Me Before You

This is a delightful movie about a tough topic.  For a precis, see Wikipedia.  "26-year-old Louisa Clark is a happy, outgoing woman who lives with and supports her working-class family. After losing her job at a local cafe, she is hired as the caregiver of Will Traynor, a former successful banker and once active young man who became paralyzed after being involved in a motorcycle accident two years prior. Louisa has no experience but Will's mother believes her cheery personality will help lift his spirits. Will only spends time with Nathan, his nurse, who assists with his care, exercise and movement and knows that he will never regain use of his body due to the damage to his spinal cord."

I saw it on Amazon Prime.  I have not read the book, but it may be even more important. 

 

The Intouchables

“The Intouchables,” based on a true story, is about two men — one rich, uptight and white; the other poor, exuberant and black — who become best pals in spite of their differences. It deals with quadriplegia, race and recovery of spirit.

It joins "The Sea Inside,""Whose Life is this Anyway," and "Martha In Lattimore" in dealing with the topic of quadriplegia.

A.O. Scott writes in his NY Times review: "It is possible to summarize the experience of watching “The Intouchables” in nine words: You will laugh; you will cry; you will cringe. The caricatures are astonishingly brazen, as ancient comic archetypes — a pompous master and a clowning servant right out of Molière — are updated with vague social relevance, an overlay of Hollywood-style sentimentality and a conception of race that might kindly be called cartoonish." 

Somehow, it all works!  The Intouchables is memorable cinema.

The MovieSlut's review is succinct and accurate.

Whose Life is the Anyway (1981)

From NetFlix: "Sculptor Ken Harrison (Richard Dreyfuss) is paralyzed in a car accident and left unable to do anything but speak. Now, he just wants to die, but no one will allow it, including his doctor (Christine Lahti) and the hospital's chief of staff (John Cassavetes). Harrison's fight for the right to control his destiny takes him all the way to court. Bob Balaban and Kaki Hunter co-star in this moving adaptation of Brian Clark's play."  2008, 118 minutes

DJE:  This was recommended by Dr. Larry Zaroff.  It's a powerful and important film that discusses suicide, euthanasia, quality of life, patient-centered care, patients and physicians.  It was a bit before its time and I'd never heard about it.  Very un-Hollywood.  Richard Dreyfus was masterful.  This film takes the issues head on with little sentimentality and no pandering to the public.  Great for anyone in the "healing" professions.

Martha in Lattimore

Film maker Mary Dalton (pictured at left) has produced a fine tribute to Martha Lattimore, a remarkable woman who lived in an iron lung for almost 60 year. Martha in Lattimore is an important film to see. It is a tribute to the human spirit, and a cautionary tale. Polio has the potential for this kind of devastating sequelae, yet some parents today refuse to immunize their children. If you wish to purchase a copy of this film, please write to Mary Dalton.

From the web site: "The first thing you notice when meeting Martha Mason is the bright yellow iron lung that encases her body and helps her breathe just as it has since 1948 when, at age 11, she contracted polio. She has lived in this life-saving machine longer than anyone else in the world, and she has lived most of those days in Lattimore, a small town located in southwestern North Carolina.

At first the image and sound of the iron lung are distracting if not shocking, but soon after talking with Martha, the massive, metal cylinder becomes inconsequential because it is so greatly exceeded by her spirit. She says that she has survived for so many years while so many others with the same disease died because of the exceptional care she received from her parents and community and because she has always been driven to learn.

Her personal story has long inspired her friends and neighbors, but Martha has been a private person for most of her life. With the assistance of her voice-activated computer, she wrote her autobiography, Breath: Life in the Rhythm of an Iron Lung. In the months since its publication, however, Martha has heard from people the world over who found something in her story that moved them, motivated them, or otherwise resonated with their personal experiences. This film tells her story in the context of Lattimore, the little town that has nurtured Martha throughout her life."

The Sea Inside

The Sea Inside (Mar Adentro) is a powerfully moving film about a quedriplegic's rightto determine his fate. It raises many important "moral" and "ethical" issues.

This is the real life story of Spaniard Ramón Sampedro, who fought a 30-year campaign to win the right to end his life with dignity. It explores Ramón's relationships with two women: Julia, a lawyer who supports his cause, and Rosa, a local woman who wants to convince him that life is worth living. Through the gift of his love, these two women are inspired to accomplish things they never previously thought possible. Despite his wish to die, Ramón taught everyone he encountered the meaning, value and preciousness of life. Though he could not move himself, he had an uncanny ability to move others.

In Spain, the former sailor Ramón Sampedro has been quadriplegic for twenty-eight years and is fighting in court for his right of practicing euthanasia through an association that defends the freedom of choice and leaded by his friend Géne. Ramón is introduced to the lawyer that is defending his cause, Julia, who has a degenerative fatal disease; and meets Rosa, a lonely worker that has been abused by men. Their relationship changes the behavior and viewpoint of life of Rosa and Julia. Written by Claudio Carvalho, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil