Directed by Martin Scorsese and written by Robert Getchell, after her husband dies, Alice and her son, Tommy, leave their small New Mexico town for California, where Alice hopes to make a new life for herself as a singer. Money problems force them to settle in Arizona instead, where Alice takes a job as waitress in a small diner. Starring: Ellen Burstyn, Alfred Lutter, Kris Kristofferson, Harvey Keitel, Diane Ladd, Lelia Goldoni, Billy Green Bush, Jodie Foster, Valerie Curtin and Vic Tayback.
In the conversation of Scorsese’s work Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore is one that comes up fairly infrequently, with its release nestled between Mean Streets and Taxi Driver. However, much like After Hours, it’s a piece of his filmography that deserves more attention. A big part of that is due to the performance from Ellen Burstyn, who is phenomenal in this film and of course, won the Oscar for it. The relentless, charming, witty, combustible personality which she fills Alice with is so impressive. She breathes all of this life into an everyday story to elevate it into something moving and resounding. She’s particularly fantastic opposite Diane Ladd in this Oscar-nominated role, she puts on no airs, she’s entirely grounded and forthright and it’s utterly entertaining to watch their friendship develop.
That’s the other key element to Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore, how it exists within that everyday realm. It’s not about creating melodramatics or thrills, its purpose is instead to simply follow a struggling mother, trying to provide for her child, while also not giving up on what she wants for herself, with a little bit of turbulent romance thrown in. It plays out really well, it’s continually adding to itself, it never slows down too much and there’s so much character to the writing. It’s chaotic, messy and relatable.
Martin Scorsese’s direction really embraces that disordered side of things, there’s a great movement to it, it’s in the moment. It never tries to add unnecessary style, holding onto that humble foundation of the story, but it also has enough of its own personality to add into the mix. While Kent L. Wakeford’s cinematography has a real nostalgic hit, it’s tapping directly into all those small town, working class, Americana notes which are really satisfying to watch. It holds such a wonderful texture and colour, which is so perfectly quintessential of the era.
Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore is charming, moving, and has such a frantic yet utterly relatable personality. Ellen Burstyn is excellent right from the beginning, the relationship she builds with Alfred Lutter as her son is unique. Their connection is undeniable, and it’s filled with this incredible bluntness, honesty and backchat which is engaging to watch. The cameo from a very young Jodie Foster is a wonderful addition, as is the suave yet rough around the edges performance from Kris Kristofferson and a tumultuous Harvey Keitel. It’s a terrific cast, it’s shot very well, which is only further complemented by the restoration work, and it’s lovely to watch such an everyday, unfiltered story, something we don’t get as much of these days.
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