Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore

Starring: Ellen Burstyn, Kris Kristofferson, Harvey Keitel, Alfred Lutter III, Harry Northup, Diane Ladd
Directed by: Martin Scorsese
Rating: PG
Genre: Drama, Romance
1974

Times Seen:
Tim: 1

Summary: A widow (Ellen Burstyn) and her son (Alfred Lutter III) hit the road to find a new life.

Review:

Tim: Martin Scorsese directs a dramatic romance where his leading lady, Ellen Burstyn won the Academy Award for Best Actress. You know this is going to be a great movie. I'd heard about Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore for a decade before I finally got around to seeing it. And here's the thing- I didn't really like the movie all that much. That surprised me. Usually, when I watch these famous movies that have stayed in people's memories decades after release, I can easily see what it was about the film that made it endure. Yet I struggled with this film. The movie is fine, certainly, and it has some strong moments, but as a whole, the movie left me scratching my head. I couldn't get into the characters or the story, so the 1 hour 52 minute run time felt much, much longer to me. I tried to understand this film, but I didn't truly get it. I think this is a decent movie, but I'm not prepared to go any better than that.

I suppose a great deal of your thoughts about this film depend on how well you relate to the characters. Alice was fine, she seemed believable and realistic. I struggled to understand why I should care about her, though. She's a mom, but makes poor choices. I never got the emotional connection I needed. The same thing with her son- he's goofy and eccentric but he's also annoying and somewhat unlikeable. The men in Alice's life don't give you much a reason to really root for them. Scorsese gets some credit for telling a story about realistic, flawed people, but I wish I had cared about them more.

While the characters were lackluster, the actors are better. Ellen Burstyn does a good job as Alice. She's tough but emotional, flawed but understandable. I enjoyed her performance of this character much more than I liked the character herself. Burstyn gives an authentic, varied performance. It doesn't surprise me that she won the Academy Award for Best Actress here. It was a meaty role and she did well with it. Kris Kristofferson was fine, although I didn't love his performance. I never felt comfortable with what I was supposed to feel. Should I like him? Because he was okay, nothing more. Should I dislike him? He was better than most of the other bums Alice dated. Should I have been ambivalent? I'm not really sure. His character didn't connect well enough. Harvey Keitel was strong in a slightly unhinged smaller role. He doesn't have a ton of screen time, but he was memorable. I was a little surprised Diane Ladd was nominated for Best Supporting Actress. I thought she was good, but not overly remarkable in the role.

Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore is a film I may consider revisiting at some point in the future. This drama about damaged people searching for a better life should have connected better with me than it did. I certainly tried to find an in, but I struggled. Scorsese has directed so many great movies, but this isn't one of them.

Rating 1-10
Tim's Rating- 6.5



If You Enjoyed This Movie, We Recommend: Taxi Driver, Mean Streets