The nod to structure in Another Year , Mike Leigh’s latest rumpled, rambling character study, frames it with a gentle irony. A social portraitist known for his regional specialties and organic development process — his scripts are gleaned from improvisational sessions with actors, in this case a central trio comprising a long-married couple and their wobbly third wheel — narrative organization is notoriously low on Leigh’s list of priorities. And so while the film is divided into the four seasons of another passing — wonderful, wasted — year, the time-keeping device serves mainly to highlight how nature shames those of us who remain little changed with its constant, show-offy segues.
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REVIEW: Mike Leigh Grapples with Life’s Big — and Small — Questions in Another Year
