Review of Lovely, Still

I came across this gem of a film on cable by accident and was taken by its beauty, sensitivity, and honesty. It is a realistic portrait of a loving family coping with "the long good-bye" of Alzheimers, of a wife trying keep the connection between her and her husband alive even if the wiring is faulty, of a man among people who care yet is still traveling alone down the road to oblivion. Martin Landau and Ellen Burstyn are fantastic. I knew from the beginning that something was off in the storyline, but the end revelation caught me by surprise anyway. A "must-see" for anyone caring for a loved one with this devastating disease. My mother had Alzheimers and our only consolation was that she passed away before she stopped recognizing my father.