Plot
Dan Cohen, founder of the nonprofit organization Music & Memory, fights against a broken healthcare system to demonstrate music's ability to combat memory loss and restore a deep sense of self to those suffering from it.
Release Year: 2014
Rating: 8.5/10 (60 voted)
Critic's Score: /100
Director: Michael Rossato-Bennett
Stars: Dan Cohen, Louise Dueno, Norman Hardie
Storyline
As dementia continues to affect millions of elderly Americans, Alive Inside: A Story of Music & Memory reveals a remarkable, music-based breakthrough that has already transformed lives. Spearheaded by social worker Dan Cohen and captured on camera over the course of three years by filmmaker Michael Rossato-Bennett, we learn that songs from a patient's past can awaken memories and emotions that have been asleep for years, sometimes decades. Within a moment of hearing "I Get Around" by the Beach Boys, Alzheimer's patient Marylou jolts back to life, dancing around the living room and expressing a euphoria her husband hasn't witnessed since her illness took effect. Countless instances in Alive Inside provide proof that music stimulates activity in dementia-affected parts of the brain and transforms the quality of life of those often left to languish in silence. Through revealing conversations with renowned neurologist Oliver Sacks and musician Bobby McFerrin, as well as powerful firsthand...
Writers: Michael Rossato-Bennett, George Strayton
Cast: Dan Cohen -
Himself
Louise Dueno -
Herself
Norman Hardie -
Himself
Michael Rossato-Bennett -
Himself
Yvonne Russell -
Herself
Oliver Sacks -
Himself
Bill Thomas -
Himself
Doug Thompson -
Himself
Mary Lou Thompson -
Herself
Connie Tomiano -
Herself
Peter Whitehouse -
Himself
What if there were a truly inexpensive way to materially improve the
lives of Alzheimer's sufferers and those who have other forms of
dementia? If you see "Alive Inside," you will discover that there is
such a thing. All it takes is an Apple iPod and the right music--music
from the person's past. The music makes a connection with portions of
the brain least ravaged by neurological disorders and it connects with
the person that's still alive inside. Really alive.
This film shows you the proof, over and over again. The demonstration
of the power of music from a person's past being able to bring the
person into the present seems irrefutable. It is miraculous but you
won't believe unless you see the film.
To think that a $40 music player and headphones can do what drugs
cannot is mindblowing. The music doesn't necessarily extend a person's
life the way drugs do, but it does awaken the person. Patient after
patient shown in this movie awakens as the camera watches. The effects
and the repeatability are positively stunning.
This film is about to go into limited distribution. It will be showing
in San Jose at the Camera 7 theater starting August 8. Please find a
way to see this film. It will change lives.
We saw this movie as part of the San Jose Camera Cinema Club and it was
one of the most moving films we've seen through this organization.
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