Movie Review: Away From Her is a Triumph of Love

I've had the film Away From Her at home now for the past few weeks, but after watching Julie Christie pick up several Best Actress critics awards in the past couple of days, I decided it was time to see what all the fuss was about. And now that I've seen it, I know that there is only one word to describe Christie's performance -- wow.

Written and directed by the young actress Sarah Polley (who is rightly picking up awards for her debut effort), Away From Her is one of the most moving and affecting films I've seen all year. At times devastating, at other times hysterical, the movie tells the story of Fiona (Christie), a vibrant, intelligent woman who is going through Alzheimer's, and the impact her disease has on her loving husband Grant (the subtly heartbreaking Gordon Pinsent). As Grant watches his beloved wife not only "lose herself" to Alzheimer's, but also begin a relationship with a fellow nursing home patient, difficult questions of what we will do to make sure the ones we love are comfortable are raised and fascinatingly answered.

Christie is simply luminous in the role. She brings such a nuanced understanding of Fiona's mental state to the surface, that you can't help but fall in love with the woman. She beautifully manages to give glimpses of the woman Fiona was, even while in the midst of her deteriorating health. If this performance doesn't win Christie an Oscar, there's simply no justice.

Aside from Christie, who defines grace and magnificence in this role, and the wonderful Pinsent, the rest of the cast is also stellar. Wendy Crewson is pitch-perfect as the icy nursing home administrator -- she makes your skin crawl in all the right ways as she encourages Grant to move his wife to a more "progressed" floor of the nursing home. Olympia Dukakis brings humor and vitality to the film, shining as the wife of the nursing home patient Fiona falls for. Kristen Thomson, too, is just-right as the patient nurse who provides Grant with advice.

If the aging process terrifies you, this may not be the film for you. But if you are interested in stories about what we do for love, I beg you to check this movie out. You won't be sorry.

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