Lorenzo’s Oil Movie: Obstacles And Interferences In Pursuit Of Treatment

Lorenzo’s Oil is a movie based on a true story which the parents of Lorenzo, Augusto and Michaela, sincerely and constantly searched for the treatment of the incurable disease, adrenoleukodystrophy (ALD), for their beloved child, Lorenzo, in their earnest endeavour throughout their lives. They had been conducting the research ever since Lorenzo was diagnosed with the rare neurological disease, flying all over the world to look for the cure for their critically ill boy. Mr. Odone was an economist working in the World Bank while his wife, Michaela, was a linguist. They both had neither experience nor knowledge in medical field before that particular disease occurred in their son.

Usually, people will just put all of their hope on doctors and trust them wholeheartedly, expecting the experts to create a miracle. However in this case, Lorenzo’s parents decided to equipped themselves with knowledge about that scarce disease by staying in the library, studying piles and piles of researches and thick books on countless days and nights. They flew over here and there to have encounters with experts, doctors, researchers and also scientists. Later, they even organized an international symposium named The Myelin Project in 1989 to gather the families of the ALD patients together and provide the support throughout the battle against the ALD. Although they had inevitably faced obstacles and interferences in pursuit of treatment, including having argument and fights, they overcame the difficulties by holding each other’s hand tightly without letting go. In the end of the story, they found a retired British chemist, Don Suddaby who was willing to extract the famous Forenzo’s oil, a combination of two chemicals called erucic acid and oleic acid, unlike other scientists who refused their request because of the profit issues. Surrounded by the passionate love of his parents, Lorenzo passed away at the age of 30, much more longer than the doctors expected. From what I read online, “We were told to go home and watch Lorenzo die. We couldn’t and didn’t, " Mr. Odone wrote so in an essay published in 2011. I admire the strength and persistence shown by Lorenzo’s parents.

To be honest, if this situation happened in my life, I probably would not be as strong minded as Michaela, just like other parents of ALD children. Standing up against doctors and questioning the validity of protocols, they were really brave for doing what they did. Witnessing Lorenzo’s unwholesome figure and sallow visage made my heart ached agonizingly. He was in so much pain and pungency. Moreover, he was treated impudently by home nurses hired by his mother, yet we can clearly see that he chose not to give up on himself regardless of all the spite he received. As some might think that her mum was being too harsh on the nurses, in my opinion, his mum was right. Lorenzo did not have the ability to make any movement but I am pretty sure he knew whatever was happening around him. Having to go through the unbearable torment and desolation alone, I could not imagine how lonely it must feel like for Lorenzo. He dealt with his illness with profoundly unwavering will. As he began to consume the oil, he started to show slight improvement, but it was not enough to recover most of the abilities he had before. On the good side, he was able to blink yes or no afterwards while preserving his eye sight, which is considered as a gift given by God.

Imagine when everything goes wrong in your life and especially when your world is falling apart, what idea crosses your mind in the first place? Are you just going to cry? Or are you going to fight back real hard? Bad things always happen in life, but what really define and change one’s faith is our responses to the unfortunate incidents. It is all about your perception as life is neither fair nor unfair. No one deserves the blame. I finished reading a book named The Subtle Art of not giving a f*** last month, which is about finding the priorities in your life, ignoring trivial matters that hold you from achieving your goals. Some of the lessons I learned from the book are performed in this movie from my point of view. For example, Lorenzo’s parents did not waste time on crying or complaining of God’s injustice. Neither did they care about others’ doubt, critique and derision. They only focused on doing researches to find out the means to save their child. We can see that they succeeded in extending Lorenzo’s live after years and years of hard work. By constantly concentrating on the priorities, they created a miracle. We should apply the same thinking way into our lives. When bad things happen in your live, the first step is to accept it. You do not have to think positive because it is alright to feel bad. Do not deny and ignore your true feelings as the author said “Once we embrace our fears, faults and uncertainties - once we stop running from and avoiding, and start confronting painful truths - we can begin to find the courage and confidence we desperately seek. ” in that particular book. Be mentally prepared and then put all of your effort into solving problems. It is the only way to improve your current situation. Remember, good things take time.

A wise man once said “No Family Is Perfect. We Argue, We Fight. We Even Stop Talking to Each Other at Times. But in the End, Family Is Family. The Love Will Always Be There. ” and I could not agree more. Adrenoleukodystrophy (ALD) are only one of the countless incurable diseases out in the world. There are always families out there struggling with the loss of their loved ones. Two of my uncles died of lung cancer, and there is no word that is able to describe the grief I felt watching them taking the last breath and feeling their fingers turning cold. Miracles barely happen in reality but how far could you go for the ones you love to save their lives even when the chance is exceedingly slim?

Lorenzo’s oil received huge response from people all over the United States at that time and until now it has successfully raised awareness about this rare disease among public. Could we do better? This idea has been lingering in my mind ever since I watched this masterpiece. We, as the general public, can definitely do better in saving lives. Activities such as raising funds and volunteering in helping the poor and needy people should be held and be promoted by the government because a society grows great when old men plant trees whose shade they know they shall never sit in which means a society becomes great when the people become responsible and unselfish. Together, we can make the world better. This movie talks about death, family and hope. I personally would recommend this film to people around me. I think they can learn many things from this film. Last but not least, I would like to thank Mr. Tsaur for offering the opportunity for us to watch this film in the class. It feels really great to slow down the pace in your life once in a week by watching a beautifully filmed movie.