Movie Review - 6 Years

6 Years (2015)

Taissa Farmiga, Ben Rosenfield, Lindsey Burdge, Joshua Leonard, Dana Wheeler-Nicholson, and Molly McMichael

Directed by Hannah Fidell

***This film is currently streaming on Netflix***

Anchored by some captivatingly real performances by Taissa Farmiga and Ben Rosenfield, 6 Years is a tenderly executed portrayal of young love as Melanie and Dan, together since high school, find themselves maturing and growing as their enter their later years at college, questioning whether their relationship has the ability to mature and grow along with them.  Obviously low budget, the simplicity that runs through all aspects of the production allows Melanie and Dan's story to take center stage. Writer-director Hannah Fidell does a nice job of finding the balance of the story between focusing on the couple's relationship with one another and with outside forces that may cause harm to their longterm love.

The film isn't without its share of melodrama and despite its short 70-minute runtime, the said melodrama wears a bit thin and grows repetitive, but Farmiga and Rosenfield do such a nice job of creating their characters and their relationship with one another that when the film ended I was won over a bit more than I thought I'd be.  The lack of bells and whistles works in the film's favor for sure.  Don't let the brevity of this review sway you into thinking I didn't appreciate 6 Years.  While it isn't without a few faults, it's definitely one of the better college relationship dramas that have come along in the past several years.

The RyMickey Rating:  B