Saving Milly

Plot

Madeleine Stowe and Bruce Greenwood star in this drama based on the best-selling book and real-life journey of political journalist Mort Kondracke. The movie recounts his inspiring love story with his activist wife, Milly, and the dramatic change in their lives in the years after she is diagnosed with Parkinson's disease.

As a young journalist in Chicago in the '60s, Mort Kondracke envisioned marrying a Vassar graduate whose status would facilitate his goal of becoming a top Washington journalist. His calculated plans go awry when he meets and marries Milly Martinez, a brash part-Mexican, part-Catholic, part-Jewish liberal activist who captures his heart. In Washington, D.C., the loving, strong-willed partners build a passionate and volatile marriage while debating everything from politics to how to raise their two daughters as well as her insatiable, all-consuming desire to save the world by championing a never-ending list of causes—all overshadowed by Mort's struggle with alcoholism.

In 1987, their lives take a dramatic turn when Milly notices a change in her handwriting and a numbness in her fingers. After a series of tests, her worst fears are confirmed and, at the age of 47, Milly is diagnosed with Parkinson's disease.

Holding to his promise of "in sickness and in health," Mort changes his focus from being a die-hard careerist to becoming a devoted caregiver and Parkinson's advocate and the love between the couple grows stronger. As her illness progresses, his life becomes committed to saving Milly."

Cast

Reception

The film received a positive review from The New York Times.

Awards and nominations