The Gerontological Movies Blog

Beautiful Australian landscapes, family tensions, and the challenges of caring for ageing parents shape The Travellers. But beneath its warmth and humour lies a troubling question: whose wishes really count—those of older people or their adult children? My review explores a film that touches the heart while reinforcing ageist and paternalistic assumptions about care, autonomy, and growing older.

The movie "Familiar Touch" follows Ruth’s experience of dementia and assisted living, reminding us that the need for human closeness does not fade with age. A doctor checking her pulse, a son’s embrace, and a caregiver’s reassuring touch reveal how physical contact can offer pleasure, comfort, and connection when words and memories become elusive.

Sometimes “small” films tell surprisingly big stories. Burt is a warm and deeply human exploration of ageing, loneliness, vulnerability, and intergenerational connection. Filmed in black and white, it reveals the complex shades of grey surrounding elder abuse and our fundamental need for belonging.

What does The Blue Trail tell us about aging, freedom, and the place of older people in society? This provocative Brazilian dystopia imagines a future in which people over 75 are removed from society. Through three gerontological reflections, I explore the film’s ageism, its emancipatory message, and its challenging cultural context.

The film embarks on a deeply personal journey of the hero to find Miko, the Japanese woman he fell in love with more than fifty years earlier.

A Kind of Madness (2025), directed by Christiaan Olwagen, is a poignant South African drama that explores love, aging, and dementia.

How an inter-generational restaurant becomes a celebration of family, community, and cultural heritage, showing how food can help heal grief and bring people together.

There are almost no drama movies focused on geriatric institutional care. Allelujah is one of the first of its kind that tries that.

Since her unforgettable performance in Cohen brothers' movie Fargo, I knew Frances McDormand was something special. Since then, she...

So, finally I get to review a gerontological movie from Latin America - this time from Chile. While usually my policy is not to include...