We Live in Time
2024
**½
Director: John Crowley
Cast: Andrew Garfield, Florence Pugh, Adam James, Aoife Hinds, Marama Corlett, Nikhil Parmar, Heather Craney, Douglas Hodge, Grace Molony, Lee Braithwaite, Amy Morgan, Lucy Briers
John Crowley’s romantic drama follows the evolving relationship between Almut and Tobias. We watch them meet, fall in love, build a life and a family together, only to have their happiness interrupted by Almut’s battle with ovarian cancer. Their story is told out of order, a needless gimmick that diminishes character development and undercuts the drama's momentum. This tearjerker follows in the footsteps of Love Story and The Fault in Our Stars, but it delivers one of the most polished portrayal of a serious illness I can remember. Some scenes feel overly formulaic or inconsequential, particularly their meet-cute, the birth of their daughter, and the shaving of her hair. Florence Pugh is, as always, terrific, but I was left unimpressed by Andrew Garfield's puppy eyes performance.
