Warning: This post contains major spoilers for We Live in TimeWe Live in Time has a gut-wrenching ending. The drama, directed by John Crowley from a screenplay by Nick Payne, stars Florence Pugh and Andrew Garfield as Almut and Tobias, a couple whose time together is shown through non-chronological storytelling. Premiering at the Toronto International Film Festival, We Live in Time’s reviews were mostly positive. The tear-jerking film ends with Almut competing in a renowned cooking competition, which would have been on the same day she and Tobias were set to get married. Before the competition ends, and feeling some pain, Almut decides to leave.
We Live in Time marks the first onscreen collaboration between Florence Pugh and Andrew Garfield, who previously worked with John Crowley on 2007’s Boy A .
She finds Tobias and their daughter Ella in the crowd and walks out with them. The family goes ice skating instead of staying until the end of the competition. Almut, a former figure skater, skates with her family, eventually gliding away from them. She smiles and waves to them from the other side of the rink. Later, Tobias and Ella walk through the family’s chicken coop picking eggs and Tobias teaches Ella how to crack an egg using one hand the same way Almut used to do. Almut is nowhere to be found in We Live in Time’s final scene.
Did Almut Die In We Live In Time?
It’s heavily implied that Almut dies in We Live in Time. If she was still alive, Almut would likely have been in the film’s final scene teaching Ella how to crack an egg instead of Tobias. Though her death isn’t shown onscreen, Almut’s absence is greatly felt. The gentleness with which the film’s final moment is handled also points to Almut’s death, as Tobias passes along something Almut and Ella would’ve shared. Almut knew her death was a possibility, and she wanted to spend the last months of her life truly living instead of feeling really sick, which she did.
How Did Almut Do In The Cooking Competition?
We Live In Time Doesn’t Reveal If Almut Wins
Almut was beginning to feel pain in the middle of the cooking competition but managed to finish her dish alongside her sous chef before the timer went off. But since she left before the judges could announce the winners, We Live in Time underscores how the outcome of the competition wasn’t as important as Almut spending some quality time with her family. She had done what she came to do, which was cook a great dish and proved she had it in her to compete. Whether she won or not was irrelevant.
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We Live In Time is an upcoming drama that is already getting Oscar buzz, and it soon will be available for audiences to watch in theaters nationwide.
It’s nice to imagine Almut won the cooking competition. She had worked so hard to be there — choosing the competition over her wedding — and it’d taken up a good amount of her time. Almut was excited about the cooking competition, and given the fact that she’d even made it that far suggests she had a good chance of winning. The judges may have been put off that a chef would leave her station before the winner was announced, so that may have affected her chances, but Almut had completed the hardest part. The prize didn’t mean as much after that.
Why Almut Prioritized The Cooking Competition Over Marriage
Almut Wanted To Be Remembered For More Than Being Sick
Almut wanted to marry Tobias. She had accepted his proposal and was excited for the next stage in their relationship. However, Almut prioritized the cooking competition over getting married because she knew she had limited time left to do something meaningful in her career. Crucially, Almut wanted to be more for Ella. She wanted her daughter to remember her being a great chef and not just as her sick mother. Almut had been so focused on her treatment and getting married for a while, but the cooking competition wasn’t something she could pass up.
Almut also wanted to do something for herself that was outside of her illness and family. The cooking competition was a special opportunity to prove to herself that she could still achieve things despite having cancer. Almut didn’t want to let her illness overshadow or take over her life. Being a part of the cooking competition — prestigious and exciting as it was — was a part of Almut living her best life before it was over, and, at the time, she wasn’t quite ready to give it up. Marriage or not, though, Almut was committed to Tobias and their family.
Every Big Moment Of Tobias & Almut’s Life That Is Shown In We Live In Time
Tobias and Almut’s first meeting
Almut learning she has cancer — twice
Almut and Tobias finding out they’re expecting a baby
Almut giving birth to Ella
Almut’s cooking competition
Tobias proposing to Almut
The first time Almut and Tobias sleep together
Tobias & Ella’s Dog Explained
The Dog Is Mentioned Long Before He Appears Onscreen
Shortly after Almut’s cancer diagnosis, she and Tobias discussed the potential of getting a dog to help Ella get through her mother’s illness and death. In We Live in Time’s final scene, a dog joins Tobias and Ella in the garden and the house, indicating the couple had finally gotten a dog for their daughter at some point between the cooking competition and Almut’s passing. The dog is another clue that Almut died. But by the looks of things, the dog did likely help Ella through her mother’s death, as she had something to focus on besides Almut’s absence.
We Live In Time’s Nonlinear Timeline Is Crucial To Understanding Almut & Tobias
It Gives The Film A Holistic View Of Their Relationship
If We Live in Time had gone the route of linear storytelling, it would’ve probably been a typical drama that ends in tragedy. The nonlinear decision lets us see Tobias and Almut’s relationship in its entirety, showcasing that life can be full of ups and downs but, in hindsight, the whole of their relationship and the life they shared is a good one that’s worth the heartache. It also underscores how full a life they lived together despite Almut’s cancer. The lack of chronology offers the experience of watching the characters in various phases and emotional states, which is interesting.
It also underscores how full a life they lived together despite Almut’s cancer. The lack of chronology offers the experience of watching the characters in various phases and emotional states…
Almut’s illness could have overshadowed all the other good life moments had it come nearer to the end. But the film doesn’t forget the rest of the pieces that make up Almut and Tobias’ lives. The nonlinear timeline is crucial to also understanding who Almut and Tobias are — individually and as a couple. We Live in Time’s cast bears witness to the couple’s past, present, and future all at once, revealing their love, their conflicts, their sadness, and hope. Crowley’s heartbreaking drama provides the full picture of Tobias and Almut’s time together, and it’s humbling and beautiful because of it.
The Real Meaning Of We Live In Time
Image via A24
Like the best time travel romance movies, We Live in Time employs death to drive home its point that time is precious and should be spent with loved ones. Even in big moments, like Almut’s cooking competition and Ella’s birth, Crowley and Payne highlight that it’s not about the outcome or even how it happens, but the journey and the feelings that accompany them. It’s about who’s there for you and the importance of sharing those moments with them — even if it doesn’t play out as they expected.
Because it’s told in a nonlinear fashion, We Live in Time showcases the fleetingness of time and the life one can build between one point and another, as well as how important two people can become to each other in a short period. Time is an enemy and a friend, taking and giving in equal measure, a point the film makes throughout. Almut and Tobias can’t do anything about time itself, but they can live a full life. The time they have together becomes all the more special, and We Live in Time posits it shouldn’t be taken for granted.
