Movie Review: 'Never Let Me Go'

NEVER LET ME GO is not a movie for everyone…perhaps it’s not even a movie for most. It’s the kind of movie that you can tell is already gearing up to launch its “For Your Consideration” Oscar campaign before the movie is even released and, subsequently, the kind of movie the majority of non-avid film watchers have never heard the likes of. It’s slow-paced (by choice), choosing to keep everything at a small sizzle for most of the film until the climax. Already we’ve alienated most moviegoers. But those handfuls of people that do connect with it, will find it to be a unique, upsetting, emotional movie that has the makings of an awards-circuit movie–even if it falls short where it can’t afford to. NEVER LET ME GO is based off Kazuo Ishiguro’s acclaimed novel of the same name. The movie centers around the friendship of three characters, Kathy (Carey Mulligan), Ruth (Keira Knightly), and Tommy (Andrew Garfield), who grow up in an English boarding school together. If it sounds like I’m deliberately being vague about the plot, that’s because I am. Being a huge fan of the novel, I can’t help but compare the book with the film. In the book, that’s pretty much all the information we’re set up with in the beginning…all we know though, is that there is something more sinister brewing beneath this average plot.

From the first page (and likewise, the first scene of the movie), we hear some strange words being tossed around; words we’re not sure we’re supposed to fully understand the context they’re said in: “Carer”. “Donor.” “Complete.” About 20 minutes into the movie however (as opposed to midway through the novel), the meaning of these words is fully explained. Even though the film is quick throw all of its chips down in one go, I wouldn’t feel right spoiling it. But I will say this about the script: it’s both too straightforward and too abstract at the same time. It’s quick to give everything away right off the bat to make sure we fully understand what’s going on, but then in some other aspects it’s almost as if the movie expects us to automatically fill in the blanks with some of the cryptic language the character’s use. Here’s the thing: none of this affected my movie-going experience. I went in knowing all the “secrets” and how the movie would end…but for someone just being introduced to the story for the very first time, you want the story presented in the most effective way possible…which I don’t think it was. The information should have been fed to the viewer slowly, but surely. Instead, it was more like quickly or not at all.

With a film like this, it’s all about the emotional connection. If you’re lucky enough to get to know these characters, they’ll stay with you forever. The characters I got to know and love on paper we’re beautifully brought to life on screen. But once again, for those just getting to know them, there’s simply not enough time to love them to the extent that you should. With a mere hour and 40 minutes running time, there was just not as much time as I would have liked devoted to the relationship between our main characters…especially the romantic one between Kathy and Tommy. Despite all the shortcomings of the script, the spectacular performances from Carey Mulligan and Andrew Garfield were enough to take the developed (but not developed enough) characters of Kathy and Tommy and make them characters whose pain at the climax on the movie you were literally able to feel radiating throughout your body. Mulligan proved once again why she is such a rising star (and officially my new favorite actress) in Hollywood. She has such a wonderful face…that might sound weird to say, but if you’ve seen her in action, then you know what I mean. She has the ability to communicate sadness with just one small look like I’ve never seen before. And her character absolutely calls for it. There isn’t much happiness present in NEVER LET ME GO. The characters often don’t seem to realize how happy or unhappy they are until they experience the inevitable lack of hope in their situation. Mulligan and Garfield (just fresh off his fantastic performance in THE SOCIAL NETWORK), play their roles so delicately, with such restraint, that some might not realize how wonderful the performances they’re turning out truly are. But such are the characters of Kathy and Tommy…they are withdrawn, compliant, sad, and full of heart. Even if the characters just sit there quietly and accept their fate, you will have a hard time accepting it…and wont be able to stop thinking about the inhumanity of it all for a while after the credits roll.

Rating: B