Still Alice 2014

     Dr. Alice Howland is teaching at Columbia University in New York and she is 50 years old.  She is a noted linguistics expert and she is married with three adult children.  She starts to forget the words she wants to say and she finds herself lost on one of her daily jogs around the campus.  She visits a neurologist who tests the physical condition of her brain and how well she can do on memory tests.  She is diagnosed with early-onset Alzheimer’s Disease.  Her mental abilities will slowly degenerate and progress until her death.  She also learns that she is carrying a gene that can be passed onto her children.  Her father probably passed this gene onto her.

     Alice has a difficult time with her illness since she specializes in speech and her illness will eventually cause her to lose her speech.  Not because of a physical defect in her voice but because she doesn’t have the words anymore.  It’s also really hard on her family because she doesn’t remember her questions or the answers so there is a lot of repetition.  Then, she doesn’t remember who her family members are and this causes them a lot of pain.  4* (I really liked this movie)

101 min, Drama directed by Richard Glatzer, Wash Westmoreland with Julianne Moore, Alec Baldwin, Kristen Stewart, Kate Bosworth, Shane McRae, Hunter Parrish, Seth Gilliam, Stephen Kunken, Drin Drake, Daniel Gerroll.

Note:  Imdb 7.5 out of 10, 88% critic 85% audience on Rotten Tomatoes, Roger Ebert 2 ½*.

Special Note:  The co-director Richard Glatzer has ALS, he used a text to speech app on iPad to direct this film.  Julianne Moore won an Oscar and this is the 5^th consecutive actor to win an Oscar for Best Actress in a film concerning mental illness.  Natalie Portman, Meryl Streep, Jennifer Lawrence, Cate Blanchett.