and are approaching the celebration of their 45th wedding anniversary, content with their lives, caring, and loving. Until some news related to Geoff's past arrive and open a Pandora's box filled of smells of another woman, a love story that was more powerful that initially seems, and the ramifications that the story had on Geoff's marrying Kate. After the box in open, we get to see the real nature and strength of their relationship.

One of the main virtues of the film is, paradoxically, one of its most bugging disappointments: the ambiguity of feelings the viewer experiences about the unfolding events.

We get to know the past story, and some of the ramifications on the Swiss love story on Geoff & Kate's love story. However, we don't know why a story that happened so long ago, before the couple met, is hitting Kate so harshly. We get to live, in a way, the same doubts and mixed feelings she feels about the sincerity and integrity of her husband's love, feelings, and openness in their relationship: was she a rebound or was he really in love with her when they married? Why did he hide everything? Why is he's still hiding things and laying about everything? Why is he so distressed about a person he met 40+ years ago? Can she really trust him?

On the other hand, we don't really know what is behind Geoff's secrecy and moodiness either: Did Geoff hide his past to Kate on purpose? Did he just want to put the past behind and move on afresh with her? Is his current behavior the result of his inability to deal with his emotions? Or is it a reminder of what life was and would have been like with the other woman? Does he really love Kate? Did he love Kate when he married her?

These annoying doubts create a subtle emotional tension that bugs you inside, without any dramatic scene needed to be created. After all, things that destroy a relationship the most aren't always the fights or dramas, but the unsettling feelings of distrust, disrespect, lack of communication and lack of openness of those people with whom we share our lives. At the end of the film, I found that it was OK for us not to know anything for sure. The lack of knowledge produces an unsettling feeling in the viewer, and you get to say (or at least I did) you can never get to know anybody fully, no matter s/he is your partner, parent or offspring, there is always more to any person than meets the eye, and you should never ask people for their secrets as you might not be able to deal with their answer.

Charlotte Rampling and Tom Courtenay are great in their respective roles, looking their age and playing being elderly with grace and verisimilitude.

Kate and Geoff are a mature couple enjoying a peaceful life, their 45 year wedding anniversary is soon approaching, but this sense of calm is broken when Geoff receives a letter, telling him that the body of his first wife Katya has been found in the Swiss mountains. We see the effects on Geoff an Kate during the lead up to their celebration.

It is a wonderful character study, with two acting legends, Charlotte Rampling and Tom Courtenay, both showcasing their vast talents, as a combination the pairing are formidable, too many high caliber scenes to pick out any real specifics, although the living room dancing is expertly done.

A good supporting cast too, I'm biased towards Geraldine James, but as always she is fantastic. She doesn't try to overtake or overshadow, she's great.

It's a film I very much enjoyed, it belongs to a certain genre of films that often gets overlooked, one that could easily be dismissed as boring, but it is expertly done. A true gem with an acting masterclass. 8/10

'45 YEARS': Three and a Half Stars (Out of Five)

British drama flick; about an elderly couple, that's about to celebrate their 45th wedding anniversary, that suddenly has romantic difficulties, due to memories of a past relationship resurfacing. The movie was written and directed by Andrew Haigh; and it's based on the short story 'In Another Country', by David Constantine. The film stars Charlotte Rampling (who was nominated for an Academy Award, for her performance) and Tom Courtenay. The movie is very slow-paced; but interesting, and very well acted.

Kate (Rampling) and Geoff (Courtenay) are retired, and have been happily married for 45-years. They're about to celebrate their anniversary, in Norwich; after missing their 40th celebration (due to Geoff's medical complications). A week before the party, Geoff receives a letter from Switzerland; notifying him that the body of a past lover (from the 60s), has been found in a melting glacier there (where she fell, on a hiking trip). The news causes Geoff to reminisce, greatly; which doesn't sit well with Kate.

Like I said, the movie is very slow; but it also feels extremely real. The characters are very well developed; and it really feels like you're watching a couple that's been together for a very long time. Both Rampling and Courtenay are very good in the movie, and they make the film worth watching. It's a sad, but touching story.

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