Coquitlam Public Library

Death: A Love Story

videorecording

Death: A Love Story

921957697

Originally produced by Harken Productions in 1999

63

Death A Love Story is a timely documentary that looks into the gift that death offers when we are able to put our fears, confusions and denial aside and simply sit and listen to our loved ones as they pass. It confronts our fears of the greatest unknown and reveals the moment to moment grace possible in living a life. The documentary covers the intimate and colorful journey through the last year of the life of Mel Howard, Hollywood producer and actor, former Head of NYU's Graduate Film School, Founding Associate Director of The American Film Institute and Chairman of Boston University's School of Broadcasting and Film, filmed by his wife, Michelle LeBrun. Mel and Michelle's journey, with its search for dignity and grace, is contrasted with the world of medicine both traditional and alternative. Underlying the cinema verite glimpses of frustrations and chaos, is the palpable growth of their faith in life and love. Through their intimate and compelling story, we discover the psychological, spiritual, and sociological aspects of death in American culture, covering such issues as loss, end-of-life care and counseling, grief counseling, palliative care, medical ethics, epidemiology, and theological issues. In the end, Mel shares his death and discoveries about life with the most extraordinary clarity and wisdom. This final segment of the film is unique in its treatment of death. Michelle audio-taped their final conversation together, which is put to poetic imagery illustrative of the transcendent nature of this exchange. Profoundly uplifting and thought-provoking, Death: A Love Story portraits the rite of passage we all must one day face. In all its irony, power and poetry, it shows us that life's greatest gifts can sometimes be found in the seed of death. Reviews: "... an eye-opening, sobering encounter with modern medicine and remarkable evidence of filmmaking playing a part in the healing process." -- David Hunter, HOLLYWOOD REPORTER "This film is as important as it is unique... all of us should watch it and learn from it." -- Douglas Tyler, MD, Diplomat of the American Board of Internal Medicine An Official Documentary Selection at the Sundance Film Festival, 1999 Read filmmaker, Michelle LeBrun's, interview here.

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