Away From Her is gaining some huge notoriety and critical acclaim and I can't say I'm surprised. Not because I agree but because it reeks of artistry, purposeful directing to try and make a beautiful image of something that will move people rather than directly entertain them. My hate goes off to newcomer, and very young Canadian director Sarah Polley for taking on this kind of content and coming out on the other side with rave reviews but for myself personally it didn't move me as much as kind of disgust me in a way. The film was slow moving, a snail's pace, a little confusing with the chronological order and no instructions on how to follow it and it went on far longer than it needed to. That being said there is some powerful performances that I absolutely adored and honestly made the film for me. Otherwise I was rather disturbed by the fact that anyone could be moved or romanced by the film which features a couple who is supposed to be 'madly in love' having been married for forty years but the husband has had an affair, and then moves on to sleep with another woman which is 'okay' because his wife has Alzheimer's and has taken to another man. There is nothing sweet or romantic about the film and in fact is more confusing and rather odd romantically than anything. Rather than being about a man dealing with his wife's increasing Alzheimer's, it's about relationships between four aging people thrown together because of Alzheimer's.
I've seen some reviewers and spoke to some people who were just impressed with Gordon Pinsent. I couldn't disagree more!! I think Pinsent's performance as husband Grant was powerfully subtle and he did so much performing with his eyes and his movements and I became an instant Pinsent fan. He is terrific despite the fact that I didn't like his character after discovering he had cheated on this woman that he adores so much and sleeps with another woman after that. Still his performance was great. Julie Christie absolutely stunning on screen, at 67 years old she was absolutely beautiful as the ailing wife Fiona. Christie does a magnificent job of showing us what Fiona has been like her whole life in a short amount of time and then what it would be like to watch her succumb to the ravages of the disease. Christie as Fiona is strong and brilliant, a sweet soul and independent and we watch her go into this delicate, emotionally distraught woman suffering from Alzheimer's. Olympia Dukakis plays a small role as the wife of a man suffering from a debilitating disease that leaves him mute and crippled. Dukakis is fiery and strong but shows a softer side as her character unravels. Michael Murphy plays the muted husband Aubrey who falls in love with Fiona in their retirement home leaving their spouses at the sidelines. Murphy has a tough role to play doing everything with his body language and eyes but he does a great job of almost coming across as an adversary to Pinsent's Grant. Kristen Thomson turns in a small but very memorable role as Fiona's nurse Kristy who befriends Grant in his time of turmoil. I enjoyed her character and thought she was very interesting and a good solid performance. Wendy Crewson was also notable as the rather hard headed and stern head of the retirement home Madeleine.
A superb Canadian cast to say the least with a terrific Canadian director performing a story by a classic Canadian Author. There isn't anything wrong with any of this and the Canadian content is clear and concise and it's worth seeing. The only shortcoming is it's length and it's misrepresentation as a story about a man dealing with loss of his wife whom he loves dearly, to Alzheimer's. This is a far more twisted love story and if this is a realistic portrayal of the way love and marriage and dedication is handled than I am saddened and very afraid for us. I encourage adults to check this one out and see if you agree with me or not?? I was also not fond of the fact that the script to see to force in the "F" word on several occasions and only the "F" word for no other reason then for it to exist. It isn't often a film is made with older actors as the main character portraying themselves as older citizens so I encourage anyone to check it out. But it's slow and it's content might surprise you. I don't think it quite deserves all the hoopla surrounding it. 6/10
I've seen some reviewers and spoke to some people who were just impressed with Gordon Pinsent. I couldn't disagree more!! I think Pinsent's performance as husband Grant was powerfully subtle and he did so much performing with his eyes and his movements and I became an instant Pinsent fan. He is terrific despite the fact that I didn't like his character after discovering he had cheated on this woman that he adores so much and sleeps with another woman after that. Still his performance was great. Julie Christie absolutely stunning on screen, at 67 years old she was absolutely beautiful as the ailing wife Fiona. Christie does a magnificent job of showing us what Fiona has been like her whole life in a short amount of time and then what it would be like to watch her succumb to the ravages of the disease. Christie as Fiona is strong and brilliant, a sweet soul and independent and we watch her go into this delicate, emotionally distraught woman suffering from Alzheimer's. Olympia Dukakis plays a small role as the wife of a man suffering from a debilitating disease that leaves him mute and crippled. Dukakis is fiery and strong but shows a softer side as her character unravels. Michael Murphy plays the muted husband Aubrey who falls in love with Fiona in their retirement home leaving their spouses at the sidelines. Murphy has a tough role to play doing everything with his body language and eyes but he does a great job of almost coming across as an adversary to Pinsent's Grant. Kristen Thomson turns in a small but very memorable role as Fiona's nurse Kristy who befriends Grant in his time of turmoil. I enjoyed her character and thought she was very interesting and a good solid performance. Wendy Crewson was also notable as the rather hard headed and stern head of the retirement home Madeleine.
A superb Canadian cast to say the least with a terrific Canadian director performing a story by a classic Canadian Author. There isn't anything wrong with any of this and the Canadian content is clear and concise and it's worth seeing. The only shortcoming is it's length and it's misrepresentation as a story about a man dealing with loss of his wife whom he loves dearly, to Alzheimer's. This is a far more twisted love story and if this is a realistic portrayal of the way love and marriage and dedication is handled than I am saddened and very afraid for us. I encourage adults to check this one out and see if you agree with me or not?? I was also not fond of the fact that the script to see to force in the "F" word on several occasions and only the "F" word for no other reason then for it to exist. It isn't often a film is made with older actors as the main character portraying themselves as older citizens so I encourage anyone to check it out. But it's slow and it's content might surprise you. I don't think it quite deserves all the hoopla surrounding it. 6/10