The title of this film can be understood both as the awakening of the patients in this film but also the awakening of the doctors and other medical personnel working day by day without engaging themselves in reflection around the treatment and development of their patients.
It's a film based on a book by Oliver Sacks with the same name (written in 1973) and tells a true story about a doctor revolutionizing the treatment in the hospital. The doctor was mr Sacks.
In this adaptation for the screen we see Robin Williams in the role as dr Sacks but in the film he is given the name Malcolm Sayer.
He becomes employed as a doctor at a hospital in 1969 although he has know clinical experience.
In this hospital there are patients being treated - or rather ill-treated or not treated at all - after having been catatonic for decades after an epidemic of encephalitis lethargica, ravaging the USA during the years 1917-28.
Sayer soon realizes that they can be stimulated rather easily, as when throwing a ball at them, making them use their reflexes; letting them listen to music they can relate to, touching them etc etc.
When his colleagues - having themselves been 'sleeping' all these years when working with these patients - becomes aware of his ambitions, they scorn him and more or less directly tell him to comply with the 'non-treatment traditions' at this hospital and this because they are dealing with "hopeless cases", an expression so often used.
Sayer/Sacks doesn't care about this but continues his research concerning a possible treatment.
All of a sudden he finds out that the medicine L-Dopa used in the treatment of patients with Parkinson's actually functions on these patients too.
He starts to administrate this medicine and all of a sudden the patients gradually recovers, some more than others, among the latter Leonard Lowe (Robert de Niro).
Lowe starts to lead an almost 'normal' life but this creates problems as his mother is used to the 'old' Leonard and all of a sudden doesn't recognize this 'new' one, not least when he starts to interest himself in a woman, the daughter of one of the patients. He also request permission to leave the hospital, taking walks and doing the things "you take for granted" as he expresses it in front of the medical staff.
His mother does however point out something important, namely when asking Sayer how he would feel waking up realizing that he's lost decades of his life being in a sort of a coma.
The treatment continues and they all start to see the positive effects, although there are some negative side effects like the above mentioned fact that they become aware of that they have lost so many years of their lives, leading some of them to become depressive.
A new life in a new time where they don't seem to belong, also means that they have to start from zero, learning new things and some of them can't cope with this.
After some time they experience setbacks with the treatment and in the end most of them regresses and they enter the old catatonic state, not least Leonard.
In the role as the assistant nurse Eleanor Costello we see Julie Kavner (above).
It's a long time since we both saw this film and I remember it as a very warm (and it is) and genuine (in a way it is) film with extremely convincing acting (which it's not).
Robert de Niro was in my memory an excellent interpreter of this role character and it starts of well but gradually I fell that he exaggerates and it tend to become more slapstick than a real portrait of a real person, however handicaped in many ways.
The same thing goes even more for Robin Williams in the role as dr Sayer. I don't know if it's still 'Mork' in 'Mork and Mindy' that comes to my mind when looking at Williams, although I've seen him in several 'serious' roles where he is fantastic.
In this role however, I can't take him seriously.
The description of 'the awakening' is also very abrupt. All of a sudden all the patients - more or less - come to life and they start to wander around, dancing, singing and doing all sorts of things they haven't been able to do in decades. The problem with this is the so common 'start button' in American films, where everything happens at the same time: People start to cry at the same time and for the same reason, they clap their hand at the same time and for the same reason and so forth. This render the story an aura of unreality and staged theatre, and that of course breaks the 'magical spell'.
When Sayer/Williams is lecturing for a group of wealthy persons and potential donors, they are at first sceptical but when he shows them the result he has achieved with Leonard Lowe, they all - as like programmed robots - take up their wallets or checkbooks, donating money to the hospital and its research. This is so predictable and when these kind of things happens over and over again, it gets rather boring.
It's a pity as the subject matter was/is very important, not least when it comes to the way we look upon patients or persons not fitting in to the societal norms. When the story is told in a fashion making it an Oscar candidate being, not to realistic, not to dramatic but rather kind and hopefull, the important questions are lost in the exterior packaging and that's a shame.
This latter aspect not least important in a country like the USA where a often very fascist attitude towards humans being regarded as misfits is common. A film like this could have become a very important and provocative document. It misses this target - if this ever was the aim.
(The poster copied from: http://mylastoscar.files.wordpress.com/2010/06/awakenings1.jpg)
It's a film based on a book by Oliver Sacks with the same name (written in 1973) and tells a true story about a doctor revolutionizing the treatment in the hospital. The doctor was mr Sacks.
In this adaptation for the screen we see Robin Williams in the role as dr Sacks but in the film he is given the name Malcolm Sayer.
He becomes employed as a doctor at a hospital in 1969 although he has know clinical experience.
In this hospital there are patients being treated - or rather ill-treated or not treated at all - after having been catatonic for decades after an epidemic of encephalitis lethargica, ravaging the USA during the years 1917-28.
Sayer soon realizes that they can be stimulated rather easily, as when throwing a ball at them, making them use their reflexes; letting them listen to music they can relate to, touching them etc etc.
When his colleagues - having themselves been 'sleeping' all these years when working with these patients - becomes aware of his ambitions, they scorn him and more or less directly tell him to comply with the 'non-treatment traditions' at this hospital and this because they are dealing with "hopeless cases", an expression so often used.
Sayer/Sacks doesn't care about this but continues his research concerning a possible treatment.
All of a sudden he finds out that the medicine L-Dopa used in the treatment of patients with Parkinson's actually functions on these patients too.He starts to administrate this medicine and all of a sudden the patients gradually recovers, some more than others, among the latter Leonard Lowe (Robert de Niro).
Lowe starts to lead an almost 'normal' life but this creates problems as his mother is used to the 'old' Leonard and all of a sudden doesn't recognize this 'new' one, not least when he starts to interest himself in a woman, the daughter of one of the patients. He also request permission to leave the hospital, taking walks and doing the things "you take for granted" as he expresses it in front of the medical staff.
His mother does however point out something important, namely when asking Sayer how he would feel waking up realizing that he's lost decades of his life being in a sort of a coma.
The treatment continues and they all start to see the positive effects, although there are some negative side effects like the above mentioned fact that they become aware of that they have lost so many years of their lives, leading some of them to become depressive.A new life in a new time where they don't seem to belong, also means that they have to start from zero, learning new things and some of them can't cope with this.
After some time they experience setbacks with the treatment and in the end most of them regresses and they enter the old catatonic state, not least Leonard.In the role as the assistant nurse Eleanor Costello we see Julie Kavner (above).
It's a long time since we both saw this film and I remember it as a very warm (and it is) and genuine (in a way it is) film with extremely convincing acting (which it's not).
Robert de Niro was in my memory an excellent interpreter of this role character and it starts of well but gradually I fell that he exaggerates and it tend to become more slapstick than a real portrait of a real person, however handicaped in many ways.
The same thing goes even more for Robin Williams in the role as dr Sayer. I don't know if it's still 'Mork' in 'Mork and Mindy' that comes to my mind when looking at Williams, although I've seen him in several 'serious' roles where he is fantastic.
In this role however, I can't take him seriously.
The description of 'the awakening' is also very abrupt. All of a sudden all the patients - more or less - come to life and they start to wander around, dancing, singing and doing all sorts of things they haven't been able to do in decades. The problem with this is the so common 'start button' in American films, where everything happens at the same time: People start to cry at the same time and for the same reason, they clap their hand at the same time and for the same reason and so forth. This render the story an aura of unreality and staged theatre, and that of course breaks the 'magical spell'.When Sayer/Williams is lecturing for a group of wealthy persons and potential donors, they are at first sceptical but when he shows them the result he has achieved with Leonard Lowe, they all - as like programmed robots - take up their wallets or checkbooks, donating money to the hospital and its research. This is so predictable and when these kind of things happens over and over again, it gets rather boring.
It's a pity as the subject matter was/is very important, not least when it comes to the way we look upon patients or persons not fitting in to the societal norms. When the story is told in a fashion making it an Oscar candidate being, not to realistic, not to dramatic but rather kind and hopefull, the important questions are lost in the exterior packaging and that's a shame.
This latter aspect not least important in a country like the USA where a often very fascist attitude towards humans being regarded as misfits is common. A film like this could have become a very important and provocative document. It misses this target - if this ever was the aim.
(The poster copied from: http://mylastoscar.files.wordpress.com/2010/06/awakenings1.jpg)
(Photo Robin Williams and Robert de Niro copied from: http://themoraltimes.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/awakenings.jpg)
(Photo 2 Robin Williams and Robert de Niro copied from: http://thebestpictureproject.files.wordpress.com/2011/04/awakenings3.jpg)
(Photo Julie Kavner as Eleanor Costello copied from: http://www.wearysloth.com/Gallery/ActorsK/9125-1023.gif)
(Photo several actors copied from: http://cineplex.media.baselineresearch.com/images/253940/253940_large.jpg)
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