The Father: Film Review

Released 27 Jan 2020. 

Director Florian Zeller delivers up an atypical perspective in The Father (2020) for a film that depicts dementia.

By doing so, he actually presents a perspective more typical than other films about memory challenges. 

The Father is one of about thirty "dementia films" that I've viewed in the last decade.  

Films about Dementia

I find Anthony Hopkins' portrayal (of a character also named Anthony) to be one of the most realistic. 

The majority of the film shows Anthony in conversation with a handful of care partners: family members--such as his daughter Anne played by Olivia Coleman--or those hired to care for him.  

Nomadland: Film with a View on Poverty

 

Released 19 February 2021

Having been a fan of Frances McDormand for two decades, I was eager to see her performance as Fern in Nomadland (2020).  She did not disappoint. However, I did not walk away feeling blissful or triumphant. Instead, I was unsettled. 

The film is a blend between fact and fiction. The director, Chloe' Zhao, had a lot of people depict themselves in the film, people who are seasonal workers living in in all manner of vehicles--from campers to converted vans. 

Ten Books: An Essential Library on Aging

Over the past decade, I have read over 150 books about aging. The topics have ranged from physical to metaphysical with just about everything in between. 

For my full list of books read, see this page. 

I realize that scrolling through this list is a bit like drinking from a fire hydrant. Consequently, I decided to compile a list of the books that I judge as essential reading for anyone who is aging or anyone supporting another person who is aging. 

2020 Report on Older Americans

 

In 2020, the Federal Interagency Forum on Age-Related Statistics published an updated report about 40 key indicators of Well-Being. 

These 40 key indicators are organized into the following categories: 

Population

Economics

Health Status

Health Risks and Behaviors

Health Care

Environment

Of course, this report published data about older adults before the COVID-19 pandemic. Consequently, some of the information has probably changed dramatically. 

Nevertheless, some of the information is still salient. 

You can read the full report here, which is more than 180 pages long. However, it includes three pages of highlights spanning pages xvi - xviii. 

After reading through the highlights, here are a few points that I found interesting.