Back to homepage

Memory for Max, Claire, Ida and Company

Memory for Max, Claire, Ida and Company

(Memory for Max, Claire, Ida and Company), Allan King / KAN, 2005
original version / Czech sub-subtitles, 112 min

Many children one day face the question of whether to look after their aging parents themselves or to pay for specialised care in an old folks' home. Memory for Max, Claire, Ida and Company turns the camera on seniors spending their autumn years in just such institutions. They are either lost in thoughts and memories of the past or fixated on their children's next visit. Helen was a successful businesswoman but has begun to become aggressive after losing her memory. Murray served in the army in Italy but today is confined to a wheelchair. Ida was a carer and now finds herself in need of specialist attention. It seems that only Claire and Max are enjoying their old age. They only have one another and their friendship helps them overcome the ubiquitous loneliness at the home. The camera quietly takes in the goings on at a seniors' home and slowly leads the viewer to reflect on the loss of strength which robs a person of their previous charisma, and on the scant interest contemporary society shows in the lives of the aged. The film is shot in the spirit of cinéma vérité. The director of Memory for Max, Claire, Ida and Company is among the leading exponents of the genre.