Watching this film on the day Gena Rowlands died of Alzheimer’s was perhaps not the brightest thing I ever did; I cried all through the closing credits. But the juxtaposition of her masterful internalized performance of Allie with her younger self - stunningly performed with such life and vitality by Rachel McAdams - is the core of this film and its great strength, overcoming the manipulative sentimentality of the story, and makes it an emotional watch that really stays with you.