Customer Reviews

Away from Her

5 star:		(43)
4 star:		(34)
3 star:		(13)
2 star:		(5)
1 star:		(5)

 

 

27 year old Sarah Polley made her directorial debut for a feature film with this movie. She had previously directed four short films, and a TV episode. Most of her past notoriety was for being a fine actress, having already appeared in more than 50 films since 1985. She was 9 years old when she did Terry Gilliam's ADVENTURES OF BARON MUNCHAUSEN (1988). She spent several years as a child star on the television series ROAD TO AVONLEA. She appeared in THE SWEET HEREAFTER, GUINEVERE, and in THE CLAIM (2000). Recently I enjoyed her work with Sam Shepard in Wim Wender's DON'T COME KNOCKING (2005).

Polley's mother died when she was 11 years old. She considers actress Julie Christie to be her "surrogate mother". She worked with her twice before in NO SUCH THING (2000), and LIFE OF WORDS (2005). Originally Polley wanted to do a feature film about a 12 year old girl who finds herself being the star of a TV series, something she knows a little about -but there was no financial interest. Then she went with adapting a short story she liked by Alice Munro, THE BEAR CAME OVER THE MOUNTAIN. She wrote the screenplay with Julie Christie specifically in mind to play Fiona.

The film's plot revolves around a retired 60ish professor who lives a comfortable lifestyle with his gorgeous wife in a cabin his mother used to own. They are forced to face the harsh reality of the wife's impending cognitive decline secondary to Alzheimer's disease. While still coherent, Fiona (Julie Christie) convinces her husband, Grant (Gordon Pinsent) that it would be prudent to allow her to check herself into a special retirement home that specializes in Alzheimer's patients. Reluctantly, the husband agreed. The institution had a 30-day waiting period before the first family visit to allow new residents to "settle in". When Grant came for his first visit he found himself greeted with a blank stare. Fiona no longer seemed to recognize him. Worse still, she had become emotionally attached to another patient -Aubrey, a mute in a wheelchair.

How far can love be stretched before it lapses into heartache? Yet the textures of this plot are turgid, and darker forces yet are at work. As a popular professor, Grant had had several affairs in the past with nubile female student admirers. It appeared that Fiona forgave him and stayed with him into their retirement -but had she? I am told, and have read that realistically Alzheimer's does not progress so aggressively in just 30 days. So was Fiona punishing Grant? Was she still capable of such a callous and shrewd machination? Perhaps.

The dialogue crackles with Stoppard-like language -most of which it seems came directly out of the Munro manuscript. But young Sarah Polley did shed some important light on several salient issues, with the real tragedy of Alzheimer's being only the tip of the iceberg; things like the reality of physical love and sex amongst seniors, forgiveness -or lack of it after decades of matrimony, and the tedious toll of unresolved regrets. Julie Christie is still radiant, sexy, and beautiful in her 60's. She makes a lot out of Fiona -savoring a plum role. Gordon Pinsent, a Canadian veteran of more than 100 films, is wonderful as Grant, showering us with his compassion, his nobility, and the unsavory aspects of his complex personality. Olympia Dukakis was perky, pessimistic, and a chain smoker as Aubrey's wife Marion -becoming Grant's new "girlfriend" in an odd plot twist. Michael Murphy did a lot through his eyes at the mute Aubrey. Kristin Thomson stole every scene she appeared in as Nurse Kristy.

This thoughtful little film challenges our preconceived notions about older adults. Although it does not pack the dramatic punch of a film like IRIS (2000) with Judi Dench, it sweeps us onto fresh plateaus of consideration, and it creates a lot for us to ponder.

AWAY FROM HER is a film about an elderly couple that copes with Alzheimer's disease. Director Sarah Polley take's Alice Munro's short story, "The Bear Came Over the Mountain," and shows viewers the relationship between Fiona (Julie Christie) and Grant (Gordon Pinsent). Although the film is based on Munro's story, Polley adds more to the film's storyline, such as her focus on Grant's denial and slow acceptance of Fiona's deteriorating condition, and the long drawn out scenes at Meadowlake, the facility where Fiona decides to spend the rest of her life, which adds another dimension to story and the film.

Polley does a fine job in showing the intricacies that may occur in a marriage. The film takes place in Ontario, Canada, where a somewhat remote and snow-covered landscape captures the cold and emotionless feelings between Grant and Fiona. With the use of subtle home movie-like snapshots that capture the couple's past, the images show the irony of their lives; this is yet another film where the dialogue between the characters are short and ambiguous, but their facial expression fill-in the gaps where nothing is said as well as the film's soundtrack which complement the scenes.

The film is purely fiction but interesting. Grant shows his undying love for Fiona by making her as comfortable as possible - he comes to visit her everyday and reads her favorite books about Iceland; she does not remember being from Iceland. And when Grant finds out that Fiona befriends one of the residents at Meadowlake, Aubrey (Michael Murphy), he is somewhat resilient and disconcerted with her behavior, but eventually accepts it in order to make her happy. In turn, Grant has an unusual meeting/affair with Aubrey's wife, Marion (Olympia Dukakis).

Although a few of the scenes may not be realistic, AWAY FROM HER is an intriguing film that confronts the issue of Alzheimer's disease. It is moving and thought provoking, and it will definitely leave a lasting impression on the viewer.

There is a line from YOU CAN'T TAKE IT WITH YOU in which Grandpa asks:
"How many of us, when we're young, would settle for what we eventually get?"

What is extraordinary about Julie Christie's performance in this film is that Fiona settles for, and builds upon, what life deals her with a level of emotional discipline half inspiring, half maddening to her husband.

As the husband, Gordon Pinsent delivers a performance as racked with confusion, pain and nuance as any I have seen in movies for years. The complexity of his character is as enigmatic as Fiona's. Together, their love story provides hope for anyone who has stopped believing in love.

While this film sheds light on Fiona's descent into Alzheimer's disease, the film is neither about dementia nor is it about the hopelessness that often surrounds it. It is about the unexpected storms that overtake relationships and the ways in which two good people come to grips with disruption. For Alice Munro, whose story provides the basis of the screenplay, love is riddled with extraordinary pain, but it often conquers the odds.

Gorgeous nature cinematography is a character in the film. In the opening scene, as in occasional scenes after, the lovers cross-country ski across frozen landscapes suffused with an Alpine glow. They are at peace, saying few words but sharing what could never be spoken.

The scene in which Fiona, sensing her decline into dementia, becomes momentarily lost -- only to become a snow angel, suggests that even early dementia has its respite.

Thre were a number of minor issues that troubled me. Julie Christie's American/Canadian accent wasn't persuasive at the start. The example the director uses to objectify early dementia -- putting an object to be refrigerated into a cabinet -- is too common to be considered aberrant.

The nurse overseeing Fiona's unit delves a to deeply into the history of the couple, more than is believable. In turn, the nursing home admin is just a too evil to fit into the world we know. Many administrators are kind but impotent. Some rage against the undue influence of physicians over their nurses prevails.

Love scenes between unlikely bedfellows seem superfluous here, even though they can and do occur in "real life."

The final scene, which I will not disclose, is worth the trip. It summarizes, in brief, passionate strokes, what love is, and it does so in terms which are fallible but filled with character.

This very young, gifted director has delivered a poignnt film. It should be required viewing for anyone entering the helping professions, but also the betrothed.

In today's prurient terms, love is not what "they" think, nor it it what most of us think. The director has taken great pains to reveal truths in a manner both restrained and dignified.

AWAY FROM HER may be one the best films of the year. And Gordon Pinsent delivers an incredible performance -- which brought tears to my eyes more than once.

I'd grant five easy stars, even though the DVD release appears to have been redited from the theatrical version. The redited version, while marginally weaker, still comes close to perfection.

This is, indeed a beautiful, mature love story about adults in a long, sometimes rocky, relationship. That in and of itself is so refreshing to see. And, if for no other reason, this is a wonderful film to see and one which I intend to see over and over.

Where the film fails, in my opinion, is in the portrayal of Alzheimer's. My mother was diagnosised with Alzheimer's 5 years ago and I have gone from having a parent, to having what is left of that parent---an incontinent, demented, obese woman in a wheelchair. Yes, I love her, but in many ways my mother died years ago.

Alzheimer's care, in my experience, is not about lovely nursing home facilities with attentive careproviders. It is ringing the buzzer repeatedly for 40 minutes to have an overtaxed attendant appear to change your mother's diaper. It isn't about bridge, art work and quiet walks through the garden...it is about a parent who asks 20 times in as many minutes who you are.

Granted, Christie's character is at the early stage of the stages of Alzheimer's, but this is a very selective view of this disorder.

This movie made me angry, because it makes Alzheimer's look so much more benign than it is. Most caregivers are forced to keep their Alzheimer's victim at home for much longer. And where are the rages, the suspicion, the accusations, the delusions, the paranoia, the halluciations, the catastrophic reactions, the hitting and screaming that a caregiver must suffer through? Where is the diaper changing? Where are the sleepless nights? To enter a facility like Fiona does, one must be exceedingly wealthy, even in Canada, I imagine. And why end the movie on a up-beat note - where she is remembering momentarily? It gives the impression that things will get better when they only get worse.

When Fiona Anderson (Christie) discovers she has Alzheimer's Disease, she opts to go to a nursing home. Her husband, Grant (Pinsent) objects, but she's firm and believes it is for the best. It takes a lot of grace to step away from a 44 year marriage and into a home on your own. Christie's depiction of her parting with her husband is heart-wrenching.

The couple has never been apart for 44 years, but the facility requires that they have no contact for the first 30 days. This is to allow Fiona to settle in. When Grant returns, he's greeted by a stranger who has formed an attachment to another male inmate Aubrey (Michael Murphy).

The story focuses mainly on the older couple, but we see occasional flashbacks of younger times. And Grant rightfully questions whether Fiona has forgotten him after the 30 day separation or if she's punishing him for his infidelities as a young college professor.

"Away From Her" brings into focus issues of eldercare and elder sexuality that many of us might shy away from. The story is treated with grace and compassion and while it could be depressing, is uplifting in many ways.

22-year-old Sarah Polley did an astounding job bringing this cast and story together. She's already a force to be reckoned with and has been since her film debut at 9.

The depiction of the care facility Fiona's committed to is lovely and I wish with all my heart it was so. There are many compassionate and loving people in the eldercare business, but there are also many under-staffed, underpaid and overworked employees as well whose decisions are made by 'bean counters' and staff convenience rather than the welfare of the patient. One solid example of this in the movie is the 30-day required separation for new patients to 'settle in' to the facility. How cruel is that to entrust your beloved family member to a new place without being able to see them and check on their welfare?

Away From Her tells the moving, sad story of a woman who is slipping slowly but surely into Alzheimer's disease. The plot essentially involves her relationships with her husband of forty-four years and her moving away from him once she becomes a permanent resident in a nursing facility for people with Alzheimer's. The plot moves along at a good pace but many of the lines are not well written; look for the ward nurse to get many of the best lines in the movie! The acting was convincing; but the portrayal of the nursing facility looks so unrealistically pure and nurturing it appears copied out of a fairy tale book.

First we meet an older married couple living in rural Canada: Grant and Fiona Anderson (Gordon Pinsent and Julie Christie). Fiona is already slowly forgetting more and more; and when she begins wandering away and getting lost Fiona and Grant make the painful decision to move her, temporarily at least, into a nursing facility for persons with her disease. They try at times to deny that Fiona has Alzheimer's disease but their denial never works because the truth is becoming more and more painfully obvious.

Unfortunately for Grant, Fiona checks into a facility that actually has the brutal policy that new residents cannot have phone calls or any visitors for the first thirty days. Wow--sounds like a wonderful place. Who would trust them with that? In addition, when Grant does return, in just one month his wife has almost completely forgotten who he is--and she has fallen in love with another resident, Aubrey (Michael Murphy). This pains Grant and it brings up issues for Grant of past infidelities that may never be ironed out with his wife because she is now too ill to deal with it properly in a conversation.

Grant also meets Aubrey's wife Marion (Olympia Dukakis) and together they explore their feelings about their lives and how things "didn't work out."

The plot can go anywhere from here. Will Fiona stay in the nursing facility or will she come home and let it be a temporary experience after all? How will Grant and Marion manage a potentially difficult relationship--after all, their ill spouses have forgotten them because of the illness and in the nursing home their spouses are in love. What about Grant's desire to iron out past infidelities with his wife Fiona--will it truly be too late for them to work it out and smooth over bad feelings hidden over so many years? No plot spoilers here, folks--watch the movie and find out!

The DVD has a director's commentary and there are a few deleted scenes.

Too bad the extras didn't include the movie as it would have looked in real life. Another reviewer notes correctly that nursing facilities mean ringing the bell constantly for 40 minutes to get an overburdened attendant to change your parent's diaper. The nursing home is pictured with such purity you'd think they had to be joking--and it's a bad joke at that. None of the care facilities are ever that clean and they don't have staff who look so perfectly composed at all times. I know; I've been there with a very sick mother.

Overall, Away From Her features a fine performance from actors who are burdened with an average script. The lines are best when Grant and Fiona interact; and the ward nurse gets some great lines, too. Watch this when you don't have kids around and there's nothing else to watch. If there IS something better to watch, leave this one for another day--and send condolence cards to the actors who got stuck with this script!

`Away from Her' is one of those movies that really got inside of me, inside my soul and made me look at my life now and in the future and contemplate the man I would one day become. It's true testament of a wonderful and utterly breathtaking film when one is that deeply moved by it, not just to tears or emotions but to actions. `Away from Her' is a film that will make you strive to be a better person, husband, wife, father, mother, child, whatever the case may be, because the deep-seated moral of this film is one that begs to be dissected and analyzed for the betterment of the viewer.

There's a moment within the film where Gordon Pinsent (who so deserves an Oscar for this performance) is sitting on a bench watching the woman that used to be his wife conversing with a man she feels she now loves and that single scene is so emotionally overwhelming I felt I was going to lose it. It was in that scene though that I finally realized what this movie was all about, and as I sat there, my gaze shifting from the screen to my wife who was nursing our child I felt the tears rolling down my cheek as I wondered if I would be that strong if that time ever came.

The film follows an elderly couple, Grant and Fiona, who have had a wonderful life together until Fiona's Alzheimer's begins to make their life all the more difficult. Against his wishes Grant eventually gives into Fiona's persistence and admits her into a home for those suffering for this condition. Regulations don't allow him to visit Fiona for thirty days, which proves to be just enough time for her to forget him entirely and form a romantic bond with another patient Aubrey. Faithfully Grant visits his wife every day, trying his hardest to make her remember their love but it seems almost hopeless.

What makes this movie so incredibly moving are the powerful performances by the entire cast, but especially those of Pinsent and Mrs. Julie Christie (who will most likely get her Oscar for this). Pinsent and Christie both avail themselves to the central core of their characters, playing them as real people and not overly emotional, dramatized or clichéd variations of what Hollywood would like them to be. With extreme delicacy and subtlety they embody Grant and Fiona and bring them to life before our eyes. Another standout here is Olympia Dukakis who brilliantly compliments Gordon's performance. Dukakis plays Marion, the wife of Fiona's new love interest Aubrey. With their spouses falling into their own relationship Grant and Marion find themselves relying on each other for support and stability. Michael Murphy also delivers a solid if wordlessly convincing performance as Aubrey, but he's easily overshadowed by his costars.

Sarah Polley, a young actress who never seemed to get the attention she deserved, stakes her claim to fame with this impressive directorial debut. Her style is reminiscent of another favorite of mine Todd Field (who is also an actor turned director) in his directorial debut `In the Bedroom'. While arguably Todd's masterpiece is a little more refined and polished a film and in effect I believe is a better film, Polley's debut can also be considered a masterpiece of sorts. In fact, I'm tempted to say that `Away from Her' is the finest film I've seen so far this year. Pinsent and Christie should both be up for Oscars come the years end, although sadly I feel that Pinsent has less than a fair shot.

`Away from Her' is a film I believe everyone should see for it is a film that reaches the soul and can move any and everyone. There is rarely a movie this powerful, this magnificent that it `deserves' to be seen. If only I could get across the emotions this film brought out in me, but I fear that I could never do them justice. I guess the best I can do is urge you to see this movie and experience those emotions for yourself for that is the only way you could truly understand.

I just saw this movie last week.
It was pretty good, but I wouldn't say that it was brilliant. The acting was solid all around, and a lot of people will find it very moving, emotionally. It did have some very clever/funny scenes. I liked it, but I also felt that it dragged a bit, and, for me, some of the plot devices seemed very contrived. (Sarah Polley apparently followed the Alice Munro story very closely, so this may not be entirely her fault). In many ways, it is a very typical Canadian movie - about 3/4 of the way through the film, I started to get bored, squirm in my seat, and wonder how much more there was left to go. A lot of Canadian films tend to be preachy, and over-long. That's kind of how I felt at the end of this. (If you want to see a really engaging movie that was filmed in Canada rent Snow Cake - it's about autism, and it was very well done).
My main problem with Away From Her was the central storyline of the film, namely the relationship between Julie Christie's character and the fellow at Meadowlake. To me, the entire thing seemed unbelievable, as did the notion that Julie's character would completely forget her husband in only 30 days. I know Alzheimer's patients, and when they've been married for 20 or 30 years, their spouses seem to be the one thing that they DO tend to remember, at least for the first stretch.
There has been a lot of hype surrounding this movie, because this was Sarah Polley's first film. She's the darling of Canadian filmmakers, who seem to believe that she can do no wrong - and her talent has been somewhat exaggerated. I think she's a bit overrated, to be frank. (Even as an actress, I thought she was somewhat overrated). This movie was a solid first attempt. However, it was not brilliant, by any means. (David Lean was brilliant - Sarah Polley is merely good).
In summary: this movie is worth seeing, but not owning. I would suggest that you rent it ahead of time, to see for yourself if it's the kind of film you will want to watch over and over again, before you decide to buy it.

I do not remember if the word "Alzheimers" is even mentioned in "Away from Her," although its utterance is not necessary to understand what is happening with Fiona (Julie Christie). When she put the frying pan in the freezer, where it is dutifully retrieved by her husband, Grant (Gordon Pinsent), we know the situation, even without seeing the PSA for fighting the dastardly diseases that plays at the start of this DVD. Fiona has taken to wandering away, unable to find her way back home, and Grant cannot watch her every minute. Since that is the sort of attention she needs as the disease progresses (captured in a painful moment at a dinner party where Fiona struggles to remember what is in the bottle she holds in her hand), Grant must find a home in which to place his wife of nearly 50 years. He chooses Meadowlake.

When Grant brings Fiona to Meadowlake the first of two flaws that affect my response to "Away from Her" moves the story forward. Meadowlake has a policy that new residents cannot have neither visitors nor phone calls during the first 30-days of their stay. Now, I fully understand why such a policy makes sense if you are dealing with somebody sent to prison or checking into a rehab clinic, but at a home for the elderly that pays attention to people suffering from Alzheimer's? It would be hard to come up with something crueler. Your mind is starting to betray you and you move away from the home you have known for decades into a strange new place, and you cannot see your family and friends? No wonder when Grant arrives a month later his beloved wife thinks that he is just a new resident of the home.

This "policy" is ultimately a plot contrivance to arrive at just this situation, with the added insult to injury that Fiona has apparently transferred her affections to Aubrey (Michael Murphy), another one of the residents at Meadowlake. Aubrey is mute and has trouble getting around, but Fiona is constantly attentive to his every need. Clearly taking care of him makes her happy, but we cannot help but see the irony that Aubrey no more acknowledges Fiona that she acknowledges Grant on what are becoming daily visits. For Grant the situation is unacceptable, but with Fiona's condition there does not seem to be anything that he can do about it, and that is what serves as the film's ultimate conflict.

This 2006 Canadian film is based on Alice Munro's short story, "The Bear Came Over the Mountain." It is faithfully adapted to the screen by Sarah Polley in the actress' first feature film as director. Polley has assembled a solid cast to tell this tale. Christie is still radiant, and any attempt to make her look haggard can never fully succeed once you see her eyes. Pinsent brings a sense of restraint to both his pain and his resolve in dealing with this cruel twist of fate that life has dealt him (one of my favorite scenes takes place between Grant and a teenager forced to come visit somebody at the home by her family). In contrast, Olympia Dukakis as Marian brings a harsh dose of reality to both Grant and the story. Despite the stupid policy that creates the film's tragic situation, Meadowlake is a fine place for Fiona to be, personified by Kristy (Kristen Thomson), one of those angels that you pray would be taking care of your loved one.

The performances perfectly match the delicate situation, but for me there is a second flaw in this film in what happens between Grant and Marian. That is because it takes away some of the grace from the film's moving final scene and changes Grant's motivation from what I would want it to be into something much less noble. At one point I was thinking that it would be better if Marian did not have the specific relationship she has to another character in this story, but without that reason Grant would never have cause to seek her out (certainly he would not meet her by happenstance). Even with these flaws this is a touching film, so clearly these are not fatal flaws, but they still prevent me from rounding up on "Away from Her," even with the stellar performances by the principles.