The chemistry between two leads can make or break a movie or series, and both “We Live in Time” and the Hulu boxing-themed series “La Máquina” benefit from its two stars clicking. We review both and check out Anna Kendrick’s chilling Netflix directorial debut, the truth-based “Woman of the Hour.” The tearjerker playbook that most filmmakers follow goes something like this: Two impossibly attractive people meet, fall intensely in love and then get thrown a horrible obstacle on their way to happily ever after.
It could be an illness, familial strife, a nasty buried secret, even war — any intrusion that devastates them and, in turn, audiences. John Crowley’s romantic drama futzes with the formula just a little bit by not telling its love story in a linear way. The changeup is upfront — or pretty close to it — about its key development that Almut (a radiant Florence Pugh) along with her lover Tobias (a heart-melting Andrew Garfield) and their cute-as-a-button daughter will be confronting a fatal illness.
The reveal, if you will, becomes even more wrenching as we witness a collage of the duo’s relatable time together: the weird beginning of their relationship; the passionate lovemaking (not overly explicit); the chaotic birth of their child (a hilarious high point). Through it all, Crowley exhibits a keen awareness of how to make us care about his characters without too much manipulation. It’s not a surprise given he directed the equally character-drive.