An achingly bittersweet, tender and empoweringly simplistic evocation of the process of dementia.
There have been many great films about dementia and our fascination with one of humanity’s cruelest diseases has reaped cinematic rewards. Anthony Hopkins won an Oscar for his role in The Father as well as Julianne Moore for Still Alice and Michael Haneke’s Amour won the Palme D’or back in 2012. These films seek to break our hearts and show the disease’s unflinching brutality and all succeed but none have the fully formed, sensitive and empowering profundity of this remarkable debut.
Inspired by her own experiences as a caregiver for artists with dementia in New York City, Familiar Touch follows Ruth (an outstanding Kathleen Chalfant) as she transitions into assisted living after severe memory loss. Instead of trying to explain everything from the outside we are invited to practically live inside Ruth’s slowly changing existence through sensation, reaction and conversation. The movie never panders to the audience and allows them to organically experience the effervesance of a life well lived mixed with loss and a regaining of agency Ruth must navigate as her memory deserts her.
There is a bare bones and straightforward directing style that greatly helps the film. Friedland is clearly hugely knowledgeable and passionate about her subject and she manages to tell us so much without ever piling on the histrionics. This is helped by the beautiful and naturalistic cinematography by Gabe C. Elder that casts an immersive and enriching spell. We know Ruth mainly through her love of cooking, a talented chef who remembers the recipe for Borscht with surgical precision but can’t remember her own son Steve (H. Jon Benjamin). She is taken from her trendy and tasteful home and thrust into a world of plastic meal trays and pills which doesn’t suit her independent and vibrant aesthetic. This isn’t to say there’s a hint of indignity towards the real life care home which had such a huge part in making the film come to life with employees involved in the shooting process throughout.
Instead of infantilising her condition the film relatively celebrates it by using both Ruth’s natural charisma and a subtly empathetic performance from her carer Vanessa (Carolyn Michelle Smith). Their friendship is a shining light that offers moments of respite among the uncertainty. Vanessa must be extremely present when building a relationship with someone with dementia. She must live for the now rather than overthinking about the future and there is liberation in that feeling for both her and Ruth. Instead of any melodrama or a straightforward narrative there is a looseness and immersion that acts as the heft and sweeps you off your feet.
Despite great performances across the board from lesser known actors this is all about Kathleen Chalfant. Known for her glittering stage career this is her most remarkable role in film to date. The nuance of what she is doing with her features and flickers of lucidity amidst the confusion is remarkable and should have swept up awards like the actors before her. Perhaps the quiet force of the performance is not a typical contender and maybe that makes it all the better. Friedland can rest easy in the knowledge that her inspired construction and knowledge of this subject has birthed such an important and inspiring portrayal of dementia.
5 / 5
Familiar Touch is one of those unique cinematic experiences that grapples with a heavy subject and somehow manages to leave the viewer floating on air. It is a joy to bathe in a little optimism and sit with bittersweet emotion all while feeling like you’ve learnt a valuable lesson.
