THE LIGHT BETWEEN OCEANS Review — Mournfully Beautiful
The Light Between Oceans Review
by Lisa Johnson Mandell
Relentlessly beautiful, relentlessly sad. I’m not quite sure who the audience will be for this well-acted heartbreaker. Doubtless the book club members who sobbed over the period bestseller by M.L. Stedman will throng the theaters, as well as those who are fans of the uber talented Michael Fassbender and Alicia Vikander. I’m hoping their numbers are large enough to make this film a commercial success, because it’s the antithesis of a super hero blockbuster, and the world needs more films like this one.
It’s the story of a conflicted World War I veteran (Fassbender), who takes a job as lighthouse keeper on a remote island off the coast of Western Australia. On his rare trips into the nearest village on the mainland, he meets a lovely local girl (Vikander), courts her, marries her, and whisks her off to the island, where their marriage flourishes. It’s marred only by her inability to carry a baby to term. When a rowboat with a dead man and an infant girl washes ashore, the couple must decide whether to report the incident or raise the girl as their own, and therein lies the drama and tragedy.
The Light Between Oceans is adapted and directed by Derek Cianofrance, who is also responsible for the moody Blue Valentine and A Place Beyond the Pines. He again demonstrates his remarkable talent for igniting the perfect, tentative chemistry between his actors. In this case, Vikander and Fassbender are a real life couple, but the necessary restraint between them is flawless and searingly moving. Alexandre Desplat’s score and Adam Arkapaw’s cinematography add to the exquisite poignancy.
Oscar bait? Definitely. Box-office bait? Not so much. This one takes its lovely time, which is not popular among theater goers looking for immediate, if not sooner, gratification. Let’s hope those who know that all things come to those who wait support it.
Rated PG-13
1 Hour 40 Minutes
Get times and tickets at Fandango.com.
THE LIGHT BETWEEN OCEANS Review — Mournfully Beautiful
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