The Sense of an Ending (2017)

A man becomes haunted by his past and is presented with a mysterious legacy that causes him to re-think his current situation in life.

Director:

Ritesh Batra

Writers:

Julian Barnes (novel), Nick Payne (adaptation)

Stars:

Jim Broadbent, Charlotte Rampling, Harriet Walter

1 win.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Jim Broadbent	...	Tony Webster
Charlotte Rampling	...	Veronica Ford
Harriet Walter	...	Margaret Webster
Michelle Dockery	...	Susie Webster
Matthew Goode	...	Mr. Hunt
Emily Mortimer	...	Sarah Ford
James Wilby	...	David Ford
Edward Holcroft	...	Jack Ford
Billy Howle	...	Young Tony
Freya Mavor	...	Young Veronica
Joe Alwyn	...	Adrian Finn
Peter Wight	...	Colin Simpson
Hilton McRae	...	Alex Stuart
Jack Loxton	...	Young Colin Simpson
Timothy Innes	...	Young Alex Stuart

Storyline

Divorced and retired, Tony Webster, an aging Londoner and vintage camera shop owner, whittles down the solitude of his isolated existence by keeping an affectionate relationship with his ex-wife, Margaret, and by accompanying his nearly full-term pregnant daughter, Susie, to antenatal courses. However, the unexpected arrival of an unsettling letter will disrupt the fine balance of things in Tony's orderly life, reconnecting him with his first love from college, Veronica, and the nostalgic, yet clouded memories of a distant past. Inevitably, as Tony scavenges for bits and pieces through flashbacks, the out-of-focus picture of his youth will gradually sharpen, nevertheless, is he ready to face the truth?

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Plot Keywords:

jealousy | revenge | letter | flashback | memory | 

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Taglines:

Unravel the Truth.

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Genres:

Drama | Mystery

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for thematic elements, a violent image, sexuality and brief strong language

Did You Know?

Trivia

At a festival screening in San Francisco, Ritesh Batra said that he had tea with Julian Barnes, author of The Sense of an Ending, ahead of filming. Batra was so nervous at meeting Barnes that he subsequently forgot most of their conversation, save for Barnes's parting line, spoken in jest: "Go ahead and betray me."

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Goofs

Young Tony affixes a 'first-class' stamp to his fateful letter, sent in 1967. This sort of stamp was not produced for another 26 years (in 1993).

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Quotes

[Voice over]
Tony Webster: I, who neither won nor lost. Who avoided being hurt and called it a capacity for survival.

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Connections

Referenced in Adelaide's Silver Screens (2017)

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Soundtracks

Time Is On My Side
Written by Jerry Ragovoy (as Norman Meade)
Performed by Irma Thomas
Published by TRO Essex Music Led.
Licensed courtesy of Capitol Redords
Under license from Universal Music Operations Ltd.

User Reviews

Not quite subtle enough

Rhitesh Batra's film 'The Sense of an Ending' is based on a Booker-prize winning novel by Julian Barnes. Oddly, I've read almost the entirity of Barnes's oevre, but nor this work, which tells of an old man suddenly reconnected to his distant past. His enthusiasm for revisiting his old life might partly be due to his present-day loneliness, and partly due to his own capacity for re-imagining his history through a lense of nostalgia and heroism (indeed, his self-justifying self-absorption goes a long way to explaining exactly why is he now alone). So he begins a journey that will take him to uncomfortable and unexpected places. But in the film, the character (played by Jim Broadbent, possibly not the optimal choice for the role) is so obviously bumptious and narcicisstic that our sense of shock is undermined; he learns things about himself (in the specific) that were (in the general) already obvious to us. Another limitation is that although the adult characters are fully formed (and the two female leads in particular are well realised), their younger selves (who appear in flashback) remain thin and weakly sketched. I still quite enjoyed the movie; but it made we want to read the book where I suspect Barnes might have managed things better.

Details

Official Sites:

Official site [Japan] Official site [UK]

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Release Date:

10 March 2017 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Sense of an Ending

Filming Locations:

London, England, UK

Box Office

Opening Weekend USA:

$39,692, 12 March 2017

Gross USA:

$1,274,420

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$5,081,495

Company Credits

Production Co:

Origin Pictures, BBC Films, CBS Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

108 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1