Reason for Living: The Jill Ireland Story

May 19, 1991

1h 40m

★ 7.0

She fought to save a son from drugs. She fought to save herself from cancer. Her story will live for a lifetime.

Overview

This biographical drama, based on the late actress's autobiography, chronicles her attempts to rescue her drug addicted son while simultaneously trying to overcome her life-threatening cancer.

Genres

Drama

TV Movie

Production Companies

NBC

Ten-Four Productions

Reason for Living: The Jill Ireland Story Trailers

No Trailers found.

Cast

Jill Ireland

Jill Clayburgh

Charles Bronson

Lance Henriksen

Jason McCallum

Neill Barry

Dorothy, Jill's mother

Lila Kaye

Jill's father

Jack Gwillim

Vicky

Elizabeth Ashley

Himself

Byron Allen

Lori

Liane Curtis

Valentine McCallum

Jimmy McNichol

A retired farmer and widower in his seventies named Alvin Straight learns one day that his distant brother Lyle has suffered a stroke and may not recover. Alvin is determined to make things right with Lyle while he still can, but his brother lives in Wisconsin, while Alvin is stuck in Iowa with no car and no driver's license. He then has the idea of making the trip on his old lawnmower, thus beginning a picturesque and at times deeply spiritual odyssey.

8.4

The Pianist

Sep 17, 2002

The true story of pianist Władysław Szpilman's experiences in Warsaw during the Nazi occupation. When the Jews of the city find themselves forced into a ghetto, Szpilman finds work playing in a café; and when his family is deported in 1942, he stays behind, works for a while as a laborer, and eventually goes into hiding in the ruins of the war-torn city.

8.6

Schindler's List

Dec 15, 1993

The true story of how businessman Oskar Schindler saved over a thousand Jewish lives from the Nazis while they worked as slaves in his factory during World War II.

7.3

Sissi

Dec 22, 1955

The young Bavarian princess Elisabeth, who all call Sissi, goes with her mother and older sister Néné to Austria where Néné will be wed to an emperor named Franz Joseph, Yet unexpectedly Franz runs into Sissi while out fishing and they fall in love.

7.1

Sissi: The Young Empress

Dec 1, 1956

Sissi is now the empress of Austria and attempts to learn etiquette. While she is busy being empress she also has to deal with her difficult new mother-in-law, while the arch-duchess Sophie is trying to tell the emperor how to rule and also Sissi how to be a mother.

7.1

Sissi: The Fateful Years of an Empress

Dec 18, 1957

After a wonderful time in Hungary Sissi falls extremely ill and must retreat to a Mediterranean climate to rest. The young empress’ mother takes her from Austria to recover in Madeira.

7.4

Erin Brockovich

Mar 17, 2000

A twice-divorced mother of three who sees an injustice, takes on the bad guy and wins -- with a little help from her push-up bra. Erin goes to work for an attorney and comes across medical records describing illnesses clustered in one nearby town. She starts investigating and soon exposes a monumental cover-up.

7.6

The Last Emperor

Oct 4, 1987

A dramatic history of Pu Yi, the last of the Emperors of China, from his lofty birth and brief reign in the Forbidden City, the object of worship by half a billion people; through his abdication, his decline and dissolute lifestyle; his exploitation by the invading Japanese, and finally to his obscure existence as just another peasant worker in the People's Republic.

8.5

GoodFellas

Sep 12, 1990

The true story of Henry Hill, a half-Irish, half-Sicilian Brooklyn kid who is adopted by neighbourhood gangsters at an early age and climbs the ranks of a Mafia family under the guidance of Jimmy Conway.

7.9

Raging Bull

Nov 14, 1980

The life of boxer Jake LaMotta, whose violence and temper that led him to the top in the ring destroyed his life outside of it.

7.9

Freedom Writers

Jan 5, 2007

A young teacher inspires her class of at-risk students to learn tolerance, apply themselves, and pursue education beyond high school.

7.4

Ray

Oct 29, 2004

Born on a sharecropping plantation in Northern Florida, Ray Charles went blind at seven. Inspired by a fiercely independent mom who insisted he make his own way, He found his calling and his gift behind a piano keyboard. Touring across the Southern musical circuit, the soulful singer gained a reputation and then exploded with worldwide fame when he pioneered coupling gospel and country together.

7.0

Capote

Sep 30, 2005

A biopic of writer Truman Capote and his assignment for The New Yorker to write the non-fiction book "In Cold Blood".

8.0

The Elephant Man

Oct 9, 1980

A Victorian surgeon rescues a heavily disfigured man being mistreated by his "owner" as a side-show freak. Behind his monstrous façade, there is revealed a person of great intelligence and sensitivity. Based on the true story of Joseph Merrick (called John Merrick in the film), a severely deformed man in 19th century London.

6.0

Spanglish

Dec 17, 2004

Mexican immigrant and single mother Flor Moreno finds housekeeping work with Deborah and John Clasky, a well-off couple with two children of their own. When Flor admits she can't handle the schedule because of her daughter, Cristina, Deborah decides they should move into the Clasky home. Cultures clash and tensions run high as Flor and the Claskys struggle to share space while raising their children on their own, and very different, terms.

7.2

The Aviator

Dec 17, 2004

A biopic depicting the life of filmmaker and aviation pioneer Howard Hughes from 1927 to 1947, during which time he became a successful film producer and an aviation magnate, while simultaneously growing more unstable due to severe obsessive-compulsive disorder.

7.2

The Diary of Anne Frank

Mar 18, 1959

The true, harrowing story of a young Jewish girl who, with her family and their friends, is forced into hiding in an attic in Nazi-occupied Amsterdam.

7.0

Born on the Fourth of July

Dec 20, 1989

Paralyzed in the Vietnam war, Ron Kovic becomes an anti-war and pro-human rights political activist after feeling betrayed by the country he fought for.

6.9

Abraham

Dec 12, 1993

Rather than choosing a great leader or king, God chooses Abraham, an elderly shepherd from Mesopotamia, as the way to establish his Covenant with mankind... A man of great faith, Abraham continues to believe in God even when He seems to have abandoned him.

7.2

Audrey Hepburn: Remembered

Aug 11, 1993

Audrey Hepburn was one of the movies' best-loved stars, blessed with beauty, talent, an elegant sophistication and an enduring aura of youthful innocence. As Goodwill Ambassador for UNICEF, she spoke for the world's suffering children and families, earning an affection and admiration that only increased with news of her untimely death. From the star herself we learn of her career and the family and friendships that were her priority.