CHRISTIAN ETHICS AND THE MOVIES
Reviewed by David A. Thomas, Assoc. Prof. of Rhetoric, Emeritus
University of Richmond[1]
Health Care: Away from Her (2006)
Fiona: I think all we can aspire to in this situation is a little bit of grace.
Julie Christie stars in a moving independent film about the effects of her character’s Alzheimer’s Disease and its effects on her husband. The movie is a little gem, with an intelligent script and a talented cast. The story is set in a beautiful Canadian landscape.
Julie Christie plays Fiona Anderson, married to a retired college professor, Grant Anderson (Canadian actor Gordon Pinsent). They live in a lovely bucolic country home which she inherited from her grandparents. She enjoys cross country skiing.
As the story opens, Fiona is showing signs of her deteriorating memory. Her kitchen cabinet drawers are labeled to help her remember their contents. She seems befuddled by the pot she is holding, and finally stows it in the freezer. In another scene, she struggles for the word for “wine” as she pours for her guests.
Grant resists acknowledging the realities of her disease to the point of denial. Clearly, he is devoted to Fiona and cannot stand the thought of her having to go into an Alzheimer’s facility. But inevitably, she must, leaving him to fend for himself on the farm. He visits her as often as he can. Fiona seems much more resigned to the process than he. “My, you’re persistent,” she tells him when she sees him entering the door with flowers or books.
The plot is complicated by two poignant, thought typical, factors. First, as her mind deteriorates, she loses short term memory much faster than her older memories. An infidelity he had with a student twenty years earlier looms ever more vividly in her association with him than their happier times since then. Second, in the Alzheimer’s wards, she bonds with Aubrey, a fellow Alzheimer’s patient, arousing Grant’s resentment and jealousy.
As time progresses, Grant comes to accept Fiona’s illness and what he sees as her infatuation with another man. When Aubrey’s wife, Marian (Olympia Dukakis), takes Aubrey home because she cannot afford to commit him to the extended care ward (apparently such facilities are not a part of Canada’s free universal health care system), Grant meets with Marian to see what can be done, at least to take Aubrey to visit Fiona. As the situation continues to progress, Grant and Marian turn more to each other for support, then for intimacy.
All of these sad issues are superlatively acted. Julie Christie has won a Best Actress Oscar previously (remember Dr. Zhivago), and she has been involved in several other Oscar productions in her career. Olivia Dukakis is also a former Oscar winner. Gordon Pinsent, the 75-year old Canadian lead actor, won the Toronto Film Festival Best Actor award for this movie. Perhaps most surprising turn in the movie’s artistic excellence is that the writer/director, Sarah Polley, is only twenty-eight years old. She has a long track record in writing, directing, producing, and acting in independent movies and Canadian TV, with an emphasis on social action.
Significance of Away From Her. The movie compresses the action into what seems to be about a year or two. In reality, Alzheimer’s Disease (AD) often runs a course of a decade or more. AD is a fatal and progressive disease of the brain. Away from Her is a clear example of what it is like to be a victim, and to be a caregiver. (Two other popular movies about the disease are Iris and The Notebook.) Demographically, AD is a significant and increasing disease. Five million Americans suffer from Alzheimer’s, and as the population ages, the extent of the disease accelerates. Medication may help ease the symptoms but its causes are unknown and there is no known cure. There will be 12-15 million victims by the year 2050, if statistical projections hold true.
Churches have a role to play in spiritual and social support for the victims and their families. Studies have shown that caregivers suffer from anxieties and other psychological symptoms.
Church attendance can helpful to both the victims and the families. There are different suggestions for helping roles at different stages of the disease. Many churches offer online resources for ministers. An excellent example is the Association of Brethren Caregivers, who provide useful suggestions for dealing with victims and their families in the early stage, middle stage, and late stage AD, along with appropriate Scriptures and hymns for comfort.[2]
