Films About Life and Death

Below are some films I've recently found in the library and enjoyed.

A Rumor of Angels
There are a number of things to recommend this American film directed by Peter O'Fallon back in 2000. It’s unflinching stance on death very refreshing in this age of doubt and equivocation. The film follows the blossoming relationships between an 11 year old boy haunted by the car accident that killed his mom and an eccentric elder, Maddy, who lost her only son in the Vietnam war. Maddy, played by Vanessa Redgrave, helps the boy face his grief by sharing her own experience. A significant part of this is her journal of communications with her deceased son. “Death,” she is told in heavenly Morse code flashes on the night of his passing "is like stepping off a bus.” The take-no-guff interactions between Maddy and the grieving boy celebrate intergenerational communication, elder-wisdom, and a be-true-to-yourself spirit. It is an uplifting and reassuring film.

The Son of the Bride
This 2001 Argentine comedy/drama about a frazzled restaurateur and his aging parents, is not so much about death as about embracing life. After a sudden heart-attack, this 42 year old divorced man starts to re-think the direction his life has been taking. Fully caught up in keeping alive the restaurant his parent started, he has no time for his girlfriend, his daughter or anything else in his life. Gradually and at times painfully he finds his way back to living. What make this film special are the quirky characters that guide him. The acting and humor are charming in that South American way and the loving relationship between the man’s father and his mother who is suffering from Alzheimer’s is precious. A lot of lessons are learned, both humorous and serious, on the meaning of love, friendship, and marriage.