Filmmakers long on spectacle and short on subtlety should take a cue from "Never Let Me Go." An image of a tree, a chirped childhood anecdote, and any shot of Andrew Garfield's bottomless brown eyes speak more profoundly than most bombastic Oscar wannabes attempt with sweeping scores and transparent monologues. Perhaps the strongest feat of the film is the gradual exposure of its plot: twists and turns are revealed in small but rewarding ways. In short, "Never Let Me Go" does what most 21st century movies are afraid to: it trusts its viewers.
Based on Kazuo Ishiguro's 2005 bestseller, the film follows Kathy (Carey Mulligan), Ruth (Keira Knightley), and Tommy (Garfield), through three significant stages of their lives. The first takes place at Hailsham, a boarding school where pupils are treated with respect and creativity is highly valued. Seeds of a love triangle are planted as young Ruth knowingly pursues Kathy's crush, the sensitive Tommy. In the film's second and third portions, the trio are now young adults, sent away from Hailsham to a still-isolated location. They must now face the realities for which they have been prepared since before birth, without their consent.
Though "Never Let Me Go"'s second act drags slightly, the performances of the three lead actors make it worth the extra time. Knightley gamely devotes herself to a character who is less ingenue, more complex individual. Mulligan's Kathy is an introspective and interesting narrator, reflecting on relationships both fleeting and grounded. But the real standout is Garfield (also brilliant in 2008's "Boy A"): portrayed by a less capable actor, Tommy could have been whiny and selfish. Instead, Tommy's vulnerability and confusion evoke protective parental emotion from the iciest moviegoer.
It's hard to say whether "Never Let Me Go" will garner attention come awards season. The film is a tapestry gradually picked apart rather than abruptly torn to shreds. Widely acclaimed or hardly seen, however, the film is a summer sunset: you are fully aware it will be gone soon, but the beauty and truth is so potent, you don't care.