Review of By the Sea (2015) by Kevin N — 05 Feb 2017

By the Sea is a drama starring Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie , very different from their debut performance together in Mr. and Mrs. Smith. While slow paced there is some very interesting content. Not for kids.

By the Sea is dealing with a complex relationship, and it takes time to figure out what the problem is. We see the wife Vanessa, played by Angelina Jolie, lying around listlessly (but in carefully applied makeup and fixed hair) in a state of depression by the beautiful seaside. Her husband Roland, played by Brad Pitt, is a writer having serious writer's block. One of the details I had forgotten is that they are both trying to numb their pain. Her with pills and him with alcohol. Their hurtful comments to each other and not getting along was kind of a bummer, but...

Vanessa discovers a peephole in the wall and begins to watch the newlywed neighbor couple next door having their newlywed sex life. OMG! She is so bad! After a while, Roland discovers how she is entertaining herself while he's gone. He decides to join her in watching. The turnon of watching their unsuspecting neighbors together seems to be cathartic. I didn't see this coming because they didn't seem like that sort of people (who watch other people).

By the Sea features a beautiful seaside vacation spot with nice views and some friendly French locals (set on the French seashore), but I don't think By the Sea is quite the right title for this. Voyeur Vacationers is what they should have called it.