In our house we have very polarised views over movies, for my beloved Hannah, an essential quality for her is escapism with happy endings!

I’ve plundered through a heap of movies recently ,through joyful mail-rental provision whilst simultaneously putzshing around with heaps of reading, writing and surfing. aaaaaaah the life of multi-tasking men!

One of the richer views this week was My Life Without Me. This is a warm and bittersweet drama springing out of tragedy as it follows a 23-year-old, working-class mother of two who learns to appreciate the value of existence when she’s diagnosed as terminally ill. Far from a maudlin “disease of the week” movie, this beautifully shot tale is a wonderfully perceptive, wryly amusing and occasionally surreal experience. The soulful heroine is as much an eternal optimist as she is a realist, despite her convict father, work-shy husband and resentful mother….there’s more than one ethical question posed but that would be spoiling it if I told you what. Consequently, as she systematically puts her world in order so that life can continue without her, it’s both heart-rending and joyfully uplifting.

It’s not comparative with some of my preferred all-time classics like Seven, Munich, 21 Grams, Magnolia, Amelie, Crash, Lost in Translation, Shine, Leon, Punch-drunk Love, Remains of the Day, Napoleon Dynamite, Heat, Carlito’s Way and all the epic-Jack-Baeur-moments in 24, but enough self-revelation.

The pathos of, ‘My Life Without Me’ is really powerful, compelling, tender, detailed, humourous, world-weary,…… Like it is in our home many will love this movie, because induces tears; others may resent it for the very same reason.
Bitter-sweet realism is where I prefer to live;-
how about you?
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