Better Days

Better Days is a 2023 film that wasn't nearly as good as it could have been.

Sonja Smits gives a solid performance as a recently widowed middle-aged teacher who appears to just be learning about her life, giving rise to an awkward and cliched plot line about unhappy (or still searching) ever after. Cue the music: "Smile, Though Your Heart is Aching." Enough already.

Better Days needed a much better ending but that's my opinion. Instead, it becomes a conversation between the star and the viewing audience that breaks the rules of moviemaking in a good way, until the writer/director decides to betray that trust.

As good as it seems to be when the main character is introduced to another man, there must be something better out there. Where have I heard that before in this "What truly is happiness" generation? Let the angst continue.

But, why? The main character is a bright, apparently responsible woman with a good job, a formerly successful marriage and two adult children that care for her. Can't that be enough or is this movie a statement on coping with despair and finding some meaning for our perpetually troubled existence. If so, it's remarkably unremarkable.

Alix Sideris also stands out as the egocentric, obnoxious friend, who nobody wants in their life, but remains much like gum on the bottom of your shoe.

I have been widowed for less than two months after a 44-year marriage. So much about this movie reverberated with me, especially the interactions with others who are well-meaning, but tone deaf. Why, when I deal with various financial institutions, having to explain the loss of my husband, do they say goodbye, brightly chirping "Have a good day?" Should I growl "None of my days are good?" No, I suck it up, like the main character, Kate, but I'm angry inside. Then there's the advice I get: "think only about the happy times"--"go to the gym"--"take walks." They say: "we're here for you" (but that fades away fast)--the children send flowers and advice but not their presence. How obnoxious, after just a few weeks, to be told to consider a grief counselor--just who is it that could heal you, as though your grief is an illness, when the rock in your life has been taken away? I sympathize with Kate when she can bear it no longer and takes a lot of pills to kill her pain, because I sometimes feel like doing the same. I take safe non-opiod pills, non-albeit just one at a time, but I sure need them. I don't agree with the reviewer who thinks this movie is poorly produced and acted; I thought it was great, especially the lead actress. Yes, the ending wasn't quite right. We aren't told how long the relationship went between Kate and Henry, so the ending doesn't make sense. I think I understand why Kate did what she did. I only hope, as they say, that time will heal.

No one wants to be alone. Not really. But there will come a time when we are forced to face the world by ourselves without the comfort of family, friends or spouses. What insanity will we suffer? Immeasurable amounts? Slight twinges or full on self induced mental withdrawal? The poor Canadian lady in this story depicts one example of dealing with loss. She"s unstable to begin with and spins around the drain looping between happy and desperate, between content and fear. Forced to be alone when her husband dies she has no choice but to face the inevitable alone. Even when she is surrounded by friends, neighbors and her own children the simple fact is ... she's totally alone. Only vodka and weed separate her pain from reality. Dealing with her problems both real and imagined is the point of the plot. She must (and does) deal with all of the fallout that accompanies tragic loss. It's a goofy movie. Poorly produced. Poorly acted. Poorly directed and written BUT THE POINT - loneliness sucks - comes charging through. Good for a little introspection. Watch it and reflect on your own excuses for being alone ... you might surprise yourself.