AWAY FROM HER "THE ULTIMATE LOVE STORY"In Hollywood, older actors get about the same treatment older people get... we make them disappear. We have nursing homes and retirement "villas" where we leave them lined up against the corridors looking for a familiar face every other week unless the kids have soccer practise. Not that it's easy to care for them at home. Especially when Alzheimer's hits. And our unlikely hero of a husband, Grant (Gordon Pinsent) fights all the way. However, it is not he who suffers, but his wife of 44 years, Fiona, played with grace and depth by Julie Christie. They have a wonderful marriage and a comfortable routine in rhythm with each other. She is well aware that she is slowly "beginning to disappear" and her behaviors worsen. She is "going, but not gone." Fiona is the one who reads up on what the
caregiver (usually the spouse) should expect. She is the one who picks the time and the place. (Note: This is a Canadian film and their system works differently from ours as I doubt anyone here chooses to enter a home unless in dire straights.) Due to policy, he can not see her for 30 days so she can acclimate. The time feels like years not days, and when it is permissible to visit, he has a difficult time making his adjustment. How do you grieve the loss of a person when their heart still beats, and they talk to you in that familiar voice, but it just isn't the same? Then we toss in new attachments and it gets more and more painful and conflicted. Christie does an eloquent job in her role, bringing tenderness and substance to a woman who is not dumb or crazy, she has Alzheimer's. Pinsent also gives us a clear picture that we oddly feel not in our heads, but in our hearts on how difficult it is to let go, to regain your life as if you were widowed. In every subsequent shot, he looks more and more disheveled and less hopeful. Sarah Polley, gifted actress, wrote and directed this film which is stunning. (I want to say 'for her age' but for anyone it would still be stunning.) This movie is a rarity where not only do these older adults have healthy and active lives, they also have sex. On the most part, I think our society doesn't want to see that, but here it is handled gently; and yes, Julie Christie is still one beautiful, sexy woman. Alzheimer's may be easier to recognise now, but it doesn't make it any less heartbreaking for those who are near and dear to those afflicted.Big Pick: Absolutely a must see; Compassionate, excellent, touching and brave.
