"From here on in, it's either depend on these strangers or depend on me."
"We depend on no one, Ruda."
"But you have to, Daddy... eventually."
"Who says so?"
This interaction takes places in the final half hour of the film, as a more understanding daughter, Ruda (Melinda Dillon), implores her father, Teddy (James Stewart), to essentially pick his poison. Despite Ruda's best efforts, the aforementioned conversation serves only to cement his and terminally ill Mini's (Bette Davis) decision to end their lives when they say so. But more than that, it speaks to the deep-held beliefs of Teddy and Mini's generation: they only survived the Great Depression and won the Second World War (Stewart himself voluntarily served with distinguish in the Air Force during WW2).
Teddy and Mini Dwyer, a long married Santa Monica couple live together in a cluttered house with their multitude of cats, dolls and books. Their cats are named after the likes of Robert De Niro, Al Pacino, James Caan, and Paul Newman. But, if you ask me, I think De Niro and Pacino should be the ones naming their cats after Stewart and Davis.
The film begins with Teddy and Mini calling their daughter down south for a visit. They lay the news on small business owner Ruda that Mini is dying - for real this time. Mini describes the terminal illness as her body being allergic to her own blood; Teddy doesn't dare try to pronounce the name of it. They explain their intention to kill themselves to their daughter. Ruda doesn't take the revelation well and informs the local county, who in turn release an army of bureaucrats on the beleaguered couple.
The life expectancy in America in 1908, when Stewart and Davis were born, was 51 years old. In 1983, the year this film was released, it was 74. People live longer, in the developed world at least. This gift comes with a set of difficulties. What happens when proud, independent people reach that age where they can't take care of themselves anymore? Compromises must be made. This film depicts the story of two people, Teddy and Mini, who won't make those compromises.
Mini won't be a piñata shuffled from doctor to doctor and pumped full of donor blood to extend her life. Teddy won't live alone (Stewart basically made the same decision in his own life ten years later when his wife died. He confined himself to his home and refused most medical attention. His last words were reported to have been "I'm going to be with Gloria {his wife} now." I find this anecdote makes the film even more powerful and believable).
They commit to ending their lives on their own terms, while they still can.
"We depend on no one, Ruda."
"But you have to, Daddy... eventually."
"Who says so?"
This interaction takes places in the final half hour of the film, as a more understanding daughter, Ruda (Melinda Dillon), implores her father, Teddy (James Stewart), to essentially pick his poison. Despite Ruda's best efforts, the aforementioned conversation serves only to cement his and terminally ill Mini's (Bette Davis) decision to end their lives when they say so. But more than that, it speaks to the deep-held beliefs of Teddy and Mini's generation: they only survived the Great Depression and won the Second World War (Stewart himself voluntarily served with distinguish in the Air Force during WW2).
Teddy and Mini Dwyer, a long married Santa Monica couple live together in a cluttered house with their multitude of cats, dolls and books. Their cats are named after the likes of Robert De Niro, Al Pacino, James Caan, and Paul Newman. But, if you ask me, I think De Niro and Pacino should be the ones naming their cats after Stewart and Davis.
The film begins with Teddy and Mini calling their daughter down south for a visit. They lay the news on small business owner Ruda that Mini is dying - for real this time. Mini describes the terminal illness as her body being allergic to her own blood; Teddy doesn't dare try to pronounce the name of it. They explain their intention to kill themselves to their daughter. Ruda doesn't take the revelation well and informs the local county, who in turn release an army of bureaucrats on the beleaguered couple.
The life expectancy in America in 1908, when Stewart and Davis were born, was 51 years old. In 1983, the year this film was released, it was 74. People live longer, in the developed world at least. This gift comes with a set of difficulties. What happens when proud, independent people reach that age where they can't take care of themselves anymore? Compromises must be made. This film depicts the story of two people, Teddy and Mini, who won't make those compromises.
Mini won't be a piñata shuffled from doctor to doctor and pumped full of donor blood to extend her life. Teddy won't live alone (Stewart basically made the same decision in his own life ten years later when his wife died. He confined himself to his home and refused most medical attention. His last words were reported to have been "I'm going to be with Gloria {his wife} now." I find this anecdote makes the film even more powerful and believable).
They commit to ending their lives on their own terms, while they still can.