Familiar Touch: Memories Fade But Moments Remain In This Heart-Wrenching Drama
Image: Familiar Touch: Sarah Friedland
Familiar Touch is the powerful and heart-wrenching depiction of a woman who is lives with dementia.
Written and directed by Sarah Friedland, this award-winning film centres on an 88-year-old woman named Ruth, who doesn’t believe that she’s ‘one of those elderly people who you have to watch’.
The opening sequence is possibly one of the most distressing ever seen in a film, where she has a conversation over lunch with somebody who she regards as a stranger – her son.
The piercing expression of sadness on her son’s face is suffocating. This is their last meal together as mother and son at home, as — unbeknownst to her — she will soon be relocated to a nursing home.
How can a woman with dementia remember each step of an intricate recipe and yet not remember her son, later describing him as ‘that man’? Showcased is the strange and unpredictable nature of the decline in cognitive function, which includes memory loss and difficulty with communication, affecting a person’s daily life and relationships.
This cinematic gem explores Ruth’s adjustment to her new life in the nursing home, her interactions with the patients and medical staff, and the decline in her mental health. Its purpose may not be to entertain in the literal sense, but to spread awareness and educate audiences about this relatable medical issue.
The impactful direction by Sarah Friedland is the primary reason for the effectiveness of this narrative. The utilised long camera shots convey confusion and disorientation, emphasising isolation and the emotional toll on the principal character.
The absence of a musical soundtrack or incidental music also heightens the sombre atmosphere, especially in the most poignant scenes, where silence draws attention to the character’s emotions and actions.
American actress Kathleen Chalfant delivers a remarkable performance as Ruth. Her realistic portrayal from a smiling positive woman to an expressionless and helpless shell of her former self in the final frames of the film resonates the fragility of life.
The sequence in the final act where Ruth dances slowly with her son is emotionally charged. She has vague recollections of that familiar touch -—but he’s still a stranger in her fragmented mind…
Ultimately, the lasting impression on audiences is that this award-winning film may not have been produced for monetary gain, but more importantly for community awareness. It’s a delicate slow-moving story told with compassion, that should hopefully find a broad audience in arthouse cinemas.
****1/2
In Cinemas October 23
