Kate (Charlotte Rampling) is preparing her 45th anniversary party married to Geoff Mercer (Tom Courtenay). They live comfortably childless in rural England. Geoff reveals something about a previous relationship with Katya who died long ago hiking a glacier but the body was only recently discovered. Kate is a little perplexed and struggles to understand the true nature of their relationship.

Charlotte Rampling is one of the greatest actresses around. I get the idea of an old couple with a secret. There isn't enough danger or drama for the tension to be truly raised. The major drama should occur after the big discovery. This is a quiet drama with buried emotions. I'm not complaining that nothing happens. It's just that the drama is interior and doesn't amount to that big. If you like quiet character study, this one is for you.

45 Years is a strongly acted film but it is too small scale that looks like television drama rather than a feature film.

Kate Mercer (Charlotte Rampling) finds her herself re-assessing her relationship with her husband of 45 years, Geoff (Tom Courtenay.)

Geoff's German girlfriend died in the early 1960s hiking in Switzerland. She fell into a crevasse, but now Geoff has received a letter informing him that her body has been found with the glacier melting.

As the couple make preparations for their 45th wedding anniversary in Norfolk. Kate is disconcerted as to how deep and strong Geoff's relationship was with Katya. Even though she met Geoff some years after Katya died, she finds out that she shared a similar name with her and even had similar looks. Kate feels fragile and Geoff does not seem to comprehend his wife's discomfort.

45 Years is a small film and thought provoking. The viewer could feel perplexed with the uncertainties that Kate feels over a relationship her husband had with some woman long before he met her. You also think that Geoff is a clot for not sensing how Kate feels although the memories of the past clearly makes him anxious as well.

Kate and Geoff are a mature couple enjoying a peaceful life, their 45 year wedding anniversary is soon approaching, but this sense of calm is broken when Geoff receives a letter, telling him that the body of his first wife Katya has been found in the Swiss mountains. We see the effects on Geoff an Kate during the lead up to their celebration.

It is a wonderful character study, with two acting legends, Charlotte Rampling and Tom Courtenay, both showcasing their vast talents, as a combination the pairing are formidable, too many high caliber scenes to pick out any real specifics, although the living room dancing is expertly done.

A good supporting cast too, I'm biased towards Geraldine James, but as always she is fantastic. She doesn't try to overtake or overshadow, she's great.

It's a film I very much enjoyed, it belongs to a certain genre of films that often gets overlooked, one that could easily be dismissed as boring, but it is expertly done. A true gem with an acting masterclass. 8/10