‘Still Alice’ a devastating story of Alzheimer’s
Thursday May 21, 2015 | By:Tony Baksa |
At the center of this very sad tale is Alice. She is smart, strong, loving and lovable. She will break your heart. Her descent into Alzheimer’s is truthfully depicted. The drama is carefully measured as to avoid histrionics and theatrics. It is quite an achievement.
We watch hopelessly Alice’s unavoidable decline. Memory loss is a major symptom of Alzheimer’s and the most devastating. Alice experiences episodes where she doesn’t recognize her children and her husband. She also has bouts of disorientation – not knowing where she is. She goes out jogging only to find herself not recognizing the street or why she is there. It is harrowing, in its quiet way.
This is a powerful film. Is it entertaining? Well, not in the normal sense. Yet, in its authenticity, it is deeply involving. There is a stand-out scene with Alice lecturing as she bravely fights her limitations. It just may be the most moving moment in film this year.
Julianne Moore as 50-years-old Alice gives a quiet, subtle portrait of a vital woman knowingly facing this terribly cruel disease. Her intelligence in dealing day-to-day with strategies she devises for herself is inspiring. There is no implied light at the end of the tunnel here. We know, as does Alice, her story has a predictable, inevitable conclusion.
Alice – ironically a linqiustics professor – is prominent and accomplished in her field. She shares her life with an equally successful husband (Alec Baldwin) and three grown children. Her youngest daughter (Kristen Stewart), an aspiring actress, puts her career on hold to the barbed amazement of her siblings so she can be with her mother in her obvious time of need. Hunter Parrish, as Alice’s only son, also stands out. He puts credence to the old Stanislavski proverb, “There are no small parts, only small actors.” With very few lines and screen time, Parrish fashions an emotional portrait of a loving son hit hard by his mother’s struggle.
“Still Alice” is a film that’s difficult to recommend. I’m glad I saw it but, frankly, I wouldn’t see it again. Its realness is its strength and its weakness. It is just too depressing.
The movie’s authenticity may, in part, be due to the sadly fascinating fact that “Still Alice” was co-written and directed by Richard Glatzer, who was suffering from another terminal neurologic disease, ALS, during the filming. This was his last film before his death in March of this year.
“Still Alice” has been re-released due to Moore’s Oscar win as best actress. This was a movie that very few people saw the first time around, but the audience has grown.
I think the most important message I took away from this film was how necessary efforts are to find a cure for Alzheimer’s. This disease, like this movie, does not have a happy ending.
We watch hopelessly Alice’s unavoidable decline. Memory loss is a major symptom of Alzheimer’s and the most devastating. Alice experiences episodes where she doesn’t recognize her children and her husband. She also has bouts of disorientation – not knowing where she is. She goes out jogging only to find herself not recognizing the street or why she is there. It is harrowing, in its quiet way.
This is a powerful film. Is it entertaining? Well, not in the normal sense. Yet, in its authenticity, it is deeply involving. There is a stand-out scene with Alice lecturing as she bravely fights her limitations. It just may be the most moving moment in film this year.
Julianne Moore as 50-years-old Alice gives a quiet, subtle portrait of a vital woman knowingly facing this terribly cruel disease. Her intelligence in dealing day-to-day with strategies she devises for herself is inspiring. There is no implied light at the end of the tunnel here. We know, as does Alice, her story has a predictable, inevitable conclusion.
Alice – ironically a linqiustics professor – is prominent and accomplished in her field. She shares her life with an equally successful husband (Alec Baldwin) and three grown children. Her youngest daughter (Kristen Stewart), an aspiring actress, puts her career on hold to the barbed amazement of her siblings so she can be with her mother in her obvious time of need. Hunter Parrish, as Alice’s only son, also stands out. He puts credence to the old Stanislavski proverb, “There are no small parts, only small actors.” With very few lines and screen time, Parrish fashions an emotional portrait of a loving son hit hard by his mother’s struggle.
“Still Alice” is a film that’s difficult to recommend. I’m glad I saw it but, frankly, I wouldn’t see it again. Its realness is its strength and its weakness. It is just too depressing.
The movie’s authenticity may, in part, be due to the sadly fascinating fact that “Still Alice” was co-written and directed by Richard Glatzer, who was suffering from another terminal neurologic disease, ALS, during the filming. This was his last film before his death in March of this year.
“Still Alice” has been re-released due to Moore’s Oscar win as best actress. This was a movie that very few people saw the first time around, but the audience has grown.
I think the most important message I took away from this film was how necessary efforts are to find a cure for Alzheimer’s. This disease, like this movie, does not have a happy ending.
