The World to Come

If you enjoy reading my Spoiler-Free reviews, please follow my blog @ https://www.msbreviews.com

I'm admittedly not the biggest lover of period pieces or romances set in past centuries. As weird and maybe even unfair as it might sound, in a general way, the dialogues always feel just way too poetic and overly sophisticated for my taste. When it comes to emotional investment in a character or in a relationship, I need realistic elements to grab on to: authentic development, lifelike conversations, and genuine performances. As much as this might upset some people, a film is different from a play or a book. For example, narration often works better in the latter's case than in a cinematic adaptation.

This prologue serves as a disclaimer for every reader to understand that my opinion about movies within this genre isn't usually highly favorable. So, unless I strongly believe the film is a total disaster, I'll never not recommend it. With this said, I know I'll probably be in the minority regarding The World to Come, but it's yet another romantic drama that I struggle to really enjoy. It has plenty of remarkable technical aspects and some good performances, but concerning its story and characters, I find it to be quite underwhelming and less surprising than I expected.

First of all, I also confess I have a problem with extensive voice-over throughout the entire runtime of any movie of any genre. Unless the narration holds some sort of unique quality, I find it difficult to be genuinely compelling or entertaining. Ron Hansen and Jim Shepard's screenplay has as much narration - a character's thoughts - as it has actual dialogues, which ultimately becomes a divisive aspect I was never comfortable with. On one hand, it undeniably adds substance to Abigail's emotions by thoroughly describing what she feels about everything and everyone, mainly Tallie, so it's obviously a crucial part of the narrative.

On the other hand, it carries the exact same tone from beginni...

“The World to Come,” the film adaptation of Jim Shepard‘s 2017 short story of the same name, is just as sophisticated and lovely as the author’s elegant prose. Shepard also co-authored the screenplay (with Ron Hansen), and his eloquent writing makes for a lovely film about two women longing for intimacy in the 1800s.

In upstate New York, Abigail (Katherine Waterston) is devastated by grief when her only child dies at the age of four. She does what she can to take care of the home and her farmer husband, Dyer (Casey Affleck). Between the cooking, cleaning, and milking cows, Abigail quietly pens diaries of her feelings, narrating the story from her point of view by reading from her ledgers.

A little excitement comes into the woman’s life when newcomers Finney (Christopher Abbott) and Tallie (Vanessa Kirby) move to town. The two women instantly hit it off and soon learn that they share a much deeper connection than a simple friendship. Their desire leads to a secret affair, causing everyone’s way of life to crumble.

There isn’t much to the story, but director Mona Fastvold‘s thoughtful, beautiful storytelling brings Shepard’s descriptive writing to life. There’s a simmering feminist undercurrent here too, as the film explores the harsh realities that women faced during this period in American History. It was a time when a woman’s self-worth was tied to her becoming a mother, and she was made to feel less than adequate if she could not or would not produce a child. It was a time when women were expected to perform certain duties, controlled by a domineering man or religion. Tallie and Abigail have two very different husbands, one is kind and the other cruel, and their love story is one exhilaration and sadness. Each are imprisoned in a life they can’t escape.

The film features stellar performances from the entire cast, including some of the best career work yet from Kirby and Waterston. Affleck is reliable as a kind man who is full of empathy, while Abbott g...