The problem that writer-director Jeff Nicholls had with the subject of his 2016 film is that, despite the momentous significance of real-life Virginia couple Richard and Mildred Loving's battle to overturn the laws on inter-racial marriage, it's principally a 'one issue' subject (i.e. Racism) that has been done many times before and, given that we know the outcome in this case, therefore potentially lessens the dramatic impact (as a film narrative). That Loving is so successful is down to a number of factors. The film's lead pairing of Joel Edgerton as the quiet, reluctant but always dignified husband and Ruth Negga as the slightly more engaged (but always acknowledging her social position of a life of discrimination) wife comes across as near-perfect casting by Nicholls and their performances encapsulate the director's subtle (sometimes almost oblique) approach to telling what their momentous (in terms of socio-political importance) story is. Nicholls' subtlety is probably best illustrated by the low-key way in which, at the film's conclusion, he depicts the couple's ultimate 'victory' at the US Supreme Court. This subtlety is reinforced by what is a sublimely restrained and melodic score by regular Nicholls collaborator, composer David Wingo.
Perhaps the only minor weakness of the film - narrative-wise - is that we're immediately thrown into the 'malaise' of Richard and Mildred's unconventional pairing without much in the way of a backstory. Not that we doubt for a moment the deep emotional connection of the Lovings - indeed, Edgerton's somewhat distant characterisation seems, if anything, to add to the seriousness with which the pair are bonded. I have read that Nicholls (who is from Arkansas) did not want to 'over-dramatise' the abhorrence and inhumanity displayed by the 'moral forces' marshalled against the Lovings (which, in the film, take the form almost exclusively of lawmakers and enforcers), but rather portray their beliefs as those that have been ingrained in the 1950s/60s community over many generations. Despite this, it is, of course, impossible not to be incensed by the injustices depicted, which, in a memorable scene as the local sheriff explains to Richard the 'reasons' behind the prejudice, states, 'It's God's law', opening up a whole minefield of how such poison proliferates!
As referenced above, the film's generic subject matter has been done many, many times on screen before, perhaps most famously, in terms of comparable geographic setting, in films like In The Heat Of The Night and To Kill A Mockingbird. The film that Loving brought to my mind, though, focusing closely on a central relationship albeit in this case a mono-racial one, is Barry Jenkins poetic 2018 masterpiece If Beale Street Could Talk. I wouldn't put Nicholls' film quite in this league but its wider historical political significance cannot be overstated.
Perhaps the only minor weakness of the film - narrative-wise - is that we're immediately thrown into the 'malaise' of Richard and Mildred's unconventional pairing without much in the way of a backstory. Not that we doubt for a moment the deep emotional connection of the Lovings - indeed, Edgerton's somewhat distant characterisation seems, if anything, to add to the seriousness with which the pair are bonded. I have read that Nicholls (who is from Arkansas) did not want to 'over-dramatise' the abhorrence and inhumanity displayed by the 'moral forces' marshalled against the Lovings (which, in the film, take the form almost exclusively of lawmakers and enforcers), but rather portray their beliefs as those that have been ingrained in the 1950s/60s community over many generations. Despite this, it is, of course, impossible not to be incensed by the injustices depicted, which, in a memorable scene as the local sheriff explains to Richard the 'reasons' behind the prejudice, states, 'It's God's law', opening up a whole minefield of how such poison proliferates!
As referenced above, the film's generic subject matter has been done many, many times on screen before, perhaps most famously, in terms of comparable geographic setting, in films like In The Heat Of The Night and To Kill A Mockingbird. The film that Loving brought to my mind, though, focusing closely on a central relationship albeit in this case a mono-racial one, is Barry Jenkins poetic 2018 masterpiece If Beale Street Could Talk. I wouldn't put Nicholls' film quite in this league but its wider historical political significance cannot be overstated.
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