Fitzpatrick Neasa, O'Neill Desmond
Institute for Medical Humanities, University of Durham, Durham, UK.
Department of Geriatric Medicine, Cork University Hospital, Cork, Ireland.
Eur Geriatr Med. 2025 Sep 1. doi: 10.1007/s41999-025-01291-z.
Ageing is an increasingly popular subject in modern cinema, as prominent directors contend with the advancing age of both themselves and their parents. Within cultural gerontology and medical humanities, cinema provides unique insights into the heterogeneous experience of ageing, often surpassing what is possible with other methods of qualitative analysis.
We analyse 65-year-old Chantal Ackerman's final film No Home Movie, a documentary following her 86-year-old mother, Natalia, in the last phase of her life. We assess Ackerman's depiction of her mother at this age and how this relates to Ackerman's own attitudes towards ageing. Through this, we examine the modern cultural phenomenon of children and parents existing simultaneously in the 'older demographic', the effect this may have on parent-child relationships, and how this is represented in No Home Movie.
No Home Movie reveals Ackerman's fascination, admiration and also apprehension of living into extended old age. We obtain a first-hand account of Natalia's experience of ageing, revealing a certain tranquillity and contentment, even amidst a more restricted life. Chantal and Natalia's relationship is fluid and dynamic, their roles oscillating between that care-giver and care-receiver, but most commonly expressed as a friendship of peers.
Cinema is a rich area for interpretation and interrogation around the topic of ageing. This paper on No Home Movie is an example of how the study of cinema can contribute to ageing scholarship. No Home Movie highlights the unique joys and challenges of intergenerational relationships in the setting of our growing longevity.
老龄化在现代电影中日益成为热门话题，因为知名导演们既要应对自身年龄的增长，也要面对父母年事渐高的现实。在文化老年学和医学人文学领域，电影为老龄化的多元体验提供了独特的见解，常常超越了其他定性分析方法所能达到的深度。
我们分析了65岁的尚塔尔·阿克曼的最后一部电影《无家可归》，这是一部纪录片，记录了她86岁的母亲娜塔莉亚生命的最后阶段。我们评估阿克曼对母亲这个年龄段的描绘，以及这与阿克曼自己对老龄化的态度有何关联。通过这一分析，我们审视了儿童和父母同时处于“老年人口群体”这一现代文化现象，它可能对亲子关系产生的影响，以及这在《无家可归》中是如何呈现的。
《无家可归》揭示了阿克曼对步入高龄生活的着迷、钦佩以及担忧。我们得以 firsthand了解娜塔莉亚的老龄化经历，展现出即便生活更为受限，仍有某种安宁与满足。尚塔尔和娜塔莉亚的关系灵活多变，她们的角色在照顾者与被照顾者之间转换，但最常表现为同龄人之间的友谊。
电影是围绕老龄化主题进行解读和探讨的丰富领域。这篇关于《无家可归》的论文就是一个例证，说明电影研究可为老龄化学术研究做出贡献。《无家可归》凸显了在人类寿命不断延长的背景下，代际关系中独特的欢乐与挑战。 （注：原文中“firsthand”有误，可能是“first - hand”，这里按正确理解翻译为“第一手的” ）
