Familiar Touch

Part of Cinema Explorations, a wintertime community-curated film series. Free and open to the public.

Many films show us experiences we have never had nor do we ever expect to have. Ruth (Kathleen Chalfant) and her family are experiencing something we will find familiar. It is also likely that we have pondered whether Ruth’s fate could be our own. When her son (H. Jon Benjamin) arrives, she mistakes him for a suitor. Their “date” takes them to an assisted living facility Ruth does not remember she had previously selected for herself. Among her fellow memory care residents, Ruth feels certain she is somewhere she does not belong. As she slowly begins to accept the warmth and support of care workers Vanessa (Carolyn Michelle) and Brian (Andy McQueen), she finds new ways to ground herself in her body even as her mind embarks on a journey all its own.

This coming-of-old-age feature from writer-director Sarah Friedland (the 2025 Independent Spirit Someone to Watch Award-winner) compassionately follows the winding path of octogenarian Ruth’s shifting memories and desires while remaining rooted in her sage perspective. "Friedland’s film, as sharp as it is soft, conveys both the terror of losing the life you recognize, and the intermittent, fragmented joy of finding it again."—Guy Lodge, Variety.

Not Rated
1 hour 30 minutes
https://www.watervillecreates.org/shows/familiar-touch/

You may also like the following events from Maine Film Center:

• This Saturday, 17th January, 12:00 pm, Hamnet in Waterville
• This Saturday, 17th January, 02:00 pm, The Choral in Waterville
• This Saturday, 17th January, 02:00 pm, Dead Man's Wire in Waterville

Also check out other Entertainment events in Waterville, Arts events in Waterville, Literary Art events in Waterville.