A white bricklayer and amateur drag racer (Joel Edgerton) builds a home in segregated rural Virginia and travels to Washington, D.C. to wed his black wife (Ruth Negga). Soon they find themselves dragged from their home, jailed, and charged under an anti-miscegenation law, a case that would eventually get picked up by the ACLU and lead to a landmark 1967 Supreme Court decision. In telling the story of Richard and Mildred Loving, Jeff Nichols curiously opts for a leisurely approach, forgoing drama, characterization, and narrative drive resulting in a bland, disappointing outing. Edgerton and Negga give it an admirable go but simply are just not given enough to work with.
** out of ****
