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21 of 22 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Facing the inevitable, January 5, 2005
"When a man knows he is to be hanged in a fortnight, it concentrates his mind wonderfully" - Samuel Johnson
Michael Keaton gives an effective and heart-felt performance as Bob Jones, a young, successful PR executive married to a beautiful woman (Nicole Kidman) who is expecting their first child. The bottom falls out of his life when he is diagnosed with a fatal illness, and only given months to live. He is forced to exam his life that he's really just been rushing through. Bob Jones not only has never stopped to smell the roses; he hasn't even noticed that they are there at all.
'My Life' is a realistic portrayl of what must go through one's mind when one is brought up short by such stunning news. Although the topic is certainly depressing, it is something we will all one day face. This is how one man deals with the terribly bad hand he has been dealt. Especially poignant is the fact that not only won't he probably be around to help raise his child, but he might not even make it long enough to see his child born. Heart-wrenching.
In several pivotal scenes, Jones decides to hope for a miracle, and visits an Asian healer (Haing Ngor who starred in 'The Killing Fields')who tells him that he has too much anger and hurt in him. Jones resists the whole notion of exploring how he got to where he is, at least for a while. His anger at his family is one point of anger he must struggle with.
Keaton does an excellent job here. We see flashes of the actor we saw in 'Mr. Mom' and earlier movies, sort of a lovable, good-hearted guy with a funny edge to him. His Bob Jones evolves slowly and realistically from a man who is stunned and angry, to a man determined to let his child know who he is. Ngor also plays the right note as a practioner who can't cure his patient, but perhaps can help him in his last journey.
A potentially maudlin, down-beat subject is handled with just the right amount of empathy and gentleness and with a light touch.
Highly recommended. Very highly recommended if you've had such a scare, are living with a terminal illness, or have had a loved one deal with such issues.
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14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Heartbreaking, February 23, 1999
By A Customer
Bruce Joel Rubin won an Oscar for writing "Ghost" (a film I kinda liked) and has also scribed "Jacob's Ladder" and "Deep Impact". Yet here, in his only directorial feature, he paints a picture of inner turmoil and redemption so poignant that you'll bawl your eyes out (like I did). Released the same year as the hyped-up Tom Hanks AIDS drama "Philadelphia", "My Life" proves to be a much better film in that instead of presenting a stereotype and asking us to sympathize with him because it was revolutionary according to Hollywood standards, Rubin takes a theme which is relatively familiar to cinema, adds the twist of the man videotaping his own life, and asks us to share the psychological pain the man is going through. I do not believe I have ever seen Michael Keaton in a better role than this; the camera lingers on his face through many shots, such as one where he has just viewed a colleague's cold-hearted description of him, and another where he's staring into a mirror. There's a wiseacre brilliance to Keaton's acting style, and one thing I've noticed about him through the years is how he plays devoted father-types: "Mr. Mom", "One Good Cop", "Multiplicity". None of these movies showcase Keaton's talent of emotional hurt beneath a wisecracking exterior like "My Life" does, however, and perhaps that's just as well. The film proceeds through his cancer by steps: denial, anger, acceptance, etc. And yet the film doesn't feel like an AA meeting. The late, great Haing S. Ngor provides a Zen type of philosophy as a faith healer, and his advice to Keaton in the movie leads to a subplot involving Keaton's blue-collar parents that gives the film an additional layer of meaning. The Ukranian wedding and reception reminded me of "The Deer Hunter" in the fact that the culture of the characters define who they are and are given greater force in regards to the final tragedy. The most moving aspect of the film involves Keaton's search for forgiveness from his father, who is shown in the film as a chain-smoker perhaps as an ironic twist that his son is the one with the cancer. This motif is continued during the final ten minutes as the father flicks his lighter on and off while his son lie dying in the next room, unable to smoke a cigarette. This film received mixed reviews from film critics when it was first released (compared to the raving they did for "Philadelphia"), yet as time moves on, I believe this film will move more people in the end than Hanks'. The final realization of the backyard circus near the end of the film is one of the most moving examples of the "Good things happen to those who wait" virtues that I've ever seen captured on film, and the utter inevitability of the father-son reconciliation is held back for just so long and so perfectly understated that it ranks with "Field of Dreams" as a testament to the final fruits of fatherhood. "My Life" also includes a beautiful score by John Barry, the same man who wrote the music for "Born Free", "Out of Africa", "Dances with Wolves", and "Cry the Beloved Country". His music for this film ranks among his best and is regularly featured on news shows whenever they want to evoke sentiment. The whole movie has the weight of tragedy over it, but it's exhilarating that the film can make you care so much. The film's example of a loving husband-and-wife is perfectly illustrated in the shot where Keaton and Nicole Kidman gently dance together in the middle of an amusement park as people walk by worried about their own minute problems. This is a beautiful movie.
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9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
This movie makes you ask: What's my legacy?, January 25, 2005
"My Life" is a movie that goes beyond simple entertainment. It actually stops you dead in your tracks, and casues you to reflect deeply on your own life's purpose. This movie will help your remember and cherish what's most important.
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