We observe their nervousness and vulnerability as they cross this rite of passage to become adults they don’t quite know how to act, and struggle through half-formed sentences and pregnant silences unable to express themselves. But the story is set within a curious era – the year, according to Philip Larkin, before sex began. The young couple carry the weight of sexual and societal expectation on their shoulders. The pace of the film is balanced between the excited rush of an engagement, told through multiple flashbacks, and the clumsy two hours of the newlyweds’ fateful wedding night that it all leads up to. McEwan is very good at pausing and examining moments of time and, as such, On Chesil Beach could be thought of as a tragedy of anticipation. Unfortunately, however, there is a significant backstory that – although purposefully left ambiguous – is a detriment to an otherwise quite powerful period piece. This film was previously reviewed on as part of London Film Festival.Īdapted by the author of the 166-page novella it is based on, Dominic Cooke’s On Chesil Beach offers the promise of expanding upon Ian McEwan’s source material.
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