The Lazarus Child (2004)

Director:

Graham Theakston

Writer:

Ronald Bass (screenplay)

Release Date:

22 September 2006 (Spain)

Genre:

Drama

Plot:

A road accident leaves seven-year-old Frankie Heywood gravely injured and deeply comatose, when she is hit by a bus...

Plot Keywords:

Maverick Doctor | Unconventional Medicine | Conventional Medicine

Cast

Andy Garcia	...	Jack Heywood
Frances O'Connor	...	Alison Heywood
Angela Bassett	...	Dr. Elizabeth Chase
Harry Eden	...	Ben Heywood
Geraldine McEwan	...	Janet
Daniella Byrne	...	Frankie Heywood
Christopher Shyer	...	John Boyd
Julian Christopher	...	Elliot Chase
Jaimz Woolvett	...	Nathan Greenwater
Justin Louis	...	Lewis Kern
Gillian Carfra	...	Pam
Stephen McHattie	...	Chief Prosecutor Warner
Robert Joy	...	Senator Willis
Nicholas Gecks	...	Dr. Trevor Stanhope
Ciaran O'Driscoll	...	Colin Winstanley (as Ciaran O'Driscall)

Also Known As:

The Last Door (Canada: English title) (reissue title)

Runtime:

93 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Certification:

Finland:K-11

Filming Locations:

Alberta, Canada

Company:

Eagle Pictures

An emotional thriller of Life

It doesn't strike me odd, that some may find this movie incredibly boring, while others find it incredibly giving.

I guess you have to be one of those, who has been gifted with an experience of true love and a deeper realization of one self, to really open up towards this sort of movie. I feel the director has chosen an open approach very close to reality, when choosing to focus on the emotional drama within each of the characters in the movie.

The director neither forgets to characterize the drama between the realm of the physical science world towards the emotional world - the drama which even to this day separates the therapists from the doctors.

While some directors choose to focus on the drama itself, I find this movie very interesting in the perspective of what is going on in the life of each individual - "You only see, what you wanna see", is so true, that it cannot be spelled often enough. The point is, that the director is NOT one of those spoiling the entire movie, by making everyone think and feel the same.

Everyone has their own version of their story, but the truly amazing part of the movie, is to show how each of us fight to survive the stories of our past, and to forgive ourselves the actions we can no longer change - we can still change how we choose to feel about our past - creating a lighter path for ourselves, and help each other understand that we are all connected, even though we may feel scared, struggling and cutoff from our reality.

Often these sort of dramas get carried away in the event of unhappiness and grief (where often some Christian God is involved). I am amazed how the director actually manages to turn away from such cliché's and focus on the will of recovering and reopening from various individual setbacks.

While our human life is a lot about doing and handling in this world, we shall not forget that is is always the feelings which drive us to our doings - not opposite. The director seems very aware of this, and I thank the creators for making a movie of those, that makes the heart beat much lighter.