Morrie - Une leçon de vie

His performance. His admirable performance . And the balance with beautiful work of Hank Azaria. This is the "seed" for a loving adaptation of Mitch Albom novel. Sure, it is not the book. But it is the great kick for each viewer to read it. Off course, it could be better. But not only the noble message is the axis in this case . The heart of movie is one of the last gifts from extraordinary, magnificent Jack Lemmon. Who offers more than a character but, for me, in few scenes, he offers himself. Traits of life and careeer, having the art and courage to propose new nuances to the story of Morrie Schwartz. The result - a film who must see.

Tuesdays with Morrie was ideally suited for the format of a television movie. A series of vignettes with narration from Hank Azaria, a film based chiefly on dialogue and example, Tuesdays with Morrie is a heartwarming reminder to all of what is important in life--even for people who believe they have it all figured out. Hank Azaria delivers a rare and precise dramatic performance. Jack Lemmon, of course, is right on the money. If at all possible, view the movie without commercial interruption. Somehow corporate sponsorship doesn't fit.

This is a great TV movie about a retired teacher named Morrie Schwartz who is slowly dying of Lou Gherig's disease. Instead of being miserable about his inevitable death, Morrie has accepted it. An old pupil of his, Mitch Albom, has come to visit Morrie after hearing of his sickness on the news. Morrie starts to teach Mitch about his ideas on the meaning of life. He says "When we learn to die, we learn to live." When you can accept that you will die someday, you live life differently. He also says to always forgive everyone before it's too late and to love everyone. "We must love one another, or die."

It is made very clear from the very beginning of this movie that Morrie is going to die. Knowing this makes you dread the ending of this movie, but not as much as watching Morrie in such pain, especially at night. There were great acting jobs by everyone in this movie, including Wendy Moniz and Hank Azaria. But Jack Lemmon steals the show.

This movie reminded me a lot of "I'm Not Rappaport," starring Jack Lemmon's partner Walter Matthau. It's an excellent and beautiful movie that will really make you look at life differently, which is what Morrie would have liked.

I admit I was cynical in finding and watching this movie. Beforehand, I felt Oprah's influence would veer the film in a certain direction and it would represent the worst aspects of the TV movie: being treacly, and unrealistic. But Jack Lemmon's presence ensured my interest. (This, after all, was the illustrious actor's last performance.) I was rewarded by a clear-eyed, stirring, and often moving depiction of one man's dignity and the gift of living he bestows on a younger man. Both Lemmon and Azaria lock on to their parts with conviction, and I felt a real loving friendship existed between the men. I learned from this movie: lessons about communication and ideaology. It is a rare gem, honestly portrayed, and further proof (as if we needed any!) of Jack Lemmon's unique and breathtaking talent.

Based on a quick summary, a movie about a man slowly dying of a terminal illness, I would expect to hate the movie. Most such stories are painful to watch, as if a movie maker thought that making viewers suffer to watch the movie would give them sympathy for the suffering of those stricken with the featured disease. But this one is an exception. It's not about the dying man's disease, it's about the man himself, and about the former student who visits him every week.

Morrie is dying of ALS, Lou Gehrig's disease. He is a retired teacher, and was Mitch's revered favorite teacher. Mitch visits him once a week, and reawakens their friendship. He finds Morrie's words so wise that he asks to tape their conversations so he might remember them better. Well, I appreciate Mitch's efforts, because I was happy to hear Morrie's words of wisdom also. Some of his advice is sappy, particularly taken out of context, but as a whole he presents very positive messages. Part of it is the idea that although he's sick, dying, and often in pain, he's not afraid of death, but rather interested in getting as much as possible out of the life he has left. There's much more to it than that, but that's the biggest part of his message.

But there's more to the movie than the message -- a movie with nothing more than a message (even one worth presenting) is bound to be boring. The real pleasure in watching this is that the characters are interesting along the way. The two stars' acting is first class. A regular "disease movie" would just make me feel guilty about not caring about its sick main character. This movie made me care about Morrie and Mitch.