Dreams of a Life (2011)

Joyce died in 2003 but it took three years for her decomposed and unrecognizable remains to be found in her bedsitter. It's not only the sad and tragic story of Joyce's final years, but also about alienation, family and neighbors. Sadly Joyce put her bank manager down as the next-of-kin when she was at the hospital. Also one of Joyce's final jobs was working as a cleaner, and the interviewees had difficulty imagining her doing this work. Still, cleaning is an honorable job and someone had to do it I guess.Zawe Ashton played Joyce Vincent as an adult, and Alix Luka-Cain played Joyce Vincent as a girl.Carol Morley, who directed this unforgettable documentary, wrote about her experiences in https://www.theguardian.com/film/2011/oct/09/joyce-vincent-death- mystery-documentaryDreams of a Life is haunting and a sharp commentary about the value of life.One incredibly sorrowful moment was at the end when Martin, Joyce's ex-boyfriend, started crying.The final scene was special. It featured a brief clip of Nelson Mandela tribute concert at Wembley in 1990, addressing musicians, and there was Joyce amongst the select few in the cheering crowd, watched by millions worldwide.

If you are the type of person who is interested in peoples lives this is your film to watch, of course this way is not everyone is but don't let bad reviews put you off.My eyes never left the screen, I found it immensely interesting and quite sad. I feel it is really important for this film to have been made, simply for the fact that because of this film she did not disappear and even though she died alone she didn't live her life in vain. My feeling after watching the film was that in a sense we could all gain perspective - That is how vivid all of our lives are if only we can see it... Joyce may have never known how much people cared but the fact is they had, and what we must remember is there is always someone willing to help, there is always a chance. It seems she had many, for example seeing her old housemate randomly on the street - it could have been a chance to get help - This film is simply a quest to bring back some dignity and life for someone that could have just disappeared off the face of the earth. Now she is in so many peoples memories and I find that quite a noble quest.

DREAMS OF A LIFE is a feature length 2011 docu-drama by filmmaker Carol Morley that tells the true story of Joyce Carol Vincent, a woman who died in her flat in London around 2003 and wasn't found until more than three years later. The story itself is a great one, one of the most tragic tales you could imagine and a true reflection on the careless nature of modern society, but DREAMS OF A LIFE drops the ball along the way.Morley messes up by focusing way too much on recreating Vincent's brief life as a celebration instead of really getting to the heart of the manner of her death. After all, it's the unusual circumstances surrounding the death that makes this such a good story, but we learn next to nothing about it. Just how could somebody die in the heart of a heaving metropolis, with the TV on no less, and nobody realise for three years? Instead, there are endless bite-sized interviews with friends who knew here, and a good half an hour of excruciating singing as Morley explores Vincent's passion for music. All of this needed to be jettisoned and replaced with an investigative journalist doing a voice-over and exploring the mysteries that remain unsolved to date.

About a decade ago I worked in the offices of a local council's Environmental Health department and, among the jobs that fell into this department was that of dealing with the issue of people who had been found dead and didn't have anyone to make the arrangements. It didn't happen too often but occasionally the office would be used as a temporary store for loads of books, VHS tapes or other hoarded possessions of people who had died alone and seemed to have nobody. I never attended the funerals of these people but colleagues who did the arrangements generally reported a few friends or family but that was all. Despite never knowing these people, I had made the decision that these were sad lonely people who lived alone forever, knew nobody and had always been that way.In a way, when we enter this film and hear about Joyce, this is the same impression it is very easy to have; she died alone and lay undiscovered for three years Three years with nobody anywhere really making an effort to find out why they hadn't seen her for a while. The lack of information in the paper about this person is what led Morley to make this documentary and she does unearth a lot and a great deal of it shows that Joyce was not some introverted hermit but in some ways just the opposite. It was clear from the detail that she did carry a great sadness within her, but at the same time she was active socially, had famous connections in the music industry and was a very attractive woman. The film builds this picture well – even surprising her friends with some details, but it never really gets to a point or to answers and this is the main problem with the film.On the whole it does engage by virtue of how saddening it is and in the way it forces the viewer to ask questions of (and about) ones self, but this isn't quite enough to make the film fill 90 minutes. The details of Joyce's life only increased the questions but the film doesn't lay blame anywhere and doesn't investigate how anyone can go unnoticed for three years. This side of things isn't as good and it is a real shame as it could have had more of an impact. The subject itself is fascinating though and the mix of interviews and dramatized moments does work pretty well – with some interesting characters in her life and some great moments acted out by Ashton. The direction and look of the film is mostly good – it is very lively and good looking, not unlike the Joyce we see portrayed as well.Dreams of a Life is a depressing and engaging film thanks to the subject matter and the way it is delivered, but it doesn't go far enough. It doesn't have an overall point in particular and it leaves as many questions as it answers; the viewer is left with a sense of sadness which is worthy but not a real understanding of anything beyond this one person. I liked it for what it did well, but the gaps are disappointing.