Still Alice

Still Alice
2014 | Color | 101 min | 1.85:1 | PG-13 | Dolby Digial | Drama | Sony

Directors: 

Richard Glatzer

Wash Westmoreland

Writers: 

Richard Glatzer 

Wash Westmoreland

Stars: 

Julianne Moore

Alec Baldwin

Kristen Stewart

Alice Howland is a renowned linguistics professor happily married with three grown children. All that begins to change when she strangely starts to forget words and then more. When her doctor diagnoses her with Early-onset Alzheimer's Disease, Alice and her family's lives face a harrowing challenge as this terminal degenerative neurological ailment slowly progresses to an inevitable conclusion they all dread. Along the way, Alice struggles to not only to fight the inner decay but to make the most of her remaining time to find the love and peace to make simply living worthwhile.

Some of you just might not like me after this review. So let me start off with...

I was very attracted to this movie due to the fact it was about having Alzheimer's Disease. Painfully I watched my grandmother slowly pass away fighting this horrible disease. At times tho it was good I heard stories about her past that even my mom forgot about. At times, it was so wonderful to be there for her and hard other times as I watched her struggle with her day. Finding the remote in the fridge visiting after work and her stove was still on but at 96 she never gave up and has been a huge influence on my life. So while watching the first say 30 to 40 minutes of Still Alice, I was hooked and took the rollercoaster ride all over again.  But then this movie just kind of fell apart. I understand that she (Alice) had a rare form of Alzheimer's but the movie stopped moving me and started to (GULP) bore me.

But then the boredom moved to hatred. Maybe this is what the director was going for making us hate the family with the way they acted or was it just bad acting? I have never really been a fan of Kristen Stewart, but she drove me crazy during this movie! And Alec Baldwin seemed like a total douchebag! Again this just might have been me and the way I took it. You may see it in a different light. As for Julien Moore, she was wonderful she really put herself into this role. You see her age right in front of you and it pulls at your heart strings. Moore deserved every award she received for this movie. 

When the movie ended I could safely understand why it was not up for an Oscar, it is just not that good. I was looking for a Notebook style movie and well watched an ok movie. Now don't get me wrong I'm glad I watched it and for Richard Glatzer's last movie before losing his battle to ALS he paints a very good and painful picture. 

So don't hate me I wanted to like this movie it just did not work out for me...

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