User Reviews

I generally don't enjoy films that deliberately pull on your heart strings, I usually really resent that, in fact. Generally my main criteria in watching a movie is that I must be entertained. However, this powerful, affecting movie really pulled me in. I don't know why I started watching it, the subject matter would normally repel me, but I simply couldn't stop watching because most things in the film were just so believable. Michael Keaton gives an absolutely killer performance as a businessman dying of untreatable cancer. The story is pretty simple-- he basically is on a quest for inner peace, after a holistic healer convinces him he can die happier if he can let go of his anger. The fact is, part of what makes this movie so good is that the baggage Keaton carries around from childhood is nothing earth shattering; in fact it's fairly mundane and similar to what most of us feel. I found myself sobbing, even weeping, for the last half hour of the film-- watch this one alone if you don't want anyone else to see you doing this! Not a fun movie you can watch over and over, but very thought provoking and worth while. I have no idea how Keaton was overlooked for an Oscar nomination in this fine film.

I lost my father as a very small boy.So small,in fact,that I have no recollection of him whatsoever.This fact is what drew me to view this movie,otherwise it would have been overlooked.My father's death was sudden,so he really had no time to prepare in the way that Michael Keaton's character did here.Bob Jones did what he had to do to make sure his newborn son would not grow up without him,and this is what touched my heart about this movie.Also,the scene where a near death Jones limps to his son's room,up to his crib,touching him gently, and explaining to him that "this whole dying thing wasn't my idea". This one,short moment,was enough to console me through my lifelong sadness of having to grow up without my own dad.His dying wasn't his idea.From a reviewer's standpoint,this perhaps is not a great film, (the ending was unbelievably sappy),but it will always have a special place in my heart for personal reasons.Those of you with fathers, those of you who have lost fathers,and those of you who are fathers should see this movie.

Michael Keaton gives a stellar performance as a man who finds out that he will not live long enough to see his unborn son grow up. Determined to fight death, he nonetheless prepares for the worst. His wife (played by Nicloe Kidman), wanting to capture the life of her son's father, takes video films of Keaton to later share with the son. There are many touching moments in this film. From the initial denial, to the desperate search for a "miracle cure", to the final resignation of a worn-out body, this film shows what people go through when they face the undeniable fact that they are dying and that they are leaving grieving loved ones behind.

This film reminds me of my high school English teacher, who had struggled with diabetes for her entire adult life, and at the age of 50 was clinging to life after repeated kidney failure. She told me to "cherish your good health, because no money in the world can comfort you when you know you're going to die any day". A week later she passed away.

This movie is a celebration of life and a reminder that no matter how insignificant we may think we are, when we die there are always people left behind who will miss us and wish we were still around.

This is one of those movies that comes along sometimes and knocks you to the floor by absolute surprise. Sad to say, this is the most underrated film I have ever seen. This is the one film that can break you down into tears every time you watch it. It has a really touching theme as well. The theme is of course, make it count, and that is exactly what Bob, Michael Keaton, does. I think the most beautiful part of the film is when Bob notifies his wife at the amusement park that it was his due date for death and that he was living on borrowed time. Living on borrowed time from the prayer he made earlier in the film. This film is one of my all time favorites and is a must-see for strong, hard hitting tear jerkers.

This movie is about a guy who learns he has a few months to live while his wife is pregant with their son. He wants his son to remember him so he begins to videotape himself talking to his unborn son and teaching him things about life. He also learns to come to terms with his anger, mostly towards his family and past which he has coldly tried to block out. Michael Keaton and Nicole Kidman give excellent performances as the couple expecting. The movie has a wonderful message...'Life is too short to be angry all the time' More girls like this movie than guys as far as I know, but guys don't shun it. 'My Life' will move you if you open up. I can honestly say this (along with Deerhunter) came as close to making me cry as humanly possible. But I internally held my sorrow and further reinforced the societal masculine standard of 'boys don't cry' unfortunately. There are a few scenes in particular that are tough to watch with a dry eye. The ending of course, and the part where Keaton and Kidman share an unexpected hug while in a busy theme park. This is a well done scene with nice complimentary music that sets the tone. The entire movie does this. It plays with our emotions by using deep music and meaningful messages. We should all identify with Keaton's character who learns a lot about life as it comes to an end. This is a 7 out of 10 in my book.

This film is one which really makes us sit back and evaluate our lives and our relationships with those we love.

Michael Keaton turns in a superb performance as the career man who is struck down by terminal cancer while his wife is expecting their first child.

The film then charts his efforts to make a video tape, for his unborn child, of his life and then discovers that it is not what it should be. With the help of a spiritual healer (Haing S. Ngor) and his wife (Nicole Kidman) he sets about trying to set things right with his family and his life.

Although the ending at the after life is a little bit dreamy after the reality of the film, this is still a superb piece of movie making with winning performances from all the cast and a wonderful script.

Definitely not a film to relax to of an evening, it is one of those films, like Philadelphia, that should be watched every now and again just to remind us that life is too short for arguments and should be cherished.

For one viewing, this is highly recommend. If you want a movie you can enjoy over and over, I would reluctant to recommend it.

THE GOOD - This is wonderfully acted by the two leads, Michael Keaton and Nicole Kidman, who play a married couple "Bob and Gail Jones." Keaton is dying of cancer and videotapes his last months on earth with his wife so that their new baby will have something to remember him by. The supporting actors who played Keaton's parents and brother also were excellent. For such a somber theme, the film moves remarkably fast for the two hours. There were good messages of forgiveness and compassion. There were some touching scenes, as you can imagine. The theme song is here is worth noting, too. It is beautiful, reminiscent of the magnificent title tune to "Out Of Africa." The language is pretty tame in here, too, except when Kidman is giving birth.

THE BAD - You would think that a younger man dying of cancer would be praying to God for a miracle, or asking God's help in dealing with the situation, or consulting a minister, priest or rabbi, but Hollywood is never going to go that route. Instead, Keaton goes to a New Age-type Chinese "healer." Eastern religions are politically correct in America but not Christianity or Judiasm, of which this country was founded. Also, in a nice film like this, it would have been more apt with the f-bomb Kidman throws in.

OVERALL - The good far outweighs the bad and the movie is good one. Recommended.

My daughter gave me the DVD a few years ago. It took me a while before I got around to watching it, because I had never heard of it. It was like being hit by a truck. I don't think I've ever watched another movie that makes me sob out loud, or had a bigger lump in my throat. It is one of the most heartbreaking films I have ever seen. Just watched it again tonight, and fell apart. I can only watch it maybe once a year, because it devastates me so much. I cannot understand how Michael Keaton's performance was overlooked. He tore my heart out. Needless to say, I cherish this movie. I'm glad my daughter gave it to me, because I think she probably couldn't bear the anguish and pain of watching it more than once. Regardless of the way it affects me, I will keep it in my DVD/video library. I admire Michael Keaton's performance in this movie. He was so very believable. It's a keeper.

Michael Keaton plays this guy whose main issue in life really is letting go. Problems with the family, with his own terminal illness, with his wife and the prospect of having a child he may never get to see or know. Nicole Kidman is great in this one. Much prettier and more natural, accessible and less cold than later on in her career, she illustrates and depicts a great affection and tenderness, all the while being so torn by her life's many stresses. The film attempts to develop a number of motifs but fails at achieving completion or rendering a satisfying result of those. It remains a likable, realistic in parts, fairly strong tearjerker with just enough humor from the protagonist, insight and closeness to the main actors, in a well told story with a pertinent ending and idea behind it.

I used to hear all kind of great comments from many friends about this movie, but I wasn't able to watch it; until yesterday. And I didn't like it that much. From the beginning, we know what's gonna happen so maybe that's why we get ready for the events creating a wall in our sentimental side that this movie, based in results, couldn't find an intelligent way to come across. Or at least with me, because in a personal appreciation, most part of the scenes are built in a shameless go-find-a-tear-soon structure that couldn't work on me. I don't buy the way the couple manage their inevitable fate; I mean, he's going to die and she's gonna be a single mother and I don't see any angriness, desperation or deep hearted sadness, states in which I sure would be if I were on any of their shoes. And if that was the intention of the film, then they failed because I couldn't picture myself in such situation. Keaton, an actor that I sure love is just OK in here, even though he never lead us into the soul of a dying-soon-to-be-father man. Kidman doesn´t play better in the film and she´s invisible as a presence, something you can´t afford if you are bounded to the main role; but I respect her only because she was in the last Kubrick's effort. Even so, the blame relies not only on the character's weakness but on the script, that has as much holes as the moon's surface.

My life is predictable rather than emotional; the chain of events and the way they act upon them is telling you what's coming next. I don't want to spoil anything, so I might just say that we move ahead faster than the movie in so many parts, that the thoughts left on me after every single move was "I knew it was going to happen this. And it's corny, real corny and manipulative". I'm aware that I'm not a person who cries over movies, but sure I've felt that heavy weight in the chest caused by an excellent, impelling drama, and I even was driven to tears with La lengua de las mariposas, so I don´t consider myself a tough son of b****, it's just that I don´t find -and I can't- any good reason to like this movie the way I've been told from movie goers that I admire as cinema critics.

My life it's not emotive, it's cheesy and corny.

Every once in a while, there's a movie that slaps us in the face and tells us to dump the materialism and cherish life. This is one of those movies. Being a person who has lost a family member to Cancer, this movie is intense, very powerful, and some viewers were sobbing so hard they had to leave the theater. It's a movie about family, love and the joy of taking pleasure in the little moments. Definitely a tear-jerker.

The movie had the drab feel of early 90's movies, though the cast was well put together and acted well. There were points in the movie where I was sincerely touched, which is always nice, but other times the movie took odd turns. The ending in particular was nothing to write home about. And I must say ruined the movie for me. For the beginning middle, and near end of the movie I was really touched and it had me in one of those moods where I rethink every detail of my pitiful life. The ending ruined it for me. I watched the credits scroll and thought to myself "That has got to be the dumbest thing I've ever seen", but the movie had me going for a majority of it, so I didn't rate the movie too low. It was.... alright.

I would recommend it to a not-so big movie person, but wouldn't watch it again.

I have just seen the Bruce Joel Robinson directed My Life on Starz, and all I can say is that it is the most formulaic and contrived piece of celluloid I have seen in a long time. That being said, I must also say that while it has to be one of the most contrived films I have seen, it also turns one or two of these contrived scenes and contrived performances into something special or effective.

The film starts off with Michael Keaton talking to a camcorder and telling it that he is dying of cancer. That first scene has been done before, but the way it was delivered was excellent and the first few scenes showed some promise, while they were still generic. As the film progresses we get to know more about Keaton, his wife played by Nicole Kidman, his spiritual healer played by Haing S. Ngor, and the rest of the familt. With a film that is so intent on trying to show where each character stands, you finish watching the movie feeling empty, like not one of the characters made a true impact on you. But you also have a feeling that something touched you in the film, which happened to me as well.

I think the thing that dissappointed me in these performances is that some of the material was good enough that the characterizations could have been done more realistically and more naturally. Michael Keaton plays Bob Jones (what's up with that name?) in about 4 different ways, shifting around from anger, depression, sadness, and happiness in such an unnatural manner. Although the way he goes about presenting Bob as dying was very true to life and poignant, his best work in the film. Nicole Kidman (Gail Jones) is probably in her most cliched role I have ever seen her in. She plays the sorrowful wife in such uninterested way, as if she is waiting to break out at a point in the film, which never comes up. Haing S. Ngor (Mr. Ho) is the same performance given from Pat Morita during his career rolled into one...in other words, the height of mediocrity. Michael Constantine and Rebecca Schull (Bill and Rose Ivanovich) bring their performances into the cliched zone as well, with the caring mother and the gruff father. Finally there is Bradley Whitford(Paul Ivanovich) who has about 5 lines of dialogue in the whole film, so I could barely rate his performance. I would also like to point out that a favorite character actor of mine, The West Wing's Richard Schiff appears in teh film as the younger version of Bob's father, but he says less then Whitford.

The direction by Bruce Joel Robinson is just straight-forward story telling, except for the odd off-ramps into holistic healing. The most clever thing about the direction is the handling of the healing scenes, until a sub-par lighting effect and shows how much these scenes really don't belong in the film when all is said and done. The straight-forward story telling is done in such a way that evokes memories of a "very special episode" of Blossom or Home Improvement. That is brought about the odd, almost cutesy, dealings with the devastating illness that is cancer. In addition, the screenplay, also by Robinson, is just downright stupid in some places. There are a pair of scenes that deal with rollercoasters that take away from the feeling of the film, an implausible scene in which Bob enters his old house, and the worst scene by far in the whole film that involves a circus. With all these flaws, it still got to some part of me, and the last 20 minutes of the film are truly effective in my view, while being very cliched at the same time. It is really all Keaton's way of going about these last scenes that really work. That is the reason I didn't completely blast this film.

It's hard to tell you if you should see this film or not. For some reason this film affected me, I still am confused about that one. But I could see how many would think this is a horrible piece of contrived film. If you are into Michal Keaton, "weepie" films, or have lost someone to cancer in you life, then you might want to catch this film on TV. If you disagree to all these things, then you might still enjoy some of it, but all in all you are better off skipping it.

My Rating : 3/10

This is my first time commenting on a movie, but after reading some reactions to this movie, I needed to say something. A few people have suggested that the movie is contrived or false. This is not so. Six days prior to my 16th birthday, my father died of cancer. He had been diagnosed three years prior and had fought it all the way. I have never seen anything as accurate as "My Life".

No, there is nothing funny about death, but the comedy is true. It was there in my father, and it has been there in others that I have known. The faith healers go nowhere. They rarely do. That is the point.

I have seen this movie only once, and I doubt I will ever have the courage to watch it again. If it were anything but accurate, I don't believe it would have had this effect on me. Keaton performed brilliantly, and the reactions around him were all believable.

That being said, this movie is only made to draw tears, and does so well.

MY LIFE isn't so amazing that it will change your life forever, but it does relay the essence of thought and the provocation to ruminate on your OWN life, inevitably. The story is a little forced, the acting a little over the top (especially Michael Keaton), and the story paced and delivered to pull at all the heart-strings at just the right moments, but essentially it works; you ask yourself, "What would I do or say if I were in this situation?" & "What would I (or should I) do differently now?", and you feel for Keaton's character as a result. I might not fully appreciate this film, or even ponder it for hours afterwards, but it did make me cry, maybe because it asked those very important questions of my own life.

Both of these movies will bring you to tears. Not because they are related in any way, for they are not. But they both deal with families, death and dying, which I think needs to be more addressed in this day and age. My husband lost his dad in November, and it has been a very rough road for the whole family. A lot of ups and downs. Both of these movies are his favorite, as well as my top picks. We watch these movies together at least once a year, and we cry and cry together. Not because we are sad, but because it makes us realize that one day one of us will be gone, and the other will have to go on alone. I think they really make you see what you have together, and what you can do together before time runs out. It lets you see what is truly important in life, what needs to be addressed and what needs to be let go. Watching these films certainly makes me appreciate everything that I have in life, from my health to my family. I highly recommend both of these films. How can they be so overlooked?

"My Life" is a disease of the week plot: a man is dying of cancer so he decides to make videos for his unborn child teaching him about everything from love to shaving. The plot is borderline ridiculous at times, especially when a flashback about Keaton as a kid expects a circus to show up in his yard because he wished upon a star acts as a plot device for suppressed memories. All of this isn't the problem, the problem is the film has a LOT of lighthearted jokes that diminish the seriousness of the film and reduce it to simple milquetoast. The film has its moments, but in the end it falls short of the mark.

Deliberately watch it for Keaton's mastery. Having been months since last seeing it, still, the day Queen Latifah knocks on the door, when he shows how hard it is to walk, is the second stark reminder of how good he is. The first is as he dies. The only performance of dying that has that world-class quality is Christopher Reeve in "Somewhere in Time".

Keaton's character choosing to leave his child various videos as they occur to him, especially the one about shaving, is what wells the tears for me. You can touch the feeling Keaton is capable of evoking.

Like some of the other comments, I agree I was astounded that he didn't win the Oscar that year, much less not even nominated. Yes, Tom Hanks was incredible in "Philadelphia". It's apples and oranges.

I disagree that the Chinese attitude toward his anger was hokey. Anger does become illness.

"My Life" is a unique movie in that its loaded with clichés, but it also has a message that is very powerful and poignant.

It is a shameless tearjerker, and you will want to keep the Kleenex box handy for this one, however the message of the importance of family relationships is clear, and one that is often ignored by Hollywood.

Our family connections are so important in the big scheme of things. These are the relationships that will help us get through the tough times - such as illness or the death of a loved one. Sometimes these relationships get strained - through pride, or an unwillingness to forgive. This is real life.

This film correctly shows that this can happen, but when push comes to shove, everybody makes an effort to heal all the past wounds. It also shows that we aren't perfect. In this film we see that both Bob and his parents made mistakes, but instead of dwelling in the pit of anguish that this kind of unresolved pain can cause when a loved one dies - it shows the joy that something as simple as forgiveness and love can provide.

I rank this low because, like most older folks I've lived through several painful losses. I didn't like it, wasn't entertained by it and can't understand why anyone would like to be depressed by a movie. Seems like it would take a form of morbid 'danse macabre' curiosity - but then again, to each their own. On the other hand, I have enjoyed several movies with the underlying theme of death at their essence like Ghost.

The idea of leaving behind a video tape to teach a son about life and about yourself has some story quality but doesn't overcome the darkness of the movie.

I have no complaints about the acting or production qualities and normally enjoy movies with these two leads. Keaton plays his character well and Kidman is as always, beautiful and easy to watch.

It's sad and depressing, yet it still captivates, I highly recommend it.

Michael Keaton playing Bob Jones, a successful businessman and his wife Gail (Nicole Kidman) are pregnant with a child. With bob suffering from last stage of kidney cancer they're praying every day that at least he sees his child before dying. In-order to let his child know who his father was, Bob starts making video clips in which he shares all the things (life experience/knowledge/learnings) that he would have shared as a father. These small clips are so real and heartwarming that one will quickly start feeling bad for Bob. In addition to this, he also must mend his relationship with his family with whom he has lost all contact since leaving his hometown.

There is so much to do but there is so little time, So how does he says goodbye!!! To find out, watch this emotional but sweet 2 hr. Film.

I am certainly not vested with the skills of a movie critic, but I do have my personal opinions. I have bypassed this film for 13 years, because every time I started to watch it I got negative vibes and moved on to something else. Last night I watched it all the way through for the first time. From now on I am going to trust my intuition. I am very forgiving of the anomalies in a film if the subject matter is interesting enough to prompt suspension of reality for a bit, so after the vibes started to kick in last night, I made a willful decision to suspend reality and give the benefit of the doubt. In my average viewer opinion, the acting in this film was worse than that in "Plan Nine From Outer Space". On several occasions I got the impression that Michael Keaton was just rehearsing his lines and they kept the cameras running as a spoof. There was one instance where he was in bed with his wife and he had some kind of attack that threw him across the bed and on to the floor. As he picked himself off the floor, his acting was so lame that I totally expected him to say, "okay the next line is yours". I think they must have given Nicole Kidman a Valium before each take. These two did no acting, they just said their lines. The actors in "Plan Nine" at least knew they were making a film.