“Audiences Will See Bright Stars In ‘Aurora Borealis’”
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In less able hands, such grave subjects as Alzheimer’s disease and Euthanasia could be the cornerstones of a maudlin, preachy film, however in the new film, “Aurora Borealis,” director James C.E. Burke takes on Brent Boyd’s script with sensitive, intelligent and funny results.
In the fashion of Lasse Hallstrom’s thoughtful “What’s Eating Gilbert Grape?” “Aurora Borealis” focuses on a young man whose familial responsibilities both overwhelm him and forces him to mature quickly. Duncan Shorter (Joshua Jackson) commemorates the 10-year anniversary of his father’s death by feeling sorry for himself. He allows his brother Jacob (Steven Pasquale) to use his apartment for extramarital affairs. Instead of being grateful, the womanizing Jacob belittles Duncan at every turn for being a dropout. Duncan’s emotional growth appears to have stopped with his father’s heart attack due to cocaine use. Now, though, Duncan begins to cling to humanity once his beloved grandfather, Ronald (Donald Sutherland), starts to deteriorate from Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s diseases.
Like Johnny Depp’s tender but stressed Midwesterner Gilbert Grape (in the popular 90’s movie), family tragedy has left him spent, but a young quirky woman (Juliette Lewis in both films) reignites passions in his soul and body. Kate (Lewis), Ronald’s homecare nurse, falls for Duncan almost immediately, but becomes frustrated when she witnesses his child-like behavior and refusal to focus on a future. Like his arrested developed friends (including TV actors Tyler Labine (“Invasion”) and Zack Ward (“Titus”)), Duncan obsesses about watching sports, drinking beers and playing ice hockey. He can’t even fill out a college application without turning it into a self-defeating joke.
Ronald gets deeply desolated. His talk of suicide and his refusal to do anything but watch television infuriates his loving wife (Oscar winner Louise Fletcher). But Duncan, who until recently couldn’t even care for himself, has refused to allow his grandfather to give up on life.
This is a simple story that has been told often and usually poorly, but the filmmakers trust the tale’s candor nature and don’t pour on schmaltz as less secure filmmakers may have. A particularly poignant and funny scene where Duncan has to take his grandfather to the bathroom highlights both the humiliation and the humor, as Duncan helps his grandfather urinate just as Ronald must have done for Duncan when he was a child. The inevitability of the children becoming the adults’ caregivers has become a reality for many, and this film expresses the pain and the absurdity involved.
Some of the dialogue borders on dark humor such as Kate’s fear of the reception she may receive for the sweet potatoes she brings to Thanksgiving dinner, “I don’t know about this. I got the recipe from a lady with ALS.” The script balances the line without being malicious or crass
The actors contribute to the straightforward manner with ease. After years of insipid portrayals in teen programming like “Dawson’s Creek” and “Urban Legends”, Jackson finally comes of age in a subdued but complex performance.
Lewis exudes such depth, managing to be both endearing and resilient as a heroine and a catalyst for change. Lewis commonly conveys maturity even in her most fragile characters in “Kalifornia” and the HBO movie “Hysterical Blindness.” Many who have not studied her films would dismiss her as talent-less because of her appearance (she’s slightly cross-eyed with a dazed look and high-pitched airy voice). But every time, Lewis demonstrates a concentration and a presence that is illuminating.
As Duncan’s his amoral brother, Pasquale plays a smarmier version of his dopey firefighting character on FX’s “Rescue Me.” A charming actor, Pasquale allows audiences to hate him yet always understand him.
These youngsters hold their own amongst such veterans as Sutherland and Fletcher. Like their juniors, these gifted actors find fresh perspectives in these standard roles of a husband and wife suffering from disease and depression.
Sutherland, with noticeable ticks, has the most opportunity to ham it up, and beg for an Oscar, however he instead focuses on the boredom and quiet frustration of a man incapable of controlling his body or accessing his memories.
A compassionate film, “Aurora Borealis” demonstrates that when filmmakers have faith in their text and actors, even the thorniest subjects can be handled delicately without hammering characters’ woes over the audience’s heads. Grade: B+ |
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