#TIFF24 Review: We Live in Time (Special Presentations)

By John Corrado

The 2024 Toronto International Film Festival runs from September 5th to 15th, more information on tickets and showtimes can be found right here.

The latest film from Irish director John Crowley (Brooklyn), We Live in Time mostly works as a genuine romantic tear-jerker, centred around a young couple in London. Tobias (Andrew Garfield) is a recently divorced ad executive working for a cereal company. Almut (Florence Pugh) is a master chef building a successful career for herself.

The two meet and fall in love, they have a daughter together, but she also becomes ill and is undergoing treatment. The story itself follows the expected beats of a tragic romance. But Crowley and screenwriter Nick Payne do an engaging job of unspooling it through a fractured narrative that allows moments to blend into each other, jumping between when Tobias and Almut first met, to when she is sick.

Because we already know where their relationship is headed, it heightens the emotional impact of watching happy and sad moments colliding all at once. Justine Wright’s editing plays with time in an interesting way, and the film has a montage-like quality at times, with scenes that don’t necessarily end in a traditional sense. It captures the feeling of these moments from their lives happening all at once.

This craftsmanship (including a lovely score by Bryce Dessner) surely elevates what could have been a more standard issue weepie. But it’s the two lead performances that really hold the film together. It can’t be understated how much the success of We Live in Time rests on the screen presences of both Garfield and Pugh, and what they are able to bring to these roles. Garfield is a captivating romantic lead, and Pugh delivers in an emotionally demanding role that includes some physically gruelling moments.

It maybe feels a bit long, and some of the attempts at humour don’t quite land. But We Live in Time works thanks to the charming chemistry of Garfield and Pugh, who are magnetic together. They are irresistible to watch falling in love, and make the film’s tragedy feel that much more bittersweet.

Film Rating: ★★★ (out of 4)