The Light Between Oceans definitely looks like a Derek Cianfrance film: beautiful actors experiencing not-so-beautiful things in an emotionally devastating, intimate drama. The first trailer for the director’s follow-up to The Place Beyond the Pines is here, featuring current Oscar hopefuls Alicia Vikander and Michael Fassbender in what could be an early contender for next year’s awards. If nothing else, this movie looks like it’s going to shatter your heart into a tiny thousand pieces.

Based on the novel by M.L. Stedman, The Light Between Oceans stars Fassbender as a lighthouse keeper who lives with his wife on a remote island. One day, an adorable baby girl washes ashore in a boat, and the pair adopt her and raise her as their own. A few years later, a chance encounter with the girl’s grieving biological mother (Rachel Weisz) confronts the couple with a life-altering decision.

The Light Between Oceans is Cianfrance’s fourth film, following 2010's heartbreaking Blue Valentine (which made our list of the top 25 romance films of the past 25 years), and 2012's Place Beyond the Pines, which was a bit more divisive but no less emotionally packed.

In addition to an excellent director and his equally excellent cast, the film also boasts cinematographer Adam Arkapaw, who delivered some truly incredible, stunning work with Fassbender on Justin Kurzel’s Macbeth.

The Light Between Oceans hits theaters on September 2, but you can get a head start rooting for its stars during the Oscars this Sunday: Fassbender is nominated for Best Actor for his role in Steve Jobs, while Vikander is nominated for Best Supporting Actress for her part in The Danish Girl.

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