Away From Her (2006)

Away From Her is a cogent study in the emotional dynamics of how one loving couple, married for decades and through thick and thin, grapples with the onset of Alzheimer's. The wife (Julie Christie as Fiona) comes down with the affliction, and as a result, her loving husband (Gordon Pinsent as Grant) has his own cross to bear. The normally effective script rings hollow at two primary points: Fiona is determined to enter a managed-care home (normally a last resort) far too early in her prognosis, forgoing simple in-home care options, and Fiona deteriorates during the home's required 30-day initial quarantine from all family contact (a ridiculous and counterproductive policy). Aside from those two major plot flaws, the relationship between the couple, and Grant's interaction with the head nurse and another Alzheimer's caregiver (Olympia Dukakis), feel authentic and personal (as Grant ranges from flummoxed to sorrowful to accepting). Away from Her is not as dramatic or poignant as The Notebook but it wears well the cobwebs of the aging couple's past sorrows and present struggles. Enjoy! 4 stars. (11-27-2016)