WHAT THEY HAD (15)
★★★★★
BASED on writer-director Elizabeth Chomko’s observations of her grandparents, What They Had is a poignant study of a fractured family coming to terms with surrendering a loved one to Alzheimer’s.
Bert Keller (Robert Forster) wakes to find the other side of the martial bed empty.
His beloved wife Ruth (Blythe Danner), who has stage six Alzheimer’s, has wandered into a snow storm wearing just a flimsy nightdress and housecoat.
Bert telephones his son Nick (Michael Shannon), who in turn calls his sister Bridget (two-time Oscar winner Hilary Swank), and she hurriedly flies into sub-zero Chicago from California with her petulant daughter Emma (Taissa Farmiga) in tow.
Thankfully, Ruth is unharmed but the unsettling episode is the last straw for Nick, who has secured a place for his mother in a memory care facility called The Reminisce Neighbourhood.
Ex-military man Bert stubbornly refuses to entertain the thought of a nursing home and Nick’s frustration boils over when peacemaker Bridget refuses to back him up.
As Christmas beckons, members of the Keller clan face tough choices about their (in)ability to nurture themselves as well as the people they love.
What They Had is an assured debut feature from Chomko, who elicits compelling performances from a superb ensemble cast.