“Still Alice” is a Film as Good as the Book

- Private group -
Thu, 02/26/2015 - 3:15am

Story Location:
22 River Road
Newcastle, ME 04553
United States

by Steve Raymond, Director, One2One Home Care

My beloved Jill and I saw the film “Still Alice” this evening. We have both read the book, we are both long-time senior care professionals who work with people with dementia, and we are in our 60’s. Her comment to me as we walked from the theatre was, “That was just so sad. What can you possibly write about it?” And indeed, this is a sad story, but it is a sad story that rings very true.

I worried that the star power in the film... Julianne Moore winning a Best Actress Oscar, with Alec Baldwin, Kristen Stewart and Kate Bosworth... would take away from the story. As a cinema fan, I might have preferred the story told with less well-known character actors. However, Julianne Moore gives an excellent performance, as does Kristen Stewart as her youngest daughter. There was a restraint in the directing so that the story adhered closely to the first-person perspective of the excellent book by Lisa Genova. It’s difficult to make a film from a book that is mostly about the interior landscape of the characters instead of their actions. In this case, “Still Alice” the movie lives up to the masterful storytelling of “Still Alice” the book.

I want people to see this film and read the book because I am eager to see the stigma removed from Alzheimer’s as a disease. This film tells a very simple story with one goal... to shine a light of empathy and compassion for those families who must face this terrible disease. The numbers of people are staggering, and the projections worse. We as a society need to learn about this illness, and to help cope with the human toll.


In this spirit, the Lincoln Home is sponsoring a free 5-week Lunch and Learn Series on Dementia. We have a great roster of professional and family caregiver speakers. Call Kacie Gallant at 563-3038 to register.

You’ll find complete speaker information here ---> http://lincoln-home.org/lincoln-home-offers-free-5-week-lunch-and-learn-...

Jill and I talk about these things with each other. We both know that no one really knows what’s going to happen to themselves or to their loved ones. Morbid anxiety serves no purpose, but it is best to be informed, educated and aware and to have shared conversations. The Lincoln Home Lunch and Learn Series on Dementia is a great place to start. Each presentation in the 5-week series stands on it's own, so you may see attend all five weeks, or any one week that particularly interests you.