THE BIG MOVIE

Manchester By The Sea (2016) 15 Saturday, 9.45pm, BBC2

Casey Affleck won the Best Actor Oscar for his performance in this sombre drama. He plays Lee Chandler (above), a man tormented by a past tragedy, who punishes himself with a meagre existence of low attainment and emotional disconnection. When his brother dies suddenly, Lee returns to his home town of Manchester, Massachusetts, where he is named the legal guardian of his brother’s teen son, Patrick (Lucas Hedges). Flashback scenes reveal why Lee left, while Patrick – who has a rich and fulfilling social life – refuses to leave with Lee and move to Boston. There are no easy answers here – to male grief and guilt – but through their struggles, Lee and Patrick eventually find a way.