Away from Her (2007)

Directed by Sarah Polley. Starring Gordon Pinsent, Julie Christie, Olympia Dukakis, Wendy Crewson, Kristen Thomson, Michael Murphy, Nina Dobrev. [PG-13]

After his wife (Christie) of over forty years is diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease and starts struggling with lengthy lapses of memory, Grant (Pinsent) places her in a nursing facility, and must later deal with the closeness she feels toward another resident and a reckoning of his own guilt for his decision to institutionalize her and his past wrongdoings. Tender, poignant, and sensitively-handled drama from actress-turned-director Polley, with a pair of compelling performances from Pinsent and Christie (and a tricky but successful supporting turn from Dukakis in a key role). A far cry from the usual disease-of-the-week-style weepie, it’s difficult subject matter this team is tackling, and they never leave an impression of gratuitous showiness or exploitation. Written by Polley from a short story by Alice Munro (“The Bear Came Over the Mountain”), it breaks off from the well-rutted path with the introduction of an intriguing potential twist—Christie might be faking her memory loss as a means of retribution for her husband’s past indiscretions by cozying up with a mute fellow resident (Murphy)—but this also leads the narrative to its least fruitful detour when Grant strikes up a tentative relationship with that man’s wife, the “key role” previously alluded to. Premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival in 2006.

77/100