Liberty: 3 Stories About Life and Death 2004
Distributed by New Day Films, 190 Route 17M, P.O. Box 1084, Harriman, NY 10926; 888-367-9154 or 845-774-7051
Produced by Pam Walton
Directed by Pam Walton
VHS, color, 55 min.
College - Adult
Sociology, Women's Studies, Death and Dying, Health Sciences, Ethics, Gay and Lesbian Studies, Human Rights, Philosophy, Gender Studies
Date Entered: 10/10/2005
Reviewed by Ernarosa Tominich, MLS, Trocaire College Library, Buffalo NYThere’s a party in the room, a celebration: women’s voices softly hum and sing… they gather in hospice to say good-by to Joyce Fulton, a friend dying from brain cancer. This touching moment, this community gathering of older lesbian women to support one of their own, brings home the warmth of friends during hard times.
Pam Walton succeeds in succinctly and masterfully capturing the stories of two terminally ill friends: Joyce Fulton, a retired high school teacher, and Mary Bell Wilson, a "Katherine Hepburn type." Nan Golub, a New York artist and friend of Joyce and Mary Bell, sketches their family tree and ties the three stories together. In three separate parts, Walton narrates each woman¹s past accomplishments and future ambitions, yes, future, even in the face of death.
This much needed presentation about older lesbians dying from cancer successfully dilutes the general public stigma associated with alternate lifestyles and presents a caring community taking care of their own. Special effects, color and sound are of professional quality.
Highly recommended.
- Winner Best Short Documentary and National Mature Media Silver Award for Educational Video, Paris Lesbian film Festival, 2004