Miss Sharon Jones (2016)

This is a brutally candid documentary about the R&B singer, Sharon Jones, who died in November 2016 from pancreatic cancer.  It is an engaging and sad story that hints at the chaos of cancer and its management.  It is unclear to me how much the medical treatment helped her, although the initial Whipple surgery certainly bought her some time.

Official Trailer.

New York Times Obituary.

50/50 (2011)

Wikipedia has a good write up about 50/50. IMHO, it is kind of a spoiler. This is a delightful film about a young man's journey with a rare cancer (malignant schwanoma). While it is not particularly deep, it is moving and one relates to the characters. Strongly recommended. 2011, 100 minutes. Trailer

Notes from the Edge

From The Oncologist: At age 29, Peter Morgan, an internist-in-training who intended to pursue a career in hematology and oncology, noted a mass on his leg. Tragically, metastasis to the lungs had already taken place at the time of diagnosis of a synovial sarcoma. There followed the all-too-familiar story of chemotherapy and experimental treatments, pain, debilitation, and ultimately demise, and in itself this experience would move us with the sorrow of a precious life lost. What makes this particular story so remarkable are the insights of this young physician and the struggle for survival of a spirit that would not succumb to the "chaos" of cancer.

The filmmaker, Ruth Yorkin Drazen, and the narrator, Matthew Broderick, have created a masterpiece. I can remember only one other movie, "Shadowland," the story of C.S. Lewis’s marriage and the loss of his wife due to cancer, that speaks as eloquently to the confrontation with cancer. In that film, one is left with the overwhelming sorrow of the husband. The present film goes far beyond many of the personal narratives about cancer experiences that one finds so often in the media, simply because it allows a remarkable individual to speak to us about what was most precious in his life. For those of us in the medical profession, his message is particularly meaningful: his work as a physician was at the top of his list.

DJE:  This is an extraordinary documentary.  It is very hard to find and hopefully, Mrs. Drazen will make it available through some organizations.  Dr. David Biro introduced me to this.

The Shootist (1976)

From NetFlix: "An aging gunfighter (John Wayne) decides to go out with a bang after being told he's dying of cancer. In the short time he has left, the gunfighter settles some unfinished business with a gambler (Hugh O'Brian) and teaches a young friend (Ron Howard) not to follow his example. This reflective Western from director Don Siegel (Dirty Harry) was the last feature film Wayne made before losing his own battle with cancer." 1976 98 minutes

The Insider (1999)

From NetFlix: "One man told the truth. Another reported the story. Both paid the price. The Insider -- a true tale about a Big Tobacco scientist (Russell Crowe) who exposed industry secrets, and the newsman (Al Pacino) who fought corporate forces that would have squelched the story -- offers a glimpse into power, media and money in America. A thought-provoking and thrilling film." 1999 157 minutes (See Trailer on NetFlix Site or at NY Times)

This is an important film that should not be missed. Strangely, the death rate from lung cancer has increased in the ten years since the film was released.

To see that nothing has changed, see "Doctor Sounds Alarm Ahead of Tobacco Vote" NY Times May 6, 2009.

One True Thing (1998)

From NetFlix: In this adaptation of Anna Quindlen's novel, when tough New Yorker Ellen Gulden (Renee Zellweger) discovers that her mother (Meryl Streep) has cancer, she quits her job, breaks up with her boyfriend and moves back in with her parents to help out. Wanting nothing more than to ease her mother's suffering, Kate inadvertently uncovers several family secrets, including one about her philandering professor father (William Hurt). Carl Franklin directs. 1998, 128 minutes

This was a memorable film, based on an equally compelling book.

Crazy Sexy Cancer

From Netflix: Just weeks after being diagnosed with a rare and incurable form of cancer, 31-year-old actress Kris Carr turned the camera on herself as she embarked on the fight of her life. The result is this moving and funny inspirational documentary. In need of experimental treatment, Carr travels the country seeking experts on alternative medicine and, along the way, meets other cancer-stricken women driven to survive. 2007 90 minutes

The Doctor

From Wikipedia: "Dr. Jack MacKee (William Hurt) has it all: friends, success, money, and no worries - that is, until he is diagnosed with throat cancer.
He then experiences life as a patient, including the coldness and detachment of his former colleagues. He begins to empathize with the patient, which is a new experience for him.
Eventually, he returns to work, and begins immediately to drill into the new incoming interns (whom he has charge of) the perspective of the patient and the patient's experiences by making the new interns spend 72 hours as patients."

This is a fine movie for medical students, residents and physicians. It is based on a wonderful (short) iconic book, "The Doctor" by Portland, OR internist Edward Rosenbaum. "The Doctor" can be purchased for $1.00 plus shipping from ABE Books.

Availability:
Milne Library Williamstown
Netflix
Williams College Libraries

The Barbarian Invasions

This is a vastly entertaining and intellectual movie in French and from Montreal. It is a sequel after seventeen years of Arcand's 1986 film The Decline of the American Empire. The plot revolves around a libertine professor's battle with terminal cancer, and his estranged son's efforts, after reluctantly returning from London at the request of Remy's ex-wife Louise, to make his dying father more comfortable in his last days. His son proves willing to go to any lengths to achieve this, navigating Quebec's healthcare system, and in the process he gathers the various other friends and family members from Remy's past who come to visit and comfort him. During Remy's last days, he and his friends travel to the cottage of the first film, and discuss philosophy, politics, and past sexual and intellectual exploits.

Wit

Wit is a superb film about cancer and facing death.

It chronicles the personal awakening of a longtime literary scholar (two-time Oscar-winner Emma Thompson), who learns the importance of simple human kindness when faced with the most daunting of crises: a diagnosis of advanced cancer.

The film's principal character is Vivian Bearing, Ph.D. (Thompson), a 48-year-old professor specializing in the forbidding work of 17th Century metaphysical poet John Donne. With biting humor and wit, Vivian approaches her illness as she would one of Donne's sonnets, aggressively probing and intensely rational.

Ikiru

When a stoic government official in post-war Japan learns he has terminal cancer, he realizes he has squandered his life on meaningless red tape and has no close family or friendships to lean on. He resolves to use his remaining time to usher an insignificant but popular civic project, a children's playground, through the bureaucracy he knows so well. The acclaimed Akira Kurosawa directs.
This is a classic that addresses the topics of cancer, death, and finding meaning in life. Viktor Frankl wrote that man must have a "why" to live as well as a "how." This is what the protagonist in Ikiru learns.
Here is a good review: Ikiru

Availability:
Milne Library Williamstown
Netflix
Williams College Libraries