*Originally written February 8th, 2017*
I wasn't massively excited for Loving, the trailers made it seem very Oscar baitey, but I did love Jeff Nichol's other film from 2016 'Midnight Special' so I went in with some expectations. And Loving was far more meaningful and heartfelt that I imagined it would be.
It tells the story of a shameful time in American history. An interracial couple are treated awfully, arrested even purely for the fact they of a different race. It is disgusting and blood boiling seeing and knowing people who love each other were treated like this for such nonsensical reasons.
One of my worries about this is how unsubtle I thought it would be. I imagined the audience would be beaten over the head with the theme of this, but it didn't. It all felt real and the opposite of flashy. It's engaging and meaningful, but quiet and poignant at the same time.
This is mostly due to Joel Edgerton's performance, who was great. He was really quiet, mumbled and subdued. There's no moments of over the top rage and anger, it's all restrained and made it far more believable. Ruth Negga was also fantastic as the wife, really earning her nomination with her sad and strong performance.
I really wish the film dedicated more time to developing the couples relationship. There are some really strong and genuinely moving moments, like a brief scene with them sat on the sofa together laughing at the TV that really got me invested in their love, but there's not a lot of this and most of the film focuses on the variety of different obstacles they have to go through in order to make their marriage legal with the help of a lawyer who takes their case for free.
What I really loved is how unsentimental and unmanipulative this felt. Films like this tend to bash you over the head with big emotional moments, but here it all felt earned and natural. The end is a real gut-punch that I didn't see coming and just a sad bit of reality added to what this couple had to endure. It just left me feeling dead inside.
Loving is a powerful and understated drama with fantastic lead performances and real emotional weight. A really pleasant surprise I didn't see coming.
8/10 Dans
Loving is out now on Blu-ray and DVD in the UK
Watch the trailer below:
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