Polley, now 29 years old, started acting in 1988 when nine years old. By 14 she was a Canadian television star and already independently wealthy. In 1997 she starred in The Sweet Hereafter, a film by Atom Egoyan where she plays a teenage girl injured in a school bus accident. She began writing television screenplays and directing in 1999, when she was 20, but this is her first feature and international hit and she has done very well, to say the least.

The lines the short story ends with come early on in the film: "I'm happy to see  ... You could have just driven away ... Just driven away without a care in the world and forsook me. Forsooken me. Forsaken".  In the movie the Andersons have been retired for 20 years instead of 12. They have been married for 44 years, she when 18, making her 62 now. At first thought, this is too young to have succumbed to Alzheimer's, or senility, but it can strike even in the 50s.

Grant Anderson (acted by Gordon Pinsent) was a professor of English. They now live above a large lake in a sprawling house they inherited. Fiona Anderson (Julie Christie, who was nominated for an Oscar and won a Golden Globe as Best Actress) has remained childless, a faithful wife with her two large dogs. She understands she has dementia because of her disorientation, her loss of recent memory, her forgetting where she lives when out skiing, putting the frying pan in the fridge and trying to cook without lighting the stove or make coffee without water. As Ruth Munroe writes: "She looked just like herself on this day - direct and vague as in fact she was, sweet and ironic". Fiona is able to say to Grant, "I don't think it's anything to worry about ... I expect I'm just losing my mind".

Fiona accepts going to live at Meadowlake (filmed at Freeport Health Centre, Kitchener, Ontario, west of Toronto), a new modern care facility. When they first inspect it, she says that it will be like a prolonged holiday, a rest cure of sorts. Grant is cautious and questioning, not sure that they are doing the right thing. When he is told that he is not allowed to visit Fiona for 30 days, he can't believe it. He is told, "Thirty days is not so long after 44 years". To her what is happening is right now. She tells Grant: "You may go now." We are provided with a fascinating splattering of flashbacks that throw light on Fiona and Grant's past lives.

Grant seeks advice from a senior nurse Kristy (Kristen Thomson), who tries to mollify his fears about being away from Fiona. Fiona goes in and out of lucidity, and her sharp moments, like recognising Brad Lake and remembering events there, make him feel that he has made a mistake to institutionalise her. When the 30 days are up and he returns to Meadowlake he finds Fiona engrossed in a card game with Aubrey (Michael Murphy), her new friend. Fiona assumes that Grant is a new patient, one who is persistent, but not one she is interested in. She does not recognise Grant, her husband of decades. Grant suspects she may be acting - that she is finally getting revenge for his peccadilloes when he was a university professor; is he being punished? "Is she acting a charade?" he says to Kristy. Kristy is the solid earth that grounds this film. Mr Anderson becomes one of Meadowlake's most frequent visitors. He brings flowers, and gifts of books. He reads to Fiona, when possible, from Letters from Iceland. Fiona's family originally came from Iceland, but she never visited the stark island. She sees Grant as a new suitor whom she can tolerate when Aubrey is not available. She explains to Grant why she likes Aubrey - "He doesn't confuse me". You can see Grant trying to digest what this says about him.

Once, from a bench against the wall, watching Fiona with Aubrey at a card table in the games room a young woman, Monica (Nina Dobrev) sits down next to him, assuming he is also a patient. When Grant explains that he is also a visitor, and why he is there and who is his wife, she admires his perseverance, saying: "I should be so lucky". There is also a great scene with Monica in town that was cut from the final movie. Another one missing is when Fiona tries to remember the name of the home, but what comes out is "Sillylake".In all this is a perceptive and rewarding film about love and commitment.

Then Grant notices that Marian (Olympia Dukakis), Aubrey's wife, might be able to help.Her initial assessment of Grant is, "What a jerk!"  When Marian can't afford to keep Aubrey in Meadowlake, she takes him home to care for him. Fiona goes into a marked decline, regressing so far as to be ready to move upstairs to a ward with more intensive care. Can he find a way to get Aubrey back to her, if that is what she wants? As with any good short story, there are a number of twists and surprises that fit in this sensitive and delightful movie.

Away From Her is one hour and 45 minutes long. It is in English. It is rated 12+ because of strong language. It is written and directed by Sarah Polley from a story by Alice Munroe. The cinematographer is Luc Montpellier. The editor is David Wharnsby. The music is by Jonathan Goldsmith.

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