My Life

I lost my father as a very small boy.So small,in fact,that I have no recollection of him whatsoever.This fact is what drew me to view this movie,otherwise it would have been overlooked.My father's death was sudden,so he really had no time to prepare in the way that Michael Keaton's character did here.Bob Jones did what he had to do to make sure his newborn son would not grow up without him,and this is what touched my heart about this movie.Also,the scene where a near death Jones limps to his son's room,up to his crib,touching him gently, and explaining to him that "this whole dying thing wasn't my idea". This one,short moment,was enough to console me through my lifelong sadness of having to grow up without my own dad.His dying wasn't his idea.From a reviewer's standpoint,this perhaps is not a great film, (the ending was unbelievably sappy),but it will always have a special place in my heart for personal reasons.Those of you with fathers, those of you who have lost fathers,and those of you who are fathers should see this movie.

This film is one which really makes us sit back and evaluate our lives and our relationships with those we love.

Michael Keaton turns in a superb performance as the career man who is struck down by terminal cancer while his wife is expecting their first child.

The film then charts his efforts to make a video tape, for his unborn child, of his life and then discovers that it is not what it should be. With the help of a spiritual healer (Haing S. Ngor) and his wife (Nicole Kidman) he sets about trying to set things right with his family and his life.

Although the ending at the after life is a little bit dreamy after the reality of the film, this is still a superb piece of movie making with winning performances from all the cast and a wonderful script.

Definitely not a film to relax to of an evening, it is one of those films, like Philadelphia, that should be watched every now and again just to remind us that life is too short for arguments and should be cherished.

In my personal, yet almost humble opinion, Michael Keaton is the most underrated actor out there. It seems like this man could star in a movie portraying himself and the critics would still claim that he wasn't believable.

The first time I ever saw Michael Keaton was in 'Night Shift' and I thought to myself, "This guy is one of the funniest people on Earth". He put in terrific performances in 'Beetlejuice' and 'Clean & Sober' in 1988, but yet wasn't even nominated for those roles.

MY THEORY: Maybe the judges felt that his portrayal of a recovering alcoholic in 'Clean & Sober' would strike too close to home for many of the recovering alcoholics in the Shrine Auditorium, but that's not my point.

From his portrayal of Bruce Wayne/Batman in 1989 (and again in 1992) to his remarkable bad guy in 'Pacific Heights' in 1990, Keaton has continued to amaze me with the range of acting that he has.

In November 1993, I saw 'My Life' and I could just feel that he was going to win an Academy Award for it.

Come February 1994, the nominations are announced and Keaton isn't even on the list. What the...? I guess cancer wasn't the cool disease that year, since in the end, Tom Hanks won for 'Philadelphia'.

Stepping down from my soapbox: 'My Life' is a great film. It's funny, thought provoking and yes, VERY SAD. I love this show and I hope that you check it out when you get a chance because I think you will be pleasantly surprised.

I generally don't enjoy films that deliberately pull on your heart strings, I usually really resent that, in fact. Generally my main criteria in watching a movie is that I must be entertained. However, this powerful, affecting movie really pulled me in. I don't know why I started watching it, the subject matter would normally repel me, but I simply couldn't stop watching because most things in the film were just so believable. Michael Keaton gives an absolutely killer performance as a businessman dying of untreatable cancer. The story is pretty simple-- he basically is on a quest for inner peace, after a holistic healer convinces him he can die happier if he can let go of his anger. The fact is, part of what makes this movie so good is that the baggage Keaton carries around from childhood is nothing earth shattering; in fact it's fairly mundane and similar to what most of us feel. I found myself sobbing, even weeping, for the last half hour of the film-- watch this one alone if you don't want anyone else to see you doing this! Not a fun movie you can watch over and over, but very thought provoking and worth while. I have no idea how Keaton was overlooked for an Oscar nomination in this fine film.

I'm not a very big fan of these kind of movies, but this one stands out. Watching Bob (Michael Keaton) record advices to his son to watch later in life was indeed very touching, and his struggle to make up with his parents... I can recognize his feelings in myself sometimes... Very good and touching movie.