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Sarah Polley, Scott Speedman, Deborah Harry, Mark Ruffalo, Leonor Watling ... see more see more... , Amanda Plummer , Julian Richings , Maria de Medeiros , Jessica Amlee , Kanya Jo Kennedy , Alfred Molina

Isabel Coixet's Mi vida sin mi (My Life Without Me) is a tale of a woman dying before her time. Sarah Polley plays Ann, a 24-year-old mother of two. Ann is married to Don (Scott Speedman), and they li... read more read more...ve near Ann's mother (Deborah Harry), who is bitter about the fact that Ann's father is serving a ten-year prison sentence. Ann learns that she has only a few months to live. She makes a series of goals to complete before her time on Earth comes to an end. Among her accomplishments are taking a lover (Mark Ruffalo), finding someone to care for Don, and recording birthday greetings for her two daughters. My Life Without Me was screened in competition at the Berlin Film Festival. ~ Perry Seibert, Rovi

Flixster Users

87% liked it

20,794 ratings

Critics

64% liked it

98 critics

R, 1 hr. 46 min.

Directed by: Isabel Coixet

Release Date: September 26, 2003

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DVD Release Date: February 24, 2004

Stats: 1,255 reviews

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Flixster Reviews (1,255)

  • itsjustme2004
    December 20, 2011
    itsjustme2004
    Well done, without being too grim. Slow moving, yet interesting to watch. Just nicely put together enough to tug on the heartstrings. I thought that the ending was very nicely done. No death scene...just images of what was left behind. Nice....
  • SajinPA
    February 24, 2011
    SajinPA
    You know what to expect when we have a terminally ill female lead.
    Thankfully, this did'nt turn out to be the usual tear-jerking melodrama. Emotions were decently real and was well acted throughout.
  • kiriyamakazou
    May 26, 2009
    kiriyamakazou
    Despite being a great film for many reasons, My Life Without Me is one of those films that fails to connect. I don't mind a film being very different, but there still has to be an emotional anchor point. Here we find out that our heroine is dying, a fact she decides to keep from ... read moreher family. This could work, after all it is kind of sweet sparing them from the pain. It worked in Ikiru, but that was a lonely man not looked fondly upon. He decides to make a good change for others, without any form of reward. In this film, Polley makes selfish decisions to quench her curiosity. Therefor, the best thing she can think of to stick on her "to do list" is "to do" another guy. It's actions like this that distance this film. That aside the acting, music and pacing is all fine. But what's the point if it fails to make you care or feel.
  • jennifxu
    January 19, 2009
    jennifxu
    Sarah Polley is one of the most underrated and talented actresses working today, managing to achieve a depth of emotion unheard of in today's pathos-strapped showbiz society. This is painted with a much, much different brush than typical disease-of-the-week movies. Even though An... read moren has the temperament of a saint Polley fleshes her, humanizes her. There are silences but they never lag. The close-ups are meaningful and the camerawork feels earnest, like it's only there to tell the story and nothing else. It's a soft-spoken work with no huge aspirations, and that's why it works. It's also really quotable. "This is you. Eyes closed, out in the rain."
  • fernandorafael
    June 7, 2008
    fernandorafael
    This film seems like a 2-hour long close-up from the way it was shot (very "in your face"). Apart from that, the movie works beautifully, especially for its wonderful script. The cast is also applaudable: Sarah Polley, Deborah Harry, Scott Speedman, Amanda Plummer, Leonor Watling... read more, and the amazing Mark Ruffalo. Even the brief appearance by Alfred Molina. A beautiful movie that aims at your heart, not so much your brain.
  • pier007
    October 29, 2007
    pier007
    mournful but sublime drama told with honesty and delicate romanticism. wisely, never falls in the corny, mellifluous, silly procedure of some similar works.
  • wildaly14
    May 16, 2007
    wildaly14
    Heartbreaking. I was moved by this one. I recommend it.
  • fb1144932598
    November 4, 2010
    fb1144932598
    How would you react if you knew, at the age of 23, that you only had two months to live, at best? That is the premise of this highly emotional story told unflinchingly under the direction of Isabel Coixet. Sarah Polley is Ann, the woman who gets the devastating news, and decides ... read morenot to tell anyone that she is dying. That might not be your choice, but given the life she has led to this point, the absent father, the chain smoking mother, the life in a trailer with the first man she kissed and two their kids, her choices make a certain kind of sense. It is not as depressing as it sounds. There are several lighter moments that relive the gloom. Most of those involve her co-worker, Laurie (Amanda Plummer), an image obsessed woman who thinks she is fat and everyone else is successfully dieting. Mark Ruffalo plays Lee, the damaged soul who helps Ann to feel fully alive even as she is letting go of the life she has known. The only false note involved an impossible scenario involving conjoined twins, but it is not central to the story and only briefly interrupted the flow. The story transcended the characters' situations and dealt with a universal theme of mortality and discovering what is truly important in life. The economic situation and the educational level of the characters provided a limiting factor, and gave credence to the choices that Ann makes. Each of us, facing the same prospect, might not make those same choices, but that there would be choices to make was the point and the message of the film. So how would you react?
  • danieljparsons
    October 21, 2006
    danieljparsons
    Movies dealing with terminal diseases usually come across as "Movie of the Week" dross, manipulating you with icky sentimentality and displaying all the subtlety of whacking you over the head with a large stick. My Life Without Me on the other hand, is subtle, well acted and poig... read morenant. Polley is magnificent.
  • mvieaddict
    May 30, 2009
    mvieaddict
    This film almost tried to be too sentimental, and it worked at the same time. The plot line was predictable as Ann learned she only had a small amount of time left to live, but chose not to tell her husband, the girls or her mom. She made a list of things to be done before she di... read morees,and the list basically served as points for the rest of the plot in the film.

    To its credit the film did not go for a dramatic death scene which works for its advantage. Although the film was not anything new or amazingly good it was still enjoyable to watch, I just felt a bit empty when it finish.

View All My Life Without Me Reviews

Critic Reviews

Sarah Kaufman
September 26, 2005
Sarah Kaufman, Washington Post

My Life Without Me is not a gentle film. Insistent and unforgettable, it wounds on the inside, and the scars feel fresh for some time. Full Review

Randy Cordova
November 28, 2003
Randy Cordova, Arizona Republic

Coixet doesn't make her lead character compelling, or likable.

Tom Long
November 21, 2003
Tom Long, Detroit News

My Life Without Me only has one way to go, and it makes some dippy turns getting there. But Polley makes the trip worth it.

Terry Lawson
November 21, 2003
Terry Lawson, Detroit Free Press

A good example of how Polley elevates nearly everything in which she appears. Full Review

Steven Rea
November 20, 2003
Steven Rea, Philadelphia Inquirer

Polley's performance is pitch-perfect, and that the world described herein -- glazed with humor as well as melancholy -- is devoid of phony sentiment.

Roger Moore
November 7, 2003
Roger Moore, Orlando Sentinel

Depressingly unmoving, thanks to unaffecting performances and a story that holds no surprises. Full Review

Peter Howell
October 31, 2003
Peter Howell, Toronto Star

Against all odds, My Life Without Me succeeds in spite of itself. Full Review

Liam Lacey
October 31, 2003
Liam Lacey, Globe and Mail

Less a tearjerker than a thought-provoker. Full Review

Jeff Strickler
October 24, 2003
Jeff Strickler, Minneapolis Star Tribune

Takes place in late fall and early winter, when everything is cold, gray and dying. It's a tough context for a tender story. Full Review

Desson Thomson
October 17, 2003
Desson Thomson, Washington Post

This one-dimensional ennoblement doesn't sit quite right.

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