Small-scale, independent dramas do not often attract actresses the caliber of Annette Bening to headline them, but this British production has managed it. Bening and Brit favorite Bill Nighy star as a couple married twenty-nine years who suddenly reach an impasse. The film is written and directed by William Nicholson, based on his play “The Retreat from Moscow.”

Nicholson’s story certainly borders on the banal; apart from its undeniable basis in reality (Nicholson’s parents broke up after thirty-three years of marriage; divorce statistics have skyrocketed in the last fifty years), it seems as if this is one of hundreds of cinematic stories that have depicted broken homes and the heartache that ensues. This particular tale depicts how subdued husband Edward (Nighy) pulls away from aggressive wife Grace (Bening), putting their grown son Jamie (Josh O’Connor) right in the middle of their own little war.

It is difficult not to pick sides in such a morality play; the good ones, like Marriage Story, for instance, allow loyalties to swing back and forth, like a pendulum. And that is what occurs here — at first irritating, Grace becomes empathetic as she experiences abandonment and loneliness. Jamie, trying to remain neutral, finally begins to find and express his real feelings. And in the final third, the banality falls away as Nicholson’s script hits some truly profound moments of insight. It is this final stage of the story which most impresses me; its thoughts about mortality and the possibility of suicide in particular are especially thoughtful and affecting.

Ultimately this is a story of survival. Edward leaves the marriage because he must, to survive. Victimized Grace makes a long, lonely journey before she begins to recover. Jamie has many unresolved feelings to work through, but he, too, is able to navigate the breakup and move on with his life. And while some of this drama is dry and deflating, when it finally hits its high notes, it really soars. ☆ ☆ ☆. 4 November 2020.