Review of Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore (1974) by Art S — 08 Dec 2014

Watching Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore was one of the most unusual experiences I've ever had. So I'm suffering through this somewhat rambling story about a mom who loses her husband and takes her kid on the road, hoping to get a job as a singer to support them.

It's really not my style of movie and, while it is filmed with a lot of style and some interesting camera work, I was starting to lose interest. Then out of nowhere she gets a job as a waitress in a diner, I see Vic Tayback cooking the food, and 2 waitresses named Vera and Flo.

..Wait, holy smokes! This is Alice! I literally had to pause the movie for a moment to process this thought. Such a strange wash of nostalgia came over me as I realized I was watching a film that I never knew existed, a film that led to one of the TV series that I watched all the time as a kid.

Suddenly it was no longer tedious watching this movie, I was invested in Alice because of who she was to me as a kid. That being said, I prefer Alice as a pure comedy, and Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore really doesn't emphasize the comedy.

There are moments that are humorous, and some of the banter between characters is fun, but I just didn't warm to this story all that much. I think, at the time, the independent woman angle would have been much more powerful but nowadays it feels outdated for her to be so weak when she grew up with such a strong personality.

Ellen Burstyn, Kris Kristofferson, and most of the other actors do a fine job with the material they're given. It felt like a lot of it was improvised dialogue, which I struggled with because most actors struggle to make that sound natural.

Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore is fairly effective at telling its story and Scorsese certainly knows how to make a film look good, but I would frankly rather watch reruns of the spin-off sitcom than sit through this angst-filled film again.