Review: Loving

Previously told in the 1996 television movie Mr. and Mrs. Loving and the 2011 documentary The Loving Story, the true story of Richard and Mildred Loving seems ever more relevant in the current racial and political climate. This is a civil rights story that brims with melodramatic potential, yet what's impressive about writer-director Jeff Nichols' accounting is its clear focus on its central couple who were accused of the "crime of being married."

The film begins in 1958 Virginia. Mildred (Ruth Negga), a black field worker from rural Caroline County, and Richard (Joel Edgerton), a white working man, are already together and are preparing for their first child, their first home, and their marriage. Both white and black folks in their small town give the couple looks when they display signs of affection, though they are surrounded by friends and family who appear accepting of their union. Yet when Mildred's father drives with them to Washington, D.C. to witness their marriage, there's something in his expression that suggests he believes the two are making a mistake.

Indeed, it isn't too long after the married couple return to Caroline County when they're awakened in the middle of the night by the local police. Richard points to their marriage license framed on the wall but the cops reply, "That's no good here," and place the couple in separate cells in the county jail. "You know better," the local sheriff (Marton Csokas) admonishes Richard once he's out on bail. People might not have cared too much that they were together, the sheriff continues, but Richard had to go and marry her. "People are different for a reason," the sheriff reminds him before warning Richard that he'll have him arrested again if he tries to bail out Mildred, who has to remain in jail longer simply because she's black. Richard hires a lawyer, who advises them that they have two options: plead guilty or go to jail. If they do plead guilty, which they end up doing, they'll have to leave the state for at least 25 years.

Not that resettling out of state is a better remedy. One can clearly see how being away from her family and from the open space of the country is withering Mildred. Richard agrees to sneak her back to Virginia so that his mother, a salt-of-the-earth midwife, can help Mildred give birth to her first child. As they await the first signs of labour, Richard and his mother have a moment outside. "You knew better," his mother tells Richard, who thought she liked Mildred. "I like a lot of people but you shouldn't have done what you did." No sooner than Mildred gives birth than the cops come to arrest them again. Perhaps no scene is more quietly devastating than Mildred kissing her newborn's head, handing the baby over to her sister, then walking outside and straight into the police car.

That scene is the highlight of Negga's powerful performance. With her huge and emotive eyes, Negga recalls silent screen stars like Lillian Gish or Janet Gaynor, conveying multitudes with the most minute of actions. There are so many memorable moments: the briefest of hesitations before Mildred, eyes downcast, utters her plea of guilty, the crumple of relief when her sister comes to visit her, the contentment that blankets her when she finds herself back in the country, the hope rising within when she learns that the American Civil Liberties Union will fight on their behalf and take their case all the way to the Supreme Court. She's matched every step of the way by Edgerton, who crafts a most sensitive portrait of masculinity. "I can take care of you," he says to Mildred before breaking down in tears, and one realises the the true enormity of the burden Richard has been carrying.

Those who prefer dramas of this ilk with more grandstanding and clearer divides may take issue with Nichols' spare and understated execution. Nichols doesn't demonise characters like the local sheriff, the judge, Richard's mother, or anyone opposed to the Lovings' pairing - interracial marriage was illegal in Virginia at the time and these regular, small-town folk held attitudes common for their time. There's a consistent undercurrent of menace that hums throughout the film, but Nichols wisely chooses not to turn up the volume. Some may feel shortchanged by the brief attention paid to the Supreme Court trial, which would result in the overturning of laws against interracial marriages, but all of Nichols' decisions are not only in line with his style of filmmaking but also serve to enhance rather than mute the potency of the drama.

Loving

Directed by: Jeff Nichols

Written by: Jeff Nichols

Starring: Joel Edgerton, Ruth Negga, Michael Shannon, Nick Kroll, Marton Csokas, Bill Camp, Sharon Blackwood, Terri Abney