Shadowlands (1993)

Biographical drama about the relationship between author C.S. Lewis and an American divorcee who is dying of bone cancer. Directed by Richard Attenborough, it’s adapted from the stage play (which was itself adapted from a TV drama). 

Anthony Hopkins and Debra Winger are absolutely superb as the two leads. Their unusual love story is more believable because of the restraint with which it’s demonstrated. The film picks up on every nuance of their speech and behaviour. 

It’s extremely moving, firstly when Lewis surprises himself by discovering that he’s in love and secondly when he finds out how much he now has to lose. 

The film tackles big questions about the meaning of life, too. How can we love when the end of love causes such pain? And what value do spiritual beliefs have in the face of seemingly godless events that lead to overwhelming grief?

There’s gentle humour too, such as in Joy and her son’s observations of English life in the 1950s.

Love Is All You Need (2012)

Light romantic drama from Denmark, directed by Susanne Bier. 

Philip (Pierce Brosnan) is a hard-hearted businessman. Ida (Trine Dyrholm) is a hairdresser recovering from cancer treatment. They pair meet when their children are due to marry in Italy, and they fall in love despite various obstacles. 

Contrary to what the generic title and packaging might suggest, it’s surprisingly enjoyable and subtle, with some nice observations about the way families behave.

The Hunter (1980)

Steve McQueen’s final film before his death from cancer isn’t regarded as a classic, but it ought to be.

He plays a bounty hunter whose task it is to bring in dangerous criminals. The plot is enjoyably open-ended, with several threads interwoven. McQueen acts more than usual, which makes for an enjoyable watch.

There’s also a lot of humour and some genuinely exciting scenes. I especially liked the running joke about his inability to park a car.

Stepmom (1998)

Hot-shot photographer Isabel (Julia Roberts) tries to get on with the kids of her new partner Luke (Ed Harris) from his previous marriage to Jackie (Susan Sarandon). Then Jackie, the perfect mother, is diagnosed with cancer and Isabel, who Jackie distrusts and resents, needs to step in and take a greater role in the children’s lives. 

It’s a reasonable premise and the three leads are all charismatic and watchable. What slightly ruins the film is the presence of two child actors (Jena Malone and Liam Aiken) who seem a little too self-conscious and self-aware. I never really believed they were real people with real feelings – perhaps because they speak lines that were clearly written for them by adults. 

The emotional draw is watching the two women come to terms with their situations and with each other, which of course they eventually do. No one seems to mind that Ed Harris isn’t around much. Also, as in so many films, the characters’ wealth and upward mobility is never in question. Jackie lives in a mansion that seems to get bigger every time we see it. That’s not really a flaw of the film – rich people have problems, too – but it does seem to lessen any drama that the script attempts to build up.

Film Stars Don't Die in Liverpool (2017)

Biographical drama detailing an unlikely romance between American actress Gloria Grahame (Annette Bening) and a Liverpudlian half her age (Jamie Bell). 

Their romance is shown in flashback during Gloria’s final days after she comes to stay with her young lover’s mother (Julie Walters) and his family while dying of stomach cancer. 

It’s a poignant love story that examines youth, age, celebrity, sexuality and other themes with a lightness of touch. 

It’s shot in a deliberately dream-like way, with the Hollywood sunshine deliberately contrasting with the “grim oop north” English light.

The Fault in Our Stars (2014)

Adapted from the novel by John Green and directed by Josh Boone, this is a romance about two teens with terminal cancer. It’s more watchable than that description might suggest. 

Shailene Woodley and Ansel Elgort star as the main couple, Hazel and Gus, and both are fairly compelling. Since it’s very much from a teen perspective, the adults are oddly marginalised. Laura Dern just about has a role as Hazel’s mother, but Sam Trammell is a complete nothing of a character as her father.

Another interesting aspect is Hazel’s (dying) wish to seek out an obscure author whose work she admires (played by Willem Dafoe). When she eventually meets him, in Amsterdam, he’s a disappointingly unpleasant alcoholic. It’s a slightly odd plot – especially when he shows up again, and surprisingly hasn’t been humbled or redeemed by his encounters with the innocently adoring fan.

An unusual affair all round, but it certainly makes you think.

August: Osage County (2013)

A dysfunctional family get together for the occasion of a funeral. The unhinged mother (Meryl Streep) has mouth cancer and a pill addiction. Her three daughters (Julia Roberts, Julianne Nicholson, Juliette Lewis) all have domestic problems of their own. And their attempts to draw together as a family end in bitter recrimination. 

Adapted from a play by Tracy Letts, this is a hugely OTT drama. The all-star cast also includes Sam Shepherd, an oddly miscast Ewan McGregor, Benedict Cumberbatch, Chris Cooper and Dermot Mulroney. 

They all deliver solid performances, but the problem is that it’s so overwhelmingly overwrought that it’s almost farcical. And not in a comical way, either. The endless screaming became a chore and the refusal to allow even a glimmer of positivity was wearing indeed. It was such a bottomless pit of misery (with no contrasts or light and shade) that it couldn’t really engage as a drama. 

Streep seemed to be wearing a facial prosthetic to make her look older and sicker, and I found that offputting. 

Another flaw was that I couldn’t believe someone as vindictive, mentally unstable and chemically unbalanced as Streep’s character could have kept the family’s big secret for all those years, only to casually reveal it at the moment she did. 

A far stronger family drama is The Family Stone, which had wit and subtlety on its side.

The Family Stone (2005)

Funny and moving comedy drama about a family Christmas. The eldest of several children brings his girlfriend (Sarah Jessica Parker) to meet the family, with all sorts of unexpected consequences. There’s romance and tragedy, conflict and farce, and a lot of highly amusing moments along the way. Diane Keaton is superb as the mother – the centre of the family – who is dying of cancer. But unusually, every character is perfectly played and the writing is expertly judged. It tackles prejudice about privilege, deafness and homosexuality with a lightness of touch that stops it being heavy-handed. And ultimately, it’s as heartwarming a story as you’d expect from a Christmas film, but with enough sharp observation to prevent it ever becoming schmaltzy or predictable.