Dvd/150: 45 YEARS (Andrew Haigh, 2015)

A week before Geoff and Kate's 45th anniversary celebration, he receives a letter from Switzerland: a body has been found preserved in a glacier, a woman called Katya who was Geoff's lover in the early 60s who vanished while climbing with him.

Kate is surprised when Geoff reveals he is Katya's next of kin because they pretended to be married while travelling.  As the week goes on, Geoff seems preoccupied with the dead woman, while Kate attempts to keep him focused on their life together.

One afternoon, Kate explores the attic - which Geoff has been visiting - and finds a bedsheet hung on which to show old slides of Katya.  Confronting the ghost haunting their life, Kate is shocked to see that Katya was pregnant...  Now plagued with doubts, Kate must face the celebration of her life with Geoff.

Andrew Haigh's emotionally devastating film showcases excellent performances from Courtenay and Rampling.

 

Shelf or charity shop?  It will stay in DVD limbo eg. in a plastic storage box but will certainly want to see this again.  There is a moment in the film when Kate wistfully mentions it's a shame they never had more photos taken together - just for her, here they are in 1969 when they would have met...