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Living
2022 102 min Japan, Sweden, United Kingdom PG-13 18+
★7.8
Drama
Director: Oliver Hermanus
🎭 Based on
«Ikiru»
Trailers
EN
EN
Teaser
EN
EN
EN
EN
EN
EN
EN
Description
London, 1953. Mr. Williams, a veteran civil servant, is an important cog within the city's bureaucracy as it struggles to rebuild in the aftermath of World War II. Buried under paperwork at the office and lonely at home, his life has long felt empty and meaningless. Then a devastating medical diagnosis forces him to take stock, and to try and grasp some fulfilment before it passes permanently beyond reach.
Budget:
$10M
US Gross:
$3.04M
Worldwide:
$7M
Starring
Bill Nighy
Actor
Aimee Lou Wood
Actor
Alex Sharp
Actor
Awards
Academy Awards 2023
— Best Actor
BAFTA 2023
— Best Actor
BAFTA 2023
— Best Adapted Screenplay
Golden Globe 2023
— Best Actor (Drama)
BAFTA 2023
— Best British Film
Academy Awards 2023
— Best Adapted Screenplay
Screen Actors Guild Awards 2023
— Best Actor
Key opinion
Living is a somber and meticulously crafted adaptation of Kurosawa's Ikiru, relocated to 1950s Britain. While many praise Bill Nighy’s restrained performance and the film’s emotional resonance, some critics find the remake less impactful than its source material.
| Production | The production design authentically captures the stifling, ritualized atmosphere of 1950s British bureaucracy. | |
| Adaptation | The film succeeds in transposing the core themes of Tolstoy and Kurosawa into a quintessentially British setting. | |
| Acting | Bill Nighy’s performance is polarizing: some see it as a career-best, subtle portrayal of quiet desperation, while others find the character’s lack of vitality and 'sluggish' movement unconvincing. | |
| Emotion | Opinions on the film's emotional impact are split; proponents find it evocatively moving, while detractors feel it induces fatigue rather than inspiration. | |
| Adaptation | The film’s effectiveness is debated when compared to the 1952 original, with some arguing the remake fails to capture the same tragic intensity. |