The Sense of an Ending
- 2017
- Tous publics
- 1h 48m
A man becomes haunted by his past and is presented with a mysterious legacy that causes him to re-think his current situation in life.A man becomes haunted by his past and is presented with a mysterious legacy that causes him to re-think his current situation in life.A man becomes haunted by his past and is presented with a mysterious legacy that causes him to re-think his current situation in life.
- Awards
- 1 win total
Featured reviews
"When we are young, we want emotions to be like what we read in books". So says the narrator and lead character Tony Webster (as played by Jim Broadbent). Tony runs a tiny second hand camera store (specializing in Leica models) while leading a mostly benign life – rising daily at 7:00am, coffee with his ex-wife, and periodic errands for his pregnant daughter. One day a certified letter arrives notifying him that he has been named in the Last Will and Testament of the mother of a girl he dated while at University. And so begins the trek back through Tony's history and memories.
Of course, a film version can never quite cut as deeply as a novel, but this preeminent cast works wonders in less than two hours. Curmudgeonly Tony is accessible and somewhat sympathetic thanks to the stellar work of Mr. Broadbent, who always seems to find the real person within his characters. Harriet Walther ("The Crown") turns in a tremendous performance as Margaret, Tony's most patient and quite wise ex-wife. Michelle Dockery ("Downton Abbey") is their pregnant 36 year old daughter Susie, and just these three characters could have provided a most interesting story. The film's best scenes feature the comfort and familiarity of a once-married couple, as Tony and Harriet talk through previously never mentioned topics. However, there is so much more to explore here as Tony's thoughts bring the past splashing right smack dab into the present.
Billy Howle does a nice job as young Tony, an aspiring poet, who falls hard for the enigmatic Veronica (Freya Mavor). Complications arise when Tony spends a weekend with Veronica at her parents' estate. It's here that Emily Mortimer energizes things (and clouds thoughts) with minimal screen time as Veronica's mother. It's also around this time where new student Adrian Finn (played by Joe Alwyn of Billy Lynn's Long Halftime Walk) captures Tony's imagination and a friendship bond is formed only to be later shattered in a most painful manner.
There is so much going on that director Batra's (The Lunchbox, 2013) low-key approach is often misleading. Looking back on one's life can lead to the twisted version that our mind has edited/revised in order to make things seem better or worse – definitely more colorful – than they likely were at the time. Tony's distorted view of history crumbles when documented proof of his actions is presented at his first face to face meeting with Veronica (the great Charlotte Rampling) in five decades. It's at this point that regret and guilt rise up, and the only question remaining is whether this elderly man can overcome his repressed emotions and self-centeredness in order to make the best of what time he has left. Each of us has a life journey, and though few of us ever actually tell the story, there are undoubtedly numerous lessons to be had with an honest look back.
Dramatically not a great deal happens and yet, as they say, all human life is here but it is so well written, acted and directed you cling to every word and it's a real pleasure to hear such good dialogue delivered as beautifully as it is here. Broadbent hasn't been this good in years and Walters is wonderful as his ex-wife while Charlotte Rampling, in what is really just a cameo, is her usual outstanding self as the older version of Broadbent's first love. The younger players are also very fine; Billy Howle as the young Broadbent, Joe Alwyn as the friend, Downton's Michelle Dockery as a heavily pregnant daughter. It's also very touching and very funny; something of a real treat in fact.
Then, even if those things are not true for you, you might enjoy the cast and their acting, the writing, the London settings and many other things about this film. A good one.
From flashbacks to the 1960s, we learn he was involved with a lass called Veronica and met Adrian, a charismatic student. A thoughtless act leads to, or may not have led to, tragedy.
How much of Tom's history (shown in the flashbacks) is true and how much is a distortion of his memory, is open to question.
Meanwhile, Tom's life in the present continues. His daughter is close to giving birth which means regular meetings with his former wife. This gives Tom an opportunity to discuss the past. By staying alert and listening in to the conversations closely and watching the flashbacks carefully, clues emerge for us to discern the truth.
Six fellow film fans and I saw the movie together and met for lunch afterwards. Our interpretations differed. An indication that we'd seen an exceptional film.
There were things we agreed on: the ensemble cast was outstanding; the editing was first-rate; the music unobtrusive; and the director's touch admirable.
Various actions of the major characters and possible actions not actually shown on screen were raised and analysed with the results agreed to by some, rejected by others.
It's not a film for everyone but for those who enjoy a movie where clues are given but interpretations are left to the viewer, this one's for you.
It's a movie that stays with you for days.
Jim Broadbent is one of the greatest actors of the late 20th and early 21st Century. I've seen him in many films, and he always inhabits his role as if he were, indeed, that person. Dame Margaret Webster is a fine actor, and has appeared in dozens of movies and made-for-TV specials. However, I think the only time I've seen her on screen was as the vile Fanny Dashwood in Sense and Sensibility (1995). She does a highly professional job as a embittered woman, whose life is absorbed by her business interests.
Michelle Dockery looks as if she just changed costumes and walked into this movie from Downton Abbey. She is always angry and depressed. For the record, her part is small and non-central in this film. I think she wants to broaden her range, but that didn't happen here. Could she ever star in a comedy?
Charlotte Rampling was one of the most beautiful women in movies. At age 70, she still is one of the most beautiful women in movies. She is not only beautiful, but she is a consummate actor who is made for this role.
This film is complicated. About 75% of it takes place in present time, and about 20% takes place in flashback. (The other 5% are dream and imaginary scenes, when the present enters into the past.) You'll have to pay close attention or you'll miss the point. In fact, during the middle of the film, I missed the point. However, towards the end, it all came together and made sense.
(Incidentally, there's a tedious sequence in the beginning, when Tony gets a certified letter, and he almost opens it, then he sort of opens it, then he opens it and doesn't read it, and finally, finally reads it. The letters starts off the entire plot, so he needs to read it, and we need to know what it says. That's the only weak part of the movie.)
We saw this film at the excellent Little Theatre in Rochester, NY. Even though it's meant to be seen on the large screen, it will work well on the small screen. This movie has a ridiculously low IMDb rating of 6.5. It's much better than that. This is one of those ratings that you have to ignore. Don't miss this movie just because it's rated so low.
P.S. Relevant to The Sense of an Ending: The Moving Finger writes; and, having writ, Moves on: nor all thy Piety nor Wit. Shall lure it back to cancel half a Line, Nor all thy Tears wash out a Word of it." From the Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam.
Did you know
- TriviaAt a festival screening in San Francisco, Ritesh Batra said that he had tea with Julian Barnes, author of The Sense of an Ending, ahead of filming. Batra was so nervous at meeting Barnes that he subsequently forgot most of their conversation, save for Barnes's parting line, spoken in jest: "Go ahead and betray me."
- GoofsYoung Tony affixes a 'first-class' stamp to his fateful letter, sent in 1967. This sort of stamp was not produced for another 26 years (in 1993).
- Quotes
Tony Webster: [Voice over] When you are young you want your emotions to be like the ones you read about in books. You want them to overturn your life and create a new reality. But as that second hand insists on speeding up and time delivers us all too quickly into middle age and then old age, that's when you want something a little milder, don't you? You want your emotions to support your life as it has become. You want them to tell you that everything is going to be okay. And is there anything wrong with that?
- ConnectionsFeatured in Power of Memory: Making 'The Sense of an Ending' (2017)
- SoundtracksPsychotic Reaction
Written by Sean Byrne (as J. Byrne) / John Michalski (as J. Michalski) / Craig Atkinson (as C. Atkinson) / Ken Ellner (as K. Ellner) / Roy Chaney' (as R. Chaney)
Performed by Count Five
Published by Bucks Music Group Ltd / The Bicycle Music Company
Licensed courtesy of The Bicycle Music Company
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Details
- Release date
- Countries of origin
- Official site
- Language
- Also known as
- À l'heure des souvenirs
- Filming locations
- Production companies
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
Box office
- Gross US & Canada
- $1,274,420
- Opening weekend US & Canada
- $39,692
- Mar 12, 2017
- Gross worldwide
- $5,081,495
- Runtime1 hour 48 minutes
- Color
- Sound mix
- Aspect ratio
- 2.35 : 1