Manchester by the Sea (2016) follows Lee Chandler (Casey Affleck), a quiet and withdrawn handyman whose life is unexpectedly upended when he returns to his hometown of Manchester-by-the-Sea, Massachusetts, after the death of his brother. Suddenly named the legal guardian of his teenage nephew, Patrick (Lucas Hedges), Lee is forced to confront both the responsibilities of the present and the painful memories that drove him to leave home years earlier. As the film moves between the past and present, it explores grief, guilt, family, and the lasting impact of trauma, portraying how healing doesn’t always mean moving on, but learning to live with what cannot be changed.