Question [spoilers]

I'm confused. I saw this movie for the first time last night, and I liked it, but I'm confused about something. Axel admitted to Grace that he likes her, and she tells him she loves him, and she seems to be getting along better with her mother, so why does she kill herself? And do you think Axel stayed with Elaine? I thought at the end he went to Alaska, but I guess that was only a dream. Is it one of those movies where we're supposed to make up our own minds on what happened or what? Thanks