SYNOPSICS
Surviving (1985) is a English movie. Waris Hussein has directed this movie. Ellen Burstyn,Len Cariou,Zach Galligan,Marsha Mason are the starring of this movie. It was released in 1985. Surviving (1985) is considered one of the best Drama movie in India and around the world.
Rick is a 17 year old golden boy whose father wants him to become a doctor like himself. Lonnie is a 16 year old girl, who has just come back from a hospital after an attempted suicide. Their families are close friends. Right away, Lonnie and Rick fall madly in love. Meanwhile Rick becomes aware that his father is not the man he seems to be and Rick starts acting out. Thinking Lonnie's the reason of his son's behaviour, Rick's father forbids him to see her anymore. Rick and Lonnie's relationship begins to spiral as they struggle to cope with their lives. Will their love survive?
Surviving (1985) Reviews
Intelligent, heartbreaking drama
Movies about suicide are certainly not going to be pleasant from the outset (and I know several people who refused to watch "Surviving" simply because of its theme), but I think viewers will find something special here. Ellen Burstyn plays a doctor's wife and mother of three who clouds her life with activity so that she can't see what's really going on; Marsha Mason is her friend in the neighborhood, a working mom who got fed-up a long time ago and can't muster the strength to care anymore. Their two eldest children (Zach Galligan and Molly Ringwald) are embarrassed by their parents, are convinced they are in love and wish to escape. The opening montage of family photos and the sad, wistful score is highly evocative (and all the shots of Ringwald are fascinating; she manages to convey depth of character even in still photographs). Mason has a more complex role than Burstyn, but Ellen (after coming out of her fog) has several strong scenes, particularly when berating her youngest son (River Phoenix) for taking sleeping pills ("How COULD you...how COULD you, Phillip?"). When Mason breaks down on her front lawn, it's tough not to cry right with her. "Surviving" doesn't tug at your heartstrings for effect (it's not "Love Story"); it earns your tears. The film was notoriously snubbed at Emmy time and got surprisingly low ratings; it's worth rediscovering. ***1/2 from ****
Sometimes full of soap opera clichés, but mostly a heartbreaking and hopeful drama
I first viewed "Surviving" when it aired on the ABC Television Network in the winter of 1985. The network was so confident with the film's final version and the importance of its subject matter (teen suicide) that it aired in a 3-hour time slot, which was rather unusual for an original TV movie not based on a novel. "Surviving" (which is a better, simpler title than when it re-aired as "Surviving: A Family in Crisis", when there were 2 families in crisis -- and when it was released on VHS as "Tragedy", which sounds very cheap, exploitive and hopeless and doesn't give an indication of the after-effects of suicide on families and friends) occasionally lingers into soap opera hysterics and contrived plot devices. But the strong ensemble cast gave such fine performances and the well-edited, pivotal sequence when the parents of one of the teens tries to save them, made the movie a heartbreaking experience. "Surviving" becomes a stronger drama when the families try to make sense of losing their loved ones. That is what makes "Surviving" a very good (not great) family drama.
A moving - and disturbing - film
Like "Ordinary People," this film deals with the problems faced by a seemingly perfect family when that illusion is shattered. This film, however, adopts a more straightforward, and less lyrical approach. The result is a film which is less powerful, but still memorable. Unlike "Ordinary People," this film deals with two families. The Brogans are the seemingly ideal family. Headed by David (Len Cariou), a successful doctor, and Tina (Ellen Burstyn), a stay-at-home mom who teaches piano in her spare time, they have three seemingly happy, healthy children, the eldest of whom, Rick (Zach Galligan), is about to enter his senior year in high school. David is pushing Rick to follow in his footsteps, as well as doing a lot of preaching about honor. For his part, Rick takes all of this good naturedly to start with. Among the Brogans' best friends are Harvey (Paul Sorvino) and Lois (Marsha Mason), who apparently never got last names in this film - at least I don't remember what they were - and they're not listed here, who run a successful T-shirt company. They have one child, a troubled girl named Lonnie (Molly Ringwald), who has just been released from a mental institution after attempting suicide. The story is told in two parts. The first part deals with the events that lead Rick and Lonnie to commit suicide - Rick's discovery of his father's hypocrisy, and withdrawal from everyone but Lonnie, who is ill equipped to provide him with the support he needs since she is having trouble readapting to life outside the institution. The second part deals with the aftermath of the double suicide - the attempts of the survivors to cope with the tragedy and their overwhelming grief in the face of it, and the subsequent tragedies that come out of the main one. While the writing occasionally veers into the melodramatic, for the most part it is straightforward, letting the events, actions, and reactions speak for themselves. The acting occasionally goes over the top from the mothers' characters, but for the most part it is pretty solid. Galligan and Ringwald breathe an authenticity into their characters that helps the viewer understand why they feel that their final choice is their only choice. Watch for a young River Phoenix who gives an emotional performance as the surviving younger brother. Len Cariou gives his usual solid performance as David, and while I'm no fan of Paul Sorvino, he gives a competent rendering of Harvey. Ellen Burstyn does a wonderful job as Tina, who shuts down, only to be brought back to functioning through several painful shocks. And Marsha Mason is wonderful as always as a woman whose only way to cope with the tragedy is to find someone who will talk about it with her when her friends and husband will not. This is a thought provoking film, and one that is well worth watching.
family drama at its finest
It's hard to describe much about the film without giving away key scenes, so I'll be brief and concentrate on other aspects. A suicidal teen (Ringwald) returns home after a botched attempt and falls in love with a neighbor boy (Galligan) whom she's known forever. She's having trouble readjusting while he discovers some unsettling things about his family and deals with pressure from his father concerning school. It seems all they have is each other and no one understands them except them, of course. Then after the expected scene of them caught in bed together, they are forbidden to visit again. This sends them reeling even more and leads to a harsh decision. The ads (when it's run on tv) or other plot synopsis might give away what they do, but I'll keep it hush here. Only other thing I can add is that the outcome to their action sends the film into a gripping emotional state for the rest of its duration. One of the most powerful scenes I've ever watched occurs on the front lawn with Mason, Sorvino and the two kids. If it doesn't grab ya and get the tears goin' (yes, it got me) then I don't know what would. The acting is just haunting, particularly Sorvino. Unfortunately after that, the film sags a bit, running out of juicy plot threads (except for one) and limps to its conclusion. Moments that follow divert between heart-wrenching to soap opera-ish and are slightly over acted. The highest mark for the film goes for the cast. A ton of well-known faces are featured, beginning with Galligan ("Gremlins"), everyone knows Molly ("Breakfast Club", "Sixteen Candles"), Burstyn ("The Exorcist"), Mason (most recently Frasier's dad's girlfriend on "Frasier"), Sorvino ("Goodfellas"), Phoenix ("Stand by Me"), O' Roarke (little girl from "Poltergeist"), and even the music is by James Horner ("Titanic"). He supplies a subtle clinking of a couple piano keys that's perfect. The few intolerable things: Galligan a bit hammy at times, plus he runs kinda girlish. And why is O'Roarke's voice dubbed? Even for a kid she had a long resume at that point, why dub her? And again, the ending drags a bit, which isn't helped by its lengthy running time. It's about 2 and half hours long, but was first aired over two nights years ago. The other night on Lifetime, they showed it one 3 hour block, so it could wear on you. That's if you can find out when it's on, it being a tv movie, you never know when it could pop up. But you'll be treated to great storytelling and a nice cast. I've always wondered how they got Ringwald to appear right in the middle of her stardom. The answer could be that Hunt Lowry, who produced some of her John Hughes films, produced here. The best of luck bumping into this on tv somewhere or maybe in the video store. Ranks behind "Firstborn" and "Shoot the Moon" as best family drama.
a great but depressing film
Everyone in this film gives awesome performances. Ellen Burstyn, Len Cariou, Paul Sorvino and Marsha Mason are all great as the parents who have to face the ultimate tragedy. People have often said Molly Ringwald is a terrible actress, but she gives a fine performance here and it really touched my heart. It made me so angry that these two stupid kids could have been so selfish. Every week in the United States over one thousand kids take their own lives. This is a long film but you are riveted every minute. There is one tragic footnote I wanted to add, the two young actors that played the siblings of the boy in the film who killed himself both met tragic ends in real life. Heather O'Rourke died in 1988 when she was only twelve of stomach cancer and River Phoenix died in 1993 of a drug overdose.