The Oscar-winner gives a sluggish performance as a grief-stricken psychiatrist in this shallow psychological thriller
In Manchester By the Sea, Casey Affleck gave a heart-rending performance as a father emotionally paralysed by the death of his young children; at times barely moving his features, he suggested the rage and grief swelling inside his character. Well, here he is again, grief stricken and blank-faced, playing a psychiatrist whose son has been killed in a car crash. The trouble is this time it’s impossible to read anything much into Affleck’s sleepy eyes – other than possibly an overwhelming urge to take a nap. His sluggish performance suits the tempo of this shallow psychological thriller, which is written in the style of a 90s potboiler but as if someone forgot to switch on the gas. It’s gloomy and dull, and a little bit up itself.
There’s a snortingly ridiculous scene near the start where psychiatrist Philip (Affleck) presents a case study to an auditorium full of students. He claims to have cured a young suicidal woman called Daphne (Emily Alyn Lynd) with an experimental new talking therapy; ignoring all the usual boundaries, he has shared his own grief and emotional trauma with her – telling her things he hasn’t even confided to his wife Grace (Michelle Monaghan). When his boss at the psychiatric institute raises a sceptical eyebrow, Philip defends his approach with what passes for intellectual rigour. Actually, with a bored sigh he says: “You’re so old school.”