Elderquest: 2006

Wild Strawberries, Ingmar Bergman (Sweden 1960) Isak Borg, a retired physician, makes a journey to the university in Lund, Sweden, to receive an honorary award. Along the way, he confronts some unresolved issues from his past, is plagued by dreams and visions, and finds solace renewing his relationship with a daughter-in-law.
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- Discussion Questions
Trip to Bountiful, Peter Masterson (1985) Mrs. Watts, an old woman, experiences discord and disharmony in the Houston household of her son and daughter-in-law in the 1940s and dreams of one day returning to visit her home in the small town of Bountiful, Texas. One day she makes her "escape," and the film portrays her journey to Bountiful and her eventual reconciliation with her son.
- Film Summary
- Discussion Questions
The Straight Story, David Lynch (1988) Old Alvin Straight drives a lawn mower from his small town in Iowa to visit his estranged brother in Wisconsin after learning of his brother’s stroke. On his journey he meets a variety of people, shares his wisdom, and also learns to let go of old hatreds along the way.
Central Station, dir. Walter Salles (Brazil 1998) An emotionally hardened retired schoolteacher befriends a newly orphaned boy and helps him search for his absent father. Their journey takes them from Rio de Janeiro to the rural interior of the country.

About Schmidt, Alexander Payne (2001) Our eponymous hero (played by Jack Nicholson), a retired insurance executive, sets out on road trip after a period of grieving for his late wife, determined to stop his daughter’s marriage to someone he considers an inferior match.