Educational Media Reviews Online

Ruth is sitting alone in a chair telling a story about going to a party. Her body movements and speech patterns belie that she isn’t completely “normal.” As her story continues, her condition becomes clearer—she has Parkinson’s disease.

The main focus of this film is a procedure called deep brain stimulation to help Parkinson’s sufferers control their symptoms. Ruth reveals what she went through during the operation, when electrodes were embedded deep inside the brain. She explains the remote control used to switch the electrodes on and off. As she demonstrates the device by turning off the stimulation, we watch her condition decline and more severe uncontrolled movements return.

The camera focuses on close-ups of Ruth for the entire film. Because she is such an engaging subject, and because of the dramatic change in her movements once the electrodes are turned off, director Frantzis skillfully keeps Ruth from drifting into the realm of tedious viewing which is so common when the image remains virtually the same. Instead, his use of this filming technique reinforces the personal nature of disease, and forces the viewer to confront the reality of Parkinson’s symptoms. As Ruth speaks about her Parkinson’s symptoms, the impact the disease has on family and friends and her relationships with them, her optimistic personality shines through. Having said that, the editing could be smoother.

The value of Ruth lies in having a Parkinson’s patient talk candidly about the disease and about the deep brain stimulation procedure. The 30 minute length is perfect for classroom showing, and Ruth will be a valuable addition for all college level health sciences classes. Recommended.