There have been a lot of different kinds of films that have focused on various illnesses or physical impairments. Alzheimer’s, lupus, and dementia are just a few of the debilitating diseases that have been featured in various connotations in movies. Alcoholism is another ailment that has been addressed a lot in films. Memory is the latest film that tackles a couple of these types of illnesses.

Sylvia (Jessica Chastain) is a single mother who works at an adult daycare. While she’s at her school reunion a man comes over and sits next to her. She gets up and leaves the party. The man, Saul (Peter Sarsgaard) starts to follow her on the L and walks behind her to her apartment. She looks out the window and he’s still there looking up at her. When she wakes up in the morning he is sleeping next to her front door with a plastic garbage bag as a makeshift blanket. She asks him why he followed and he says he doesn’t remember even how he got there.

As the title suggests this is a movie about memory loss. The Peter Sarsgaard character has short-term memory loss which impairs him regarding things he should know about his life where he lives and so forth. When Chastain’s character goes to his house to find out why he was following and staying in front of the apartment, his brother played by Josh Charles informs her of this illness. He also tells her he isn’t allowed to leave the house where they live together.

This doesn’t sit well with the pair as they start to become closer to one another as she starts to watch him and this allows him to get romantically involved with him despite what is best for him. These two characters both have issues though as Chastain’s character is a recovering alcoholic and attends AA meetings. These are two people who should be together but they seem to think otherwise.

As a recovering alcoholic myself and someone who suffers from bouts of memory loss I can relate to these characters. It’s hard when you want a drink and when you know things you keep forgetting like things you’ve done hundreds of times. Muscle memory doesn’t work in this case. One of the things that keeps me from drinking is not being around others who drink a lot or go to bars. The combination of these two things has caused me a lot of problems in my past and still today. These characters have to deal with this the hard way.

Jessica Chastain won an Academy Award for her exceptional work in The Eyes of Tammy Faye and Peter Sarsgaard has been doing solid work for years now. Together they are a great combination. These two elements combine to give these characters a grounded realistic feel. That helps both actors give solid grounded performances. This was a tough watch because of my history but the strength of the film is Chastain and Sarsgaard. 

This movie has some serious subject matter but one aspect of it that is a bit understated is that it deals with relationships between brothers and sisters. As mentioned  Josh Charles plays Sarsgaard’s character brother and Meritt Weaver plays Chastain’s character sister. They both have concerns about their siblings and want to help them. As always though most people don’t want help from their siblings even the the advice or help is coming from a good place. We want to sink or swim on our own and that’s the case with the two main characters. I love my brothers and sister and I have to live with them lecturing me when I come to ask them for help. That’s the nature of the beast.

Memory deals with two legitimate illnesses that a lot of people suffer from on a daily basis. The filmmaker grounds the story in a realistic world and both Chastain and Sarsgaard give solid performances. Michel Franco, the writer/director, has created a story I could relate to on a personal basis. He gives the audience watching a conundrum about what they would do in this circumstance.  Two people are in love should they or should they not be together because of the illnesses they are suffering from? It’s not an easy question to answer. That’s what makes the film good though.

4 stars

Dan Skip Allen