Truly Dreadful Film

Although it has its amusing moments, in eneral the plot does not convince.

Instead, you get a movie that's enjoyable enough, but leaves you feeling like it could have been much, much more.

This movie was so-so. It had it's moments, but wasn't the greatest.

Now while I am neither a writer nor a poet as my other esteemed reviewers have been, I am someone who lives with the bare fact that, as my grandmother before me, I may one day end up as Irene. My grandmother died of dementia as well as other complications. When I saw this movie I was overwhelmed. Most movies out there partially ornament this disease or throw hero status on the role of the care givers and this movie does neither. It humanized the roles of all involved with this horrific disease rather than glamorized. I was emotional from beginning to end and as much as I love the 'Notebook' for it's endearing message of love, I believed it's message touched me more profoundly. Most of the 'Notebook' was about their before life and not the aftermath. I am a dreamer, a romantic but I am also a realist...need to be. With the thought always in my head that one day that could be me playing the real part of Irene, I need to be. I would recommend this movie to anyone dealing with Alzheimers and Dementia or about to deal with it. It isn't pretty, it isn't glamorous and it isn't easy. But this movie also showed that the human spirit is also stronger than any disease out there and that there is hope in the midst of hell. Bravo to all the writers, producers and cast for giving us true human nature on film rather than just humans in a movie about a disease. I would have given it more stars but I was only allowed 10.

Still Mine (2012): Dir: Michael McGowan / Cast: James Cromwell, Genevieve Bujold, Campbell Scott, Julie Stewart, Jonathan Potts: Independent Canadian drama about those things we hold dear. James Cromwell plays a farmer in his eighties whose wife has health issues so he sets out to build a new house in order to aid her. Problems piles up when he must pay money to build on his own property then plans must be drawn up, etc. This becomes predictable and repetitious but it is sure to tug the heart strings. This is a struggling relationship that contains much more heart than many of the young couples who just hook up and have sex. Cromwell delivers a strong performance as someone fighting the system, or in this case, government bureaucrats who are attempting to prevent him from moving forward in this project. Cromwell steals the moment just from speaking but we also feel his aches and desperation when constant opposition presents itself. Genevieve Bujold is equally good as his wife who breaks her hip in a stair fall. She suffers from memory loss, which presents a whole new issue. The supporting players are mainly the grown children who show up and urge Cromwell to move Bujold into a nursing home but he prefers to build the new house and ignore their gripes. Jonathan Potts also plays a less than stellar villain in his quest to relieve them of their home, as well as the new one. This is not blockbuster status but it is a touching film about true love that transcends through a lifetime of heartache and trials while realizing that nothing can take it away. Score: 8 / 10

Still Mine is an appealing film with great heart that is highlighted by a wonderful performance by James Cromwell as an ageing family man who is caught up in a battle with the local bureaucracy when he tries to build a new house for himself and his wife. Filmed in the New Brunswick town of St. Martin's as well as locations in Ontario, I found the characters of the man and his wife, Irene, played superbly by Genevieve Bujold, to be honest and even inspirational. Cromwell's character, Craig Morrison, was totally devoted to his wife and in building a new house for use in their advancing years, he took on a job few men of 87 would even consider. In doing so, he found his dedication to quality questioned by the local authorities who wanted lumber, for example, stamped to signify proper building codes. The fact that his own lumber surpassed the codes in many cases did not meet the letter of the law. Cromwell found himself under a great strain trying to deal with his wife's dementia and the expectations of his family, while battling the authorities. The two leading characters had great affection for one another and it was very moving to witness the attraction they felt and the love they shared. The supporting acting was generally good with family friends, Margaret and Chester, middle-aged children, Ruth and John, and the attorney, Gary, who didn't bill his client and in return, was granted a parcel of land by the generous farmer. Films about older couples seem to be trending upward in recent years; however, it is refreshing to see how elders perceive their lives and cope with a world that often treats them as an annoyance.

In addition to Still Mine being a bit of a life/love story about Craig and Irene, it is also a lesson in how over reaching and powerful government agencies have become. They intrude, destroy, and fee you to death at every opportunity. Do we own our property or don't we? This is a great example of why we need to revisit what freedom, and what our right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness is really all about. Why do we put up with this from OUR government? It needs to stop! Of the PEOPLE, by the PEOPLE, for the PEOPLE. Let this be your wake up call. I thoroughly enjoyed this movie from beginning to end. Heart warming and some things ARE worth fighting for. :)