Yesterday in Cannes belonged to Loving, the film written and directed by Jeff Nichols that tells the true story of Mildred and Richard Loving, who broke the law by getting married in 1958. How? Well she’s black and he’s white. And back then, it was illegal in Virginia. So they were supposed to go to prison unless they left their home state for 25 years. Which they refused to do, taking their case all the way to the Supreme Court and the ruling that eventually decided that their love was legal.
The film is not about the legal battle. Rather, the focus is on the actual love and this couple who wanted nothing more than to just love each other and NOT HAVE TO GO TO JAIL FOR IT. Critics are saying that it’s precisely this perspective that makes Loving so effective. Because when you meet Mildred and Richard sharing their lives together, it naturally makes the rest of it f-cking absurd.
Loving premiered to great enthusiasm. And now, already, I know it’s early, but they’re making predictions. Loving has emerged as an early contender for Oscar consideration. And Ruth Negga, who plays Mildred Loving, was already being asked about a Best Actress nomination. The Hollywood Reporter is calling her “The Next Big Thing”. The Telegraph called her performance “place your Oscar bets tremendous”. And she also happens to be the lead in Preacher, which Sarah is very excited about and previewed yesterday – click here for a refresher.
So. Ruth Negga. Remember the name. We’ll be hearing it a LOT.
Here’s the trailer for the HBO documentary about the Lovings in 2012: