CarolD

Want to watch some powerful movies?

See if you can find..


" 'My Name Is Bill W." James Woods and James Gardner.

"Leaving Los Vegas" .. Nick Cage

"Days of Wine and Roses" J Lemmon

'Barfly' Mickey O'Rouke and Fay Dunaway.

'Who's Afraid Of Virginia Wolfe?'
Richard Burtom Elizabeth Taylor.

Please add any others
and
pass the popcorn please....

kats

Carol,

I've seen all of those except for "My Name is Bill W.", and "Who's Afraid of Virginia Wolfe." Never heard of the movie about Bill W., but have heard of the Virginia Wolfe movie -- though honestly, I didn't know it was about alcoholism.

"The Days of Wine and Roses," really had a huge impact on me because it showed me how slowly and insidiously alcohol can creep into a person's life. I mean, literally, Jack Lemmon's character almost forced his wife to begin drinking and then ironically, she was the one that couldn't shake the addiction.

"Leaving Las Vegas," was almost too gritty for me. I know that some alcoholics end up like that -- but it didn't mirror, in any respect, my experience so it made it very hard for me to relate to. After all, I'm not like *that*.

"Clean and Sober," with Michael Keaton was really good. When I was in outpatient rehab we watched a movie one night, with Martin Sheen starring in it, but for the life of me, I can't remember the name of the movie. I think it might have been a made for tv movie, but I'm not sure. It was really good, though.

Another movie, though not really *about* alcoholism, but one that addresses it, is "Pay it Forward," with Helen Hunt and Kevin Spacey. Helen is actively trying to get control of her alcoholism while dealing with single parenthood and other stuff. That was a good one.

I'm very influenced by music, movies and television. I think it's good for addicts to look at harsh and gritty movies that might reflect their own experience, or even movies that might just get them thinking. I look forward to reading about other members' picks -- I'm always looking for a good movie!

Kats

CarolD

Here you are my friends

Sunflower

Pay it forward---that is an excellent movie. My AS watches a lot of dvds but doesn't like to watch anything about alcoholism because he is already dealing with that issue 24/7...everyone is different.Like movies-music can also change your mood...I listen to music to do my meditation and visualization for my chronic pain, I gave my AS a cd for relaxing to go to sleep at night and he loves it--puts the insomniac in him right to sleep.--I like survival movies like--thecolor purple-gone with the wind-movies that lift the human spirit to a better level-to work harder at everything.This may sound really stupid--but with dealing with my own chronic illness and a AS and all the other million problems I have--I started to notice the ''signs'' from the higher power--to appreciate art-nature-.When I couldn't find beauty in the world I found it there.When I felt no passion in life at all I found Opera(something I never liked) I realised as much bad there is around me going on the beauty still exists--and it was right in front of me.......

wozzek

"Under the Volcano" absolutely the best book and one of the best movies on the topic...

BUT - don't you think some of those movies could be triggers for someone new in recovery??

CarolD

Hmm...No, I don't think so.

One can not hide from alcohol
I think we need to face our
fears and our disease to win

Sunflower

My AS says it does trigger him--everyone is different

wozzek

Sure I agree with you in the point of facing our fears and our disease. However, I know that for me even reading about horrors the disease does to the people were the trigger to me, a part of a build up for a drink.

"Under the Volcano" by Malcolm Lowry is one of the most magnificent books ever written (about an alcoholic) but I "used it" to find "the beauty of hell" that is being produced by booze. Only recently I was able to read it again and not to find it at all that appealing like I used to before, when I perhaps needed to identify with a main character...

Hush007

When a man loves a woman. I liked that one a lot. It shows the whole drinking part from the two sides in a relationship.

But I think that Leaving las vegas is my number one movie when it comes to the subject.

came2believe

Speaking of fiction, many of Raymond Carver's stories deal with alcoholism.

"Where I'm Calling From" is brilliant.

Sunflower

Thanks for all the good titles---I haven't seen/read some of these--I will...I did see leaving las Vegas---I hated it..but it is realistic

o2bserene

What about "28 Days" with Sandra Bullock? I saw it in detox ... I'd seen it before that but it didn't have as much impact the first time!

Di

Surlyredhead

I was flipping through the channels one night and happened to come accross a movie called "Something To Live For" it is an older B&W mivie, I think it was made in the '50s about a female Alcoholic (something America wasn't to keen on commenting about back then), I couldn't stop watching it, I cried in many spots because it reminded me so much of my struggle and difficulty to stop drinking no matter how low I had gotten. Here is a write up I found on the movie.

Something to Live For is the last of director George Stevens' "small" films, before he concentrated full-time on such blockbusters as Shane and Giant. Joan Fontaine plays a popular actress who descends into alcoholism. Ray Milland, in an unofficial extension of his Lost Weekend role, plays a reformed drunkard who comes to Fontaine's rescue. He encourages her to join Alcoholics Anonymous--one of the first times that this organization was given any kind of screen treatment. Milland's concern strains his relationship with his wife (Teresa Wright), who doubts that Ray's interest in Fontaine is merely humanitarian. But Milland refuses to endanger his marriage no matter how strong his feelings towards Fontaine--nor how much the audience wants him to.

It was a great movie...SRH