"Still Alice"

I have some resistance to watching movies on Alzheimers since witnessing my friend Grace lose herself to the disease. I can only imagine how heart wrenching it was for her husband of sixty years to watch helplessly as the women he loved slipped away. I was so touched by their devotion that I moved in to allow them to spend their last days together in their home. This fueled strong feelings of frustration, shock, fear, hopelessness, anger and deep LOVE. I found writing about it therapeutic. Sensing that other people might find strength in their commitment, I drafted the screenplay, “Walking with Grace.” I struggled with how to show the reward in caring for someone in this devastating situation. “The Notebook,” did an amazing job at that. Whenever I happen onto that movie on TV, I get sucked into it again – because of the husband’s unflinching commitment to the love of his life. It chokes me up every time.

Since then, there have been several movies on Alzheimers. Most focus on family members coping with the loss of their loved ones.  I felt the subject had pretty much been covered.  Then I watched, “Still Alice" for Julianne Moore’s Oscar nominated performance. (She went on to win a well-deserved Best Actress Oscar.) Julianne conducted in-depth research with Alzheimers patients to really get into the mind of her character. After building relationships with them, she asked what they would like her to include about the disease. She incorporated their thoughts and feelings into her part. Those insights on how a patient deals with their loss of self is what sets this movie apart and makes it so powerful.

This is the poignant story of a brilliant linguist who recognizes that she is losing her ability to understand the meaning of even simple words. That awareness is the painful part. She sees her identity fading away and can’t bear the idea of living as a shell of her former self. She struggles to hold on to her connection with her precious words, her loved ones, and her life. “I am struggling to be a part of things, to stay connected to who I once was,” she explains. She comes to the realization that she must live in the present and enjoy her last moments with her loved ones because, “This might be the last year that I am totally myself.” She pleads with her husband to spend time with her now while she is still present, while she is, “Still Alice. “

This theme has even more impact when you discover that it was being demonstrated on the set every day. Wash Wastmoreland co-directed with his husband Richard Glatzer after Glatzer was diagnosed with the degenerative disease Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS). (Glatzer passed away in March of this year.) What a love project! Despite his inability to speak, Glatzer was fully present and in the moment as he communicated to the actors on his ipod, 

These amazing men remind us of the importance of loving and living fully in the moment. 

Movie blessings!
Jana Segal

www.reelinspiration.blogspot.com 

Why do I do what I do?

You could say that I started attending AIVF (Association of Independent Video and Filmmakers, now IFA) with the goal of finding an indie filmmaker to produce my screenplay. But what I found were indie filmmakers anxious to produce their own scripts, so I helped develop them.  Meanwhile, I saw a need for more advanced training for Tucson Filmmakers, so I organized workshops. I got caught up in helping our film community grow.

Now here’s the part that drives people crazy… It wasn't about the money. In order to provide workshops that were affordable enough for Tucson filmmakers, I couldn't pay myself. Did all this “networking” lead to paid jobs? No. I spent hours, then years, promoting films with my reviews, organizing film contests and networking events. I didn't make any money, but it was rewarding.

In this capitalistic society it seems the only thing people value anymore is the pursuit of money. I know how blessed I was to be a stay at home mom while developing my art. But it is really heartbreaking when your own children are disappointed in you because you’re not more “successful” by society’s standards. They don’t seem to  value my role as a mother. One question I hear a lot is, why aren't there more successful women filmmakers?  I can’t speak for anyone else, but for me some things are more important than money:  living a full, balanced life, raising creative children, building a film community, empowering filmmakers to make meaningful films, and writing (and sometimes directing) my love projects.

How come I never succeeded in getting my screenplays produced? Perhaps, between being a mom and pursuing my other passions, I didn't have the single-minded ambition needed to sell my script. Or perhaps it was because I wasn't willing to write something more commercial. All the stories I chose to write were love projects.  I never could wrap my mind around writing high concept movies for money.

One of my first love projects was, “Walking with Grace,” about a sweet elderly couple I had taken care of while attending grad school. When Grace’s husband couldn't deal with her mind deteriorating from Alzheimers, I moved in full-time to allow them to spend their last days together in their home. This story was very dear to my heart.

I spent an embarrassingly long time working on it. One reason was that people thought my story was depressing.  I workshopped it at the Frederick Douglas Creative Writing Center in New York City; writing draft after draft, trying to make it more upbeat. But what it came down to was that people couldn't understand why a young woman would sacrifice her life to take care of “strangers.” What was so hard to understand? I loved them!  I finally did a major rewrite changing my character into their granddaughter.

And I did shop it around. For years. I researched possible actors and production companies.  I pitched it at screenwriting conferences. I made phone calls.  I sent off query letters. Even got a hand-written letter from Hume Cronyn explaining how the story was too depressing because it hit so close to home. People suggested that I put it away and work on something more commercial. They said that once I had a big hit, I could parley that into the power to get my love project done.  I pitched it to the perfect producer - the producer of the family drama “Christy.” He made a special effort to encourage me. He said that it was good writing, but that no one would do a film about old people. (I still cringe at my lack of determination as I watch numerous Alzheimer movies flash across the screen: “Away From Her,” “Savages,” “Amour,” my favorite, “The Notebook," and the recent, “Still Alice.” It’s practically become a genre!)

At least I had the rare opportunity to see my screenplay performed as part of the staged-reading series at DamesRocket Theater. I watched, in the sold-out theater, as professional actors gave full-out emotional performances. A 50 year-old man was moved to tears because it reminded him of his father. That experience was so satisfying that I was finally able to put the script away and start concentrating on something new. Someone suggested that I might have a better chance selling the script if I adapted it into a novel (they were onto something there), but artistically it was time to move on.

I critiqued my mom’s (Lorna Kerin Beall) historical fiction book, “Model-T Biscuits,” and helped her draft a cover letter to market it. I even pitched it at local writers’ conferences when she couldn't afford to attend. Eventually, I was inspired to adapt this cherished family story to the screen. It was really a love project working with my mother and staying true to her vision. I think people could feel the love as they read it. We ended up winning first place at the Santa Clarita Family Film Festival and the Moondance Film Festival.

My mom, Lorna Beall, and me

 When Julianne Moore won an Oscar for her portrayal of an Alzheimers patient in, “Still Alice,” my boys asked why don't I sell, “Walking with Grace.” I just shook my head and smiled. I think Best Foreign Film winner, “Amour,” and, “Still Alice,” have it covered. But in this day when paying for defense is favored over healthcare or housing, when big business trumps the environment, we need more movies with themes of giving and responsibility. Maybe there’s hope for “Grace,” yet.

So I continue to write my love projects and encourage others to do the same.  Because, like the Dali Lama said, “The planet does not need more ‘successful people.’ The planet desperately needs more peacemakers, healers, restorers, storytellers and lovers of all kinds.”

Go ahead. Ask me why I do it.

One word...Love.

"Away from Her"

guest reviewer Gary Ray

One Liner Review

Should Julie Christie’s inevitable Oscar nomination for Best Actress (and probable win) bring AWAY FROM HER back to the theaters in your town do not miss it! A film that slipped through the cracks to some extent in the US in May (although it’s grossed a respectable $4.5 million to-date), it’s one of THE film experiences of 2007.

Directed by twenty-something Sarah Polley (lead actress of such films as “MY LIFE WITHOUT ME") it has the assured directorial hand of an old master; in fact to me it was reminiscent of 1970s Ingmar Bergman. Julie Christie does indeed give a tour de force performance, but the entire ensemble is award-worthy.

The story (adapted by Polley from an Alice Munro short story) concerns Fiona Anderson (Christie), who has already begun losing her memory to Alzheimer’s disease as the film begins. She’s decided to have herself placed in a care facility to ease the struggle her husband will eventually face. At one point we see Fiona cross country skiing away from her wintery home as her husband Grant (Gordon Pinsent) watches her slip over a crest and disappear, just as she soon will from his life. In fact, when she wanders off following this excursion, it forces Grant’s hand in agreeing to put her into the Meadowlake care facility.

Her transformation is almost instantaneous in screen time, because the movie has little to do with observing Fiona’s progression into an addled state. Instead its about the discovery of how much her husband of 44 years is in love with her, seen in his actions over the next several months watching her from afar, mostly, as she is frequently disturbed by his presence, never quite remembering who he is. Pinsent plays Grant unsentimentally which is key to the characterization and pivotal to the film’s uniqueness.

In between the scenes at Meadowlake, are intercut Grant’s meeting with a woman named Marian (Olympia Dukakis). Marian is the wife of Aubrey (Michael Murphy), a man who the memory-lost Fiona grows attached to at Meadowlake. Dukakis plays the no-nonsense, almost fatalistic Marian flawlessly. Marian’s “such is life” philosophy in some way eases the audience along in accepting Fiona’s condition and thereby focusing the movie on the bond between Grant and Fiona, which, despite hinted at difficulties, has remained intact over their long marriage.

At several times during the movie the audience seems to be brought right out onto the edge of writing the film off as far-too-depressing, only to have a wrinkle in the plot refocus attention to the love story and away from the downbeat. Several times throughout the film Polley has a character walk away down a corridor at Meadowlake that’s designed to bring in the sunlight; at these perfectly timed moments that cap dramatic sequences, the celluloid brightens and your heart breaks just a little bit reflecting on what has just transpired.

As the end of the movie’s final scene approached, I found myself thinking: wow, this could end right here—and after one nice brief final touch, the credits began to roll. AWAY FROM HER has been out on DVD for a few months and may not suffer on the small screen, however, if you prefer the big screen, you may want to catch it while you have a second opportunity, it’s is a stunning achievement, a great film.

OSCAR UPDATE: Writer/Director Sarah Polley was nominated for Best Screenplay. Julie Christie was nominated for Best Actress!