We Live In Time Review
We Live In Time is a romantic drama from the wonderful studio of A24 with the two leads being the best actors in Hollywood: Andrew Garfield and Florence Pugh. Both actors have excellent chemistry together and in the first few minutes of the film you're feeling a wave of emotions. Tobias (played by Andrew Garfield) is a recent divorcée and is in search for a job, while Almut (played by Florence Pugh) is a former ice skater turned chef. If you seen the trailers then you are aware that their “meet cute” is Almut accidently running over Tobias with her car.
One constant complaint about this film is the constant time jumps. For me it was more annoying than confusing. Especially considering how you're so invested in the story and it randomly jumps to the present or the past. I think this would've worked better if the story was told in Chapters instead of this random puzzle of events that the audience has to piece together. Another problem I had is that the stuff with Almut being a chef didn't feel important until she was diagnosed with cancer and I wished they would’ve focused more on that before she became ill.
A great love story isn’t without trial and tribulations. In the beginning Almut wanted nothing to do with kids and marriage but when she ultimately changes her mind knowing Tobias is the right one for her. Tobias even gets upset with her for prioritizing her chef duties over taking care of herself. This is the moment in the movie where I shed a tear because Almut confesses she doesn't want their daughter to remember her just as a faint memory and that she wants to do something worth living for even after she's gone.
If this film was told in order I think I would have enjoyed it a lot more. While, this film has excellent acting from the two leads and there is a lot of emotional weight the structure of the film is very poor. Each chapter could’ve been about different parts of their lives: Chapter 1, “Meet cute", Chapter 2, “Commitment” and Chapter 3, “Goodbye”. Not my favorite of the film of the year but it is still pretty great.
Rating: 3½/5
