Gaining physical strength is far easier than mental strength in my opinion. For my body to get strong I can lift weights, practice yoga or do pushups. It is more challenging for me to be mentally strong. I can still hear the negative comments that were thrown at me like poisonous darts that paralyzed the synapses of my mind. Even today when I try something new the echoes of negativity can be heard in my head. For the first review of the new year, I wanted to review a film that inspires strength. This classic movie was filled with tough courage and fortitude. The story was about deaf, blind and mute Helen Keller and her tutor Annie Sullivan. With no means to communicate with her family, Helen was nearly uncontrollable to the point her parents were thinking to institutionalize her. One last option was hiring Annie from the Perkins Institute for the Blind. What ensued literally was a battle of strength, stubbornness and love. Both Patty Duke (Valley of the Dolls, The Patty Duke Show-TV) and Anne Bancroft (The Graduate, The Elephant Man) won Oscars for their phenomenal performances as Helen Keller and Annie Sullivan. At the time Patty was the youngest person at 16 years of age to have won an Oscar award. With keen directing by Arthur Penn (Bonnie and Clyde, Little Big Man), the scenes in this film were just as powerful today as they were when the film first appeared on the big screen. Please understand by my film choice I am not setting up a comparison of our problems to Helen’s plight. The strength displayed in this drama is a motivation for me. I never make new year resolutions; so for the year ahead of us, I wish everyone emotional and mental robustness.

4 stars — DVD