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We got Away from Her from Netflix weeks ago and haven't seen it because on those rare occasions when we had time, I didn't want to watch something I knew would be depressing. We finally watched it today.
I'm not going to give a full review, because I just cried too much, and my head still hurts. If I think about the details, I'll start crying again. Kleenex alert: if you're at all susceptible, keep a box on hand. I finally put it on the couch next to me. I don't normally think of myself as a crier. You probably already know the premise: Fiona and Grant have been married for decades when Fiona starts showing symptoms of Alzheimer's. Want more? You won't get it from me (nor will I give you a link to the IMDb listing, because the outline says too much and doesn't put it well, to boot). Yes, it is a downer, with moments of grace and even humor.
Gordon Pinsent and Julie Christie are amazing. Julie Christie has already won some awards and is nominated for more (see the IMDb list of awards here); I'm giving up and not even trying to describe her performance. I know Gordon Pinsent mostly from Due South and, though I cringe to admit it, a few episodes of The Red Green Show (hey, they did the funniest pledge drive ever for PBS; there will never be a funnier). So I'm used to him as a comic actor, but I'd seen enough to suspect he had a lot more in him. Boy, does he. The supporting cast is also strong (including Olympia Dukakis), but these two are the center of the movie (and the director knows it). Great screenplay and directing by Sarah Polley; the short story, "The Bear Came over the Mountain," is by Alice Munro. (I haven't read it, and I'm sorry to say I'm disinclined to now; the movie was too good and too painful at the same time. I don't want to see the movie a second time, either.)
Amazing movie; I have to recommend it, but with caution: if you think it will upset you, it probably will. But there's also a tremendous amount of love in this movie, sometimes in really unexpected ways. I thought it was worth seeing--even with the blasted headache that crying gives me.
I'm not going to give a full review, because I just cried too much, and my head still hurts. If I think about the details, I'll start crying again. Kleenex alert: if you're at all susceptible, keep a box on hand. I finally put it on the couch next to me. I don't normally think of myself as a crier. You probably already know the premise: Fiona and Grant have been married for decades when Fiona starts showing symptoms of Alzheimer's. Want more? You won't get it from me (nor will I give you a link to the IMDb listing, because the outline says too much and doesn't put it well, to boot). Yes, it is a downer, with moments of grace and even humor.
Gordon Pinsent and Julie Christie are amazing. Julie Christie has already won some awards and is nominated for more (see the IMDb list of awards here); I'm giving up and not even trying to describe her performance. I know Gordon Pinsent mostly from Due South and, though I cringe to admit it, a few episodes of The Red Green Show (hey, they did the funniest pledge drive ever for PBS; there will never be a funnier). So I'm used to him as a comic actor, but I'd seen enough to suspect he had a lot more in him. Boy, does he. The supporting cast is also strong (including Olympia Dukakis), but these two are the center of the movie (and the director knows it). Great screenplay and directing by Sarah Polley; the short story, "The Bear Came over the Mountain," is by Alice Munro. (I haven't read it, and I'm sorry to say I'm disinclined to now; the movie was too good and too painful at the same time. I don't want to see the movie a second time, either.)
Amazing movie; I have to recommend it, but with caution: if you think it will upset you, it probably will. But there's also a tremendous amount of love in this movie, sometimes in really unexpected ways. I thought it was worth seeing--even with the blasted headache that crying gives me.
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