Three Triumphant Stars Shine Bright in ‘You’re Not You’

A. Lawrence Dreyfuss

Will Emmy Rossum become a household name?  In 2004, it would seem that the answer would be yes.  She was nominated for a Golden Globe for her performance of ‘Christine’ in the screen adaptation of long running Broadway musical, The Phantom of the Opera. She also scored a leading role in Roland Emmerich’s The Day After Tomorrow – billed third after Dennis Quaid and Jake Gyllenhaal. Yet, just as quickly as she came onto the scene, she dropped off the map. She had roles in a few big budget flops including Poseidon (2006) and Beautiful Creatures (2013).  Most recently, she’s been flexing her acting muscle playing William H. Macy’s daughter on Showtime’s Shameless.

Rossum is poised to regain her big screen notoriety with the releases of You’re Not You, directed by George C. Wolfe. You’re Not You places Rossum as a sporadic college student (Bec) opposite a pianist (Kate) played by Hilary Swank.  When Kate is diagnosed with ALS, Bec is hired to be a caregiver and the two of them form an unlikely bond.  The film is being advertised as a feel-good story and Deadline Hollywood describes the movie as “Oscar Bait” singling out the lead performance of two-time Oscar winner Swank as a Best Actress contender. As of the time of publishing, no reviews have been released. Therefore, it is tough to say whether or not the film is a hit or a miss, but it will surely showcase the talent of the two female leads against a supporting cast that includes Josh Duhamel (Transformers) and Ali Larter (Resident Evil).

With Facebook and Twitter abuzz on the topic of ALS and the Ice Bucket challenge lately, it is rather timely to see a movie that portrays the decline of an ALS patient. As general awareness grows, it can be useful to apply a specific face or story to the problem. According to the ALS association, 30,000 Americans have been diagnosed with the neurodegenerative disorder that causes muscle weakness and eventually paralysis. Commonly referred to as Lou Gehrig’s disease, this is not the first time that an ALS patient’s story has been depicted on screen.  Most famously, The Pride of Yankees (1942) tells the story of Lou Gehrig’s retirement from baseball as he comes to terms with his mortality.

Director George C. Wolfe is no stranger to depicting the lives of people dealing with illness. While this is only his second big screen project after 2008 Nights of Rodanthe, he has a long history of working in theater.  He directed the original Broadway production of Tony Kushner’s Angels in America, the story of various people dealing with the AIDS outbreak in the early days of the epidemic, for which he took home the Tony.  More recently, Ryan Murphy returned to the similar subject matter with the 2014 revival of The Normal Heart, which was later adapted into an HBO movie. 

You’re Not You features two actors at the top of their game directed by one of the most respected stage directors living today.  Whether the film proves to be a heart warmer or a tearjerker, it will certainly deliver something memorable.

‘You’re Not You’ opens in select theaters October 10th.