Away from Her (2006)

User Rating:

7.7/10   

Director:

Sarah Polley

Writers:

Sarah Polley (written by)
Alice Munro (short story "The Bear Came Over the Mountain")

Release Date:

27 April 2007 (UK)

Genre:

Drama | Romance

Tagline:

It's never too late to become what you might have been

Plot:

A man coping with the institutionalization of his wife because of Alzheimer's disease faces an epiphany when she transfers her affections to another man, Aubrey, a wheel chair-bound mute who also is a patient at the nursing home.

Plot Keywords:

Nursing Home | Alzheimer's Disease | Lost | Wheelchair | Time

Awards:

Nominated for 2 Oscars. Another 39 wins & 16 nominations

Cast

Gordon Pinsent	...	Grant Anderson
Stacey LaBerge	...	Young Fiona
Julie Christie	...	Fiona Anderson
Olympia Dukakis	...	Marian
Deanna Dezmari	...	Veronica
Clare Coulter	...	Phoebe Hart
Thomas Hauff	...	William Hart
Alberta Watson	...	Dr. Fischer
Grace Lynn Kung	...	Nurse Betty
Lili Francks	...	Theresa
Andrew Moodie	...	Liam
Wendy Crewson	...	Madeleine Montpellier
Judy Sinclair	...	Mrs. Albright
Tom Harvey	...	Michael
Carolyn Hetherington	...	Eliza

Also Known As:

Loin d'elle (Canada: French title)
Lejos de ella (Argentina) (Mexico) (Spain) [es]
Loin d'elle (Belgium: French title) (France) [fr]
An ihrer Seite (Germany) [de]
Egyre távolabb (Hungary) [hu]
Longe Dela (Brazil) [pt]
To ysterografo mias Shesis (Greece) [el]

Runtime:

110 min

Country:

Canada

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

Switzerland:7 (canton of Geneva) | Switzerland:7 (canton of Vaud) | USA:PG-13 | South Korea:12 | Netherlands:6 | Germany:o.Al. | UK:12A | Singapore:PG | Argentina:13 | Canada:G (Québec) | Canada:PG (Alberta/British Columbia/Nova Scotia/Ontario) | Singapore:NC-16 (DVD rating) | Brazil:12 | Chile:TE

Filming Locations:

Freeport Health Centre, Kitchener, Ontario, Canada

Company:

Film Farm, The

Trivia:

Writer-director Sarah Polley had intended her feature film debut to be based on a script she wrote about a 12-year-old actress starring on a television series. She was unable to get the project green lighted, and turned to another, an adaptation of one of her favorite short stories, Alice Munro's "The Bear Came Over the Mountain". The story deals with a couple in their Sixties coping with the wife's Alzheimer's disease.

Goofs:

Factual errors: When Frank, the former hockey play-by-play man, is announcing the Philadelphia Flyers-Toronto Maple Leafs game that's playing on television, at the finish of the game he gives the name of the Flyers coach as "Phil" Hitchcock; the Flyers coach in 2003 (when this movie is set) is actually named Ken Hitchcock.

Quotes:

Kristy: And, how old were you when you met?
Grant Anderson: She was 18.
Kristy: Holy! That's pretty young to get married, eh?
Grant Anderson: Wasn't my idea.
Kristy: You mean she proposed to you? Well, that's lovely, that's what I think. How'd she do it?
Grant Anderson: She hadn't planned it necessarily. We were in Tobermory, waiting for the ferry to Manitoulin, and it was miserable and rainy, and she was in a good mood. And, she didn't want any part of my sour mood.
Kristy: What'd she do, what'd she say?
Grant Anderson: Well, she said: "Do you think it'd be fun... Do you think it'd be fun if we got married?"
Kristy: And what did you say?
Grant Anderson: I took her up on it. I shouted yes.
[...]

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "The O'Reilly Factor: (2008-02-22)" (2008)

Soundtrack:

Prelude in C, from 'Das Wohltemperierte Clavier', Book One (BWV 846)

So Moving and the Director is so young - Is the AMPAS bunch watching this ?

Sarah Polley is under 30 and "Away From Her" is a genius project for any age of filmmaker. Wow. Just amazed at the sensitivity of the direction and the spectacular performances.

Julie Christie is so adept at convincing her audience, there wasn't a dry eye at our screening.

Gordon Pinsent and Olymia Dukakis were equally as gripping in this quiet, realistic tale.

If it doesn't get an Oscar for somebody - there is REALLY something wrong with the distribution and/or with AMPAS.

come along everyone !

Give Sarah your votes.