ReelBob: ‘Ordinary Love’ ★★★★

By Bob Bloom

“Ordinary Love” is not so much about breast cancer, but its impact on the woman coping with it, her husband and their marriage.

Lesley Manville and Liam Neeson portray Joan and Tom, a retired late middle-age couple who are at ease with each other and banter and tease as most loving, long-married couples do.

They have their daily walk, watch television and go grocery shopping. Joan mockingly scolds Tom for buying too much beer, while he criticizes the amount of fresh vegetables she purchases.

In short, they are a normal longtime man-and-wife, comfortable and understanding of each other’s quirks, virtues and shortcomings.

Their routine is disrupted when, showering one night, Joan discovers a lump in her left breast. She is concerned, while Tom tries to reassure that it probably is nothing serious.

Joan makes a hospital appointment where a doctor tells her the lump may be a cyst, but to be certain what it is, she must undergo an MRI and a biopsy.

Joan, of course, is fearful and anxious, while Tom goes into denial mode, telling her it’s not breast cancer.

Joan is not so sure. Tom does try to comfort her, saying, “We will do whatever happens to be done, the two of us. That’s what’s going to happen.”

Tom also is frustrated because the doctors cannot give them a definitive diagnosis until all the results are analyzed.

Unfortunately, the tests reveal that Joan has breast cancer. The doctor tells her the safest course is chemotherapy and, if necessary, a mastectomy.

Joan is frightened and Tom reluctantly admits that he is afraid, but he pledges his support, telling her that his job is to help make their lives continue as normal as circumstances allow.

The bulk of “Ordinary Love” deals with Joan going through the various stages of treatment with Tom offering emotional and physical support.

But the numerous hospital visits take their toll. On the long drives to and from home, the couple argue over little things. Recriminations and resentments are aired but are quickly forgotten as Joan’s treatments continue.

She begins losing her hair and, in one of the most touching sequences in the movie, Tom cuts off the rest of her hair, then shaves her head, all the while asking her what kind of gossip is exchanged in beauty salons when women gather.

Manville’s performance is exceptional. Her finest moments are when she is alone or looking at herself in the mirror. Her expressive eyes denote the uncertainties and worries she feels.

Neeson, too, displays a wide emotional range — from a false bravura about Joan’s future to anger when she fails to keep track of the medications she must take.

Still, their love and devotion to each other never is in doubt.

The film’s villain is not so much the cancer, but the insidious havoc it wreaks on relationships and the mortality of existence.

In the end, Joan is declared cancer free. Her hair begins to grow back, and the couple’s life returns to a sense of normalcy. Not only has Joan survived, but their marriage has as well.

And maybe that is the moral of “Ordinary Love” — that whatever fate throws at you, if you and your significant other can stand strong and united, you will prevail. Love, hope and courage can be as mighty and healing as any medication.

I am a founding member of the Indiana Film Journalists Association. My reviews appear at ReelBob (reelbob.com) and Rottentomatoes (www.rottentomatoes.com). I also review Blu-rays and DVDs. I can be reached by email at bobbloomjc@gmail.com or on Twitter @ReelBobBloom. Links to my reviews can be found on Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn.

ORDINARY LOVE 3 stars out of 4 (R), sexual situations, nudity

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qGF58R1payk