Youth in Oregon

Suicide and euthanasia have been and will continue to be very controversial moral issues. I believe that in most societies today the prevailing attitude towards people who choose to end their own lives is judgemental and dogmatically hostile. This is understandable. People who choose to end their own lives challenge our conventional thinking that "life is a gift" no matter how much hardship and pointless suffering it contains. Indeed, there is something threatening about someone taking their own life. It scares us, it confuses us. But it tells us something about ourselves: how we often choose to ignore the fact that we live in a pretty terrible world that is full of sentient suffering. And that the meaningless platitudes like "suicide is a permanent solution to a temporary problem" and "it always gets better" mean little to people who are actually going through hell on a daily basis. It is, therefore, very important to explore the issues of suicide and euthanasia not only through philosophical arguments, but also through art. "Youth in Oregon" is one of the attempts of such exploration.

I think if you are willing to go into this with an open-mind and consider the point of view of the characters (and I mean ALL characters!), you are likely to enjoy this movie. I think the acting was great and the plot was good enough to keep me interested and engaged. Yes, there are flaws also and some of them may be annoying. But for me this movie has been mostly a positive and thoughtful experience.

I understand why some people would be upset with this movie as it does, quite subtly I think, challenge the prevailing life-affirming paradigm. But it is by no means one-sided. Essentially, it tries to consider different issues like autonomy, the meaning and value of human life, friendship and family from different perspectives represented by different characters. If you go into this with an open-mind and ready to do some thinking to consider the point of view of the characters, there may be value for you in this movie. Even if there are no overly deep insights, there is still much to consider and to ponder at. The aesthetics and atmosphere were also to my taste. I also found the comedy aspect funny. But it is probably better to go into it with lower expectations. Thank you!

Sensitive depiction of an aging and ailing family patriarch whose wish to choose when he will die brings troubled family relationships to a head. The film is deftly propelled by the tension created around whether the old man will get his wish and be euthanized in Oregon. During the cross country road trip Ray, the old guy, sees his troubled family and small pleasures with new eyes. Painful, riveting, true to life, brilliant.

I agree with some of the points other reviewers have made, but I wanted to offer an opinion from inside the subject matter of the film. Has a member of your family chosen to die by their own hand because they face the rest of their lives in an ill and endlessly declining body? Or do you currently know someone who is now, or has been, terribly ill and now faces an unknown quantity of time on Earth with a seriously altered body that no longer looks or functions normally? From both of these perspectives, I watched this film, hoping to see something with which I could identify. I ended up feeling a bit ripped off - which really made me think. As others have said, what you think should be the vital points of the topic feel buried under heavy-handed drama that grates on the nerves rather than lending a sense of "the real stuff people have to deal with when they're alive." And yes, it feels like a screwball comedy that had all of the humor erased from the script. An artistic choice? I don't know. Yes, people get angry when faced with the possibility or the reality of a loved-one's suicide. Anger, resentment, guilt, it is all there. But there is no "voice of reason" in this film, and I suspect that's what most viewers feel cheated of. We want a magical ending, a sense of completion, catharsis, or at least a sense of dramatic satisfaction (the ending may not be the one we hoped for, but it felt 'right'). What was Roy thinking, sitting in the room with his friend Pete? To me, in retrospect, that was the climax of the film - the point where a decision was made and now everyone in the story has to figure out how to deal with it (and with all the things they've said to each other throughout the film). This movie may not be what we wanted, but it is what it is and we have to choose how to deal with it and with its subject matter (which isn't what we were hoping for, let's face it). People make choices. There are cumulative consequences for every one of those choices, and there is no "easy" out. Death is never an "easy" out. That stings, both in art and in life.

So its a very good film that I saw at in New York at Tribeca. Great cast and direction but really its the story that is the star. Not implausible that the old guy is tired and wants to go to Oregon and end it. The concept of ending your own life when you want rather than having something bad happen to you from cancer heart attack etc ad nauseum is becoming in the zeitgeist. Its catching a wave as a discussion point versus the old dogma from the Catholic Church and other religions that its a big no no. So how people in a family deal with the concept of a loved one deciding to end his life is real. Was also in Me Before You but this one is way less Hollywood and much more real. Its just beginning of these type of stories in some for or another. So kudos to the writer director and the cast for bring the story to the screen

Another attempt at fooling people with the trailer that this is another little miss sunshine movie . This movie misses completely I like the actors in this movie that's why I watched it but the script Is poor and the story line isn't great . There was no big lines to sense some closure anytime in the movie it was all over the place . The actors never got into character it seems like and they are trying to hard it's almost annoying I'm a 28 year old man thinking about getting old and doing what the motive was the movie is a waste of time . The point of the movie ? When you find out please tell me cause I am lost Oh yea Josh Lucas reappeared in a movie ! Bad one to chose