Whose Life is it Anyway?
WHOSE LIFE IS IT ANYWAY? (15)
D: John Badham
MGM (Lawrence P. Bachmann)
US 1981
118 mins
Drama
W: Brian Clark & Reginald Rose [based on the play by
Brian Clark]
DP: Mario Tosi
Ed: Frank Morriss
Mus: Arthur P. Rubinstein
Richard Dreyfuss (Ken Harrison), John
Cassavetes (Dr. Emerson), Christine Lahti (Dr. Scott), Bob Balaban (Carter Hill), Kenneth McMillan (Judge Wyler)
Richard Dreyfuss gives one of the very best performances
of his career in one of his lesser known films.
He plays a sculptor who emerges from a car accident
totally paralyzed from the neck down and fights from his hospital bed for his right to die.
Whatever side you lie on the euthanasia debate, Dreyfuss'
immense performance may well sway your opinion. Based on a static stage play, the film was a modest hit in 1981 but faded into obscurity as the decade went on. Well worth a watch, if you can
manage to track down a rare copy.
7/10
