I really love this film since it is a true story about the disease of alcoholism. I've been there myself and I know what this movie portrays is how one comes to terms with the disease and how it affects all of the people around them. The acting is wonderful, the script is perfect and Gena Rowlands really deserved to win the Emmy for her portrayal. One can perhaps be helped by this film is they want to help themselves and those that don't have a problem with alcohol can learn from just watching and concentrating. Don't miss this one!
2 Reviews
A toast to one of the greatest first ladies ever.
mark.waltz2 December 2021
Warning: Spoilers
And to one of the best actresses ever, Gena Rowlands.
A survivor of breast cancer. A woman who had the courage to accept that she had issues with pain killers and alcohol, even if she initially objected to the way she was confronted over it. This TV movie only tells part of the story, and it certainly could have been a lot longer and still maintained interest. But what is there is excellent, and you get the feeling that you're seeing the real Betty Ford as well as her husband, President Gerald Ford (Josef Sommer). She is a devoted wife and mother, outspoken and funny, yet realistic and the issues that she fights for. When it comes to her own issues though, that's a different story.
The film is told through flashback as she enters a drug and alcohol rehabilitation center, initially upset that she has to share her room with three other people. But Betty Ford was no snob, and she quickly changes that as she accepts the fate that her life has taken her to. As the wife of the vice president, she's content to be in the background, but when Gerald by fate becomes president after Nixon's resignation, she takes her role as first lady seriously and stands up for the issues she believes in, creating controversy and conflict with White House staffer Don Stewart.
Her loving children and husband stand by her through everything, but must reveal the harsh truth to her when they realize the extent of her addictions. This way, Betty Ford is not painted as some saint even though she did seem to be practically perfect in every way. Rowland is very deserving of all the honors that she got through playing Betty, both the Emmy and Golden Globe, and through each step of her life, the audience will cheer Betty on as well as Gena for her tender, sensitive and funny performance. No matter what the audience is political affiliation is, champions are judged by how they survive crisis, and Betty Ford is one of the biggest champions in American political history.
A survivor of breast cancer. A woman who had the courage to accept that she had issues with pain killers and alcohol, even if she initially objected to the way she was confronted over it. This TV movie only tells part of the story, and it certainly could have been a lot longer and still maintained interest. But what is there is excellent, and you get the feeling that you're seeing the real Betty Ford as well as her husband, President Gerald Ford (Josef Sommer). She is a devoted wife and mother, outspoken and funny, yet realistic and the issues that she fights for. When it comes to her own issues though, that's a different story.
The film is told through flashback as she enters a drug and alcohol rehabilitation center, initially upset that she has to share her room with three other people. But Betty Ford was no snob, and she quickly changes that as she accepts the fate that her life has taken her to. As the wife of the vice president, she's content to be in the background, but when Gerald by fate becomes president after Nixon's resignation, she takes her role as first lady seriously and stands up for the issues she believes in, creating controversy and conflict with White House staffer Don Stewart.
Her loving children and husband stand by her through everything, but must reveal the harsh truth to her when they realize the extent of her addictions. This way, Betty Ford is not painted as some saint even though she did seem to be practically perfect in every way. Rowland is very deserving of all the honors that she got through playing Betty, both the Emmy and Golden Globe, and through each step of her life, the audience will cheer Betty on as well as Gena for her tender, sensitive and funny performance. No matter what the audience is political affiliation is, champions are judged by how they survive crisis, and Betty Ford is one of the biggest champions in American political history.
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