Most helpful customer reviews
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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
VERY WELL EXECUTED!!!, Jul 9 2004
By A Customer
I saw this film at the film festival here and loved it. It is all about real life and you can feel what the character feels and what she is going through. A must have for any independent film lover as well as others.
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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
Real Life, Jun 20 2004
Sarah Polley ("Exotica", "Go") plays Anne, a 23 year old, poor rural housewife with two young daughters. She has a completely unselfish manner, until she discovers she has only a few months to live. Anne decides to keep this a secret from everyone, including her husband played by Scott Speedman ("Underworld", "Duets") and her long suffering Mom played by Deborah Harry. Drafting a note, Anne lists ten things she is determined to do before she dies. These include telling her daughters she loves them everyday, leaving cassettes for both daughters birthdays until they are eighteen and also having sex with one other man. That man is well played by Mark Ruffalo ("In The Cut', "The Last Castle") who falls hopelessly in love with Anne. The story is simple, yet the acting is true and lacks any soppiness. It almost feels like everyone is holding back their feelings and that makes for good tension. There are many surprises for all before the end of the film and although it may not be an upbeat tale, it satisfies without leaving the viewer cheapened - only somewhat enlightened.
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1 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
A Little Gem of a Quiet Film, Jun 2 2004
MY LIFE WITHOUT ME is one of those American made Indies that rekindles faith that we DO know how to make these small, character driven films that have the courage to make a social statement or two and still be wholly entertaining. Isabel Coixet is the creator here and she has assembled a cast that combines highly experienced professionals with actors less well known and makes an ensemble movie that works on every level. There is no giving away the plot in this outing, as from the very first words uttered you know that you are going to 'live through' the dying process of Ann, the perfect mother and wife who incidentally has advanced metastatic ovarian cancer when she first visits her doctor for nausea. Sarah Polley creates a believable lead, holding back the gush and the devastation that accompany her discovery, and instead gives us a young woman who makes a 'list of things to do before I die' and then proceeds on with her life and its new order until she does indeed die. Along the way we get to know her husband Don (played with wit, sensuality, and empathy by Scott Speedman), her co-worker - the ever-dieting Laurie (Amanda Plummer), her assignation lover Lee (Mark Rufallo, always growing as an actor), her mother (Deborah Harry), her hairdresser (Maria de Medeiros), her father (Alfred Molina in a brief but perfectly acted cameo), and a new friend Ann (Leonor Watling - watch this actress...). The story borders on morose but never quite crosses over and it is to Coixet's credit that what could have been a sloppy soap opera outing proves to be a lesson on the value of living. An excellent film on all counts.
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CDN$ 22.99
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