"Away From Her"

I have been eagerly awaiting the much acclaimed Canadian production of “Away From Her“, written by Sarah Polley and staring Julie Christie (Dr Zhivago) and Gorden Pinsent. It had been getting good reviews, but never made it to the local big screens. A few weeks ago the Free Press advised it was now on DVD. Christie's portrayal is the female lead about a long-married Canadian couple coping with the wife's Alzheimer's disease. Based on the Alice Munro's short story "The Bear Came Over the Mountain". The couple portray a very rational, civil, and proper couple. So much so, that they leave you with a very sterile feeling about their relationship. Although there are many considerate moments, they do not pack any emotional punch. Whereas “The Notebook”, with it’s similar theme starring Gene Rowlands and James Garner, was a much more Kleenex driven film, you felt it. Harvest Moon written and performed by Neil Young was a nice touch, as was Neil’s song Helpless, performed by k.d. Lang. The soundtrack score seemed somewhat inappropriate. It is definitely a Canadian film in the location sense, in it’s sweeping winter and spring scenes. It’s what I would consider a clean movie, no violence, a few bad words, very viewable, it just lacked any compelling emotion.