At a Glance

The story of a man who's wife has Alzheimer's and is institutionalised. His wife then turns her affections towards another patient who is mute and wheelchair bound.

Detailed Information

Married for 50 years, Grant (Gordon Pinsent) and Fiona's (Julie Christie) life together is full of tenderness and humour, their serenity broken only by Fiona's occasional, restrained references to the past, complicated further by her increasingly evident memory loss. As the lapses become more obvious and dramatic, it is no longer possible for either of them to ignore the fact that Fiona is suffering from Alzheimer's disease.

Moving Fiona into a nursing home specializing in the disease, Grant is not allowed to visit for the first month so she can "adjust". When he sees her again, Fiona has forgotten him and turned her affection to Aubrey (Michael Murphy), another resident in the home. Heartbroken, Grant visits daily, bearing witness to the growing bond between her and Aubrey. When Aubrey's wife (Olympia Dukakis) takes Aubrey home, Fiona becomes deeply depressed, and Grant embarks on the greatest act of self-sacrifice of his life.