French novelist and playwright Florian Zeller's directorial debut The Father is arguably one of the finest films in the ongoing awards race, boasting six nominations at the Academy Awards right now. Anthony Hopkins stars as the titular character, an aging man struggling with memory loss as he fails to distinguish between what is real and what is fabricated.
All through the film, Hopkins' emotionally-intense performance and Yorgos Lamprinos' effortlessly smooth editing helps viewers to get a glimpse into the troubled protagonist's mind. The result is an empathetic human drama that transcends its genre's tropes to offer a highly-touching portrayal of solitude.
Mary And Max (2009)
Over the years, the genre of animation has yielded some incredibly heartwarming human stories on love and loss. Just take the opening montage of Up as an example. Similarly, the Australian tragicomedy Mary and Max revolves around two pen pals who are separated by distance and age but still find solace in each other's words for they both feel ignored in a tumultuous world.
While Mary feels alienated in her school and home, Max is fearful of social interaction and deals with his own mental and physical health issues. As their letters increase, both grow together in unexpected ways.
Nomadland (2020)
A major frontrunner in the Oscar race, Chloé Zhao's drama Nomadland touches upon various themes, ranging from an ever-changing American job-market to grief and loss.
Fern (Frances McDormand) reaches her sixties and leads a nomadic lifestyle, having lost her job, home, and her husband. Even though Fern's story doesn't rely on outright emotions, most of the pain and uncertainty of her life is conveyed subtly through her journey. Nomadland takes the premise of an escapist slice-of-life travel film and subverts it totally, garnished with some captivating wide-angle shots of aesthetically-gloomy landscapes.
Amour (2012)
Arguably one of the best romantic dramas in recent times, Amour doesn't just celebrate the notion of 'true love' but also the sacrifices and responsibilities that it entails. The French film revolves around Anne (Emmanuelle Riva) and Georges (Jean-Louis Trintignant), two aged music teachers who go through trying times in their marriage when Anne suffers a stroke.
But despite the tragic aftermath, writer-director Michael Haneke does offer a sense of warmth that the two lovers share as they figure out this intense stage of their life. Further, the two leads also elevate the story with share intensity and a raw sense of realism.
Tokyo Story (1954)
A beloved classic, Tokyo Story doesn't just cover an old couple's romance but also the disconnect they face from the generations ahead of them. While their children hardly talk to them and are busy in their own everyday tussles, a kind daughter-in-law offers them a glimpse of Tokyo, a city's that rapidly changing as the couple ages.
Regarded as Yasujiro Ozu's magnum opus, the film relies on his usual style of minimalistic setups and conversation-driven plot. The slow pacing might not impress modern viewers initially but as the drama builds up, Tokyo Story's universal relevance is still apt.
Sound Of Metal (2020)
A reckless metal drummer suffers a setback in his career and personal life when he gradually starts losing his hearing. Sound of Metal explores his subsequent trials and tribulations by normalizing his situation and relying on real-life deaf persons as cast members.
While Riz Ahmed delivers one of the best performances of his career, Paul Raci's turn as his mentor Joe is also noteworthy. The latter gets to deliver some hard-hitting monologues that shatter how people view disabled people. While the representation of the deaf community still has a long way to go, Sound of Metal's tale of acceptance and rebirth offers a breeze of hope.
The Savages (2007)
A black comedy written and directed by Tamara Jenkins, The Savages finds estranged siblings (Philip Seymour Hoffman and Laura Linney) reuniting to take care of their ailing father (Philip Bosco) whose dementia is worsening with time. Familial responsibilities are tested as they agree to let go of past rivalries for the sake of their father.
As compared to other entries in this list, The Savages blends family drama with some deadpan humor to offer a lighter take on dementia and the challenges it offers.
Dick Johnson Is Dead (2020)
The titular Dick Johnson is a cheery, old man battling Alzheimer's while his daughter Kirsten Johnson (also the director of this Netflix documentary) fears his inevitable death. Sharing a dark sense of humor, both father and daughter decide to embark on a surreal film project that finds them reimagining Dick Johnson's death in bizarre situations.
Several deaths are staged with stunt doubles. Several old memories are touched upon. And several laughs are exchanged in this unconventional narrative that finds the Johnson family coming to terms with reality.
About Schmidt (2002)
One of Jack Nicholson's last major roles, About Schmidt, features the veteran actor as a man disgruntled with his tiresome existence. As his daughter marries a man of her own choice, Schmidt feels useless and insecure as an aging individual whose words hardly matter to anyone.
As he prepares for the wedding, his mellow mood swings only seem to increase. If one were to analyze Nicholson's later career, similar characters would be found in As Good As It Gets or even The Bucket List. However, both of these feel-good films attempt to sugarcoat hard truths while About Schmidt offers no easy answers.
Wild Strawberries (1957)
To put it simply, Wild Strawberries is a series of personal musings. The lead character is a greying University professor who's heading back to his alma mater to receive an honorary degree. On his way, he encounters all sorts of people who make him introspect about his own life and the futility underlying his ambitions.
The personal touch in the film is added with the fact that leading man Victor Sjöström was himself at a very late stage of his career, Wild Strawberries marking his final film performance.
I'm Thinking Of Ending Things (2020)
Charlie Kaufman's latest venture bears a few thematic similarities with The Father but the exact nature of those would imply chartering the territory of spoilers. Despite a mind-bending third act, the eerie air of mystery and existential dread in I'm Thinking Of Ending Things implies how people can be heavily disconnected from each other at times.
The film begins with a couple embarking on a trip to meet one of their parents. But as night approaches, unexplainable phenomena take place, all of which ultimately make way to a metaphorical plot twist, riddled with Kaufman's usual fixation with a good, old identity crisis.