This movie is just average and unremarkable... it reminded me of a made for TV drama about Alzheimers disease. The acting (or more likely direction of actors) is also average.The story however is very compelling--a talented music composer reduced to nothing by this dreadful disease. It would really resonate to people who have dealt with Alzheimer disease. It is a dramatic topic but this movie doesn't exploit it--pity.My only problem with this film is I try to find something a cut above TV fare. As another reviewer said it contains no gems or twists or surprises that might have made it interesting. You can sort of get a glimpse of the director/writers stock values by what they view as completely shocking: a man urinating in public. So what?That it was nominated for a Swedish Oscar is beyond belief.Don't recommend.

I give it a 3 for being so long and drawn out, but I give it a 10 for reminding me and giving me a picture of what can happen when someone is given an EXTREME dose of Alzheimer's. This is a movie that shows you a "worst case" scenario, but given the choice of a long and drawn out condition or short one, anyone, whether caregiver or patient, would choose the later one and try to make the most out of it before they die. This is a good movie for someone who wants to become a caregiver for someone with Alzheimer's and needs a good devil's advocate. This is also a good educational movie for those studying in the mental health field.

Caught this film late one night, cold Colorado winter night, and could not walk away to a warm bed.Well done, cast and crew deserve to be proud of themselves, if this is the director's wish. Never knew much about Swedish foreign film.Bergman, of course, but not this director. Echoes of Bergman were felt.The actors who played the leads, Martin and Barabara were perfect and carried the story. I felt their love and pain.The summer picnic conversation around Mozart's The Magic Flute, was the metaphysical key to the lock for me. Two questions are discussed, light overcomes darkness and even the departed, are still alive and above all love survives all.Watching the different levels of old timers pull them down into its oblivion, we see the struggles of the two lovers grasping the threads of their love, against the winds of madness.Nancy Reagen, remarked, "They know from their side, that they are being taken away, against their will, and the look of desperation is haunting. It is the worst stage of the disease." In the last scene, Barbara moves in to Kiss Martin, and he mistakes this movement, to mean food, and opens his mouth, like a bird....its poignant and sweet.Would own this DVD, as it gave me something I want to keep. I want to know more about the director, and the two major actors now.SARGE

While `A song for Martin' is a powerful movie, it is also a sort of impotent one. One of the hobbyhorses of my high school literature teacher was to make us understand the difference between what is tragic and dramatic. A car accident is tragic. A car going over a cliff driven by someone fulfilling his inescapable destiny is drama. Alzheimer's is a tragic disease, but it is not drama. Unavoidable is not a substitute for inescapable. You cannot have drama without participation while participation is the last thing you can expect from someone suffering from the disease. This is a very well made movie. Acting is superb; cinematography is fine. I learned from it everything I would ever care to know about Alzheimer's, but I still left the theatre with an empty feeling. The story is sad, the loss is painful and love conquers everything but I had no revelations. I received information, from which I only gained knowledge, not real gut wrenching understanding. I never cared much about acted documentaries and this film never really rose above that.`A song for Martin' has a very promising start. Passionate love at the age of 50/60 is full of dramatic potential. For a while I thought that is what the movie will be about, but I was wrong. There are hints of dramatic conflict but they are never explored and from the moment Martin is diagnosed, the story turns purely didactic. Dealing with such a situation also has dramatic potentials but this movie choose to concentrate on the evolution of the illness. Is that bad? I don't know, but gaining this sort of knowledge is not what I expect from art.Should you see this movie? I think so. You will learn a lot about the illness most of us fear the most. Just do not expect more. See it for what it is: an animated illustration of the disease. For that, it is perfect.