|
|
Starting when we�re very, very young, most little girls (and maybe a little boy or two) dream of finding The One�of living a fairy tale romance that�s straight out of the movies. But P. S. I Love You is a heart-wrenching story (based on the novel by Cecelia Ahern) of a woman whose fairy tale ends too soon.
As the film opens, Holly (Hilary Swank) and Gerry (Gerard Butler) Kennedy are in the middle of an argument. It�s a pretty typical married couple spat�but as it reaches its climax and begins to unravel, the discussion turns to the real matter at hand. They�ve been married for years, they have no money and no kids, and Holly doesn�t know when their life is going to begin. It�s a simple but strange scene�and it makes a rather long introduction to the movie�but it does a wonderful job of developing the characters and their relationship. Because once the opening credits are over, everything changes.
The story jumps forward to Gerry�s wake. After watching the love of her life suffer and die from a brain tumor, Holly is completely devastated. As the weeks pass, she refuses to leave the house or talk to her friends or family.
A month later, on her 30th birthday, the letters start to arrive. Before he died, Gerry carefully planned his wife�s recovery. And with each letter that mysteriously arrives at Holly�s door, Gerry encourages her to do things for herself�and to find happiness and love again.
P. S. I Love You is what we in The Biz call a Three-Hanky Movie�but, for this one, you might want to have four or five handy, just in case. Because while I�m usually pretty tough when it comes to movies, I�ll admit that I spent much of the movie�s two hours in tears.
Call me a hopeless romantic if you will, but there�s plenty to shed tears over in P. S. I Love You�because it�s both romantic and heartbreaking. As the film flashes back through the years, you�ll get a picture of Holly and Gerry�s relationship. And while their love for each other is touching�as is Gerry�s determination to stand by his wife, even after his death�the loss of that love makes the story absolutely gut-wrenching. Though I�ve never been a fan of Swank, she does an excellent job of portraying her character�s grief�and anyone who�s ever been in love will feel that grief along with her.
Although P. S. technically falls into the romantic comedy category, the comedy is minimal. Sure, there are a few laughs here and there. Harry Connick, Jr., especially, brings his share of comic relief as David, the socially awkward barman. And Lisa Kudrow adds a few laughs as Holly�s friend, Denise (though her performance is a little too Phoebe Buffay for my liking). Still, her character (along with Connick�s) helps to lighten the film from time to time�and the two of them give the story a much-needed breath of fresh air.
The writers clearly pulled out all the stops to purposely tug at viewers� heartstrings�but it�s skillfully done. P. S. I Love You is a touching tearjerker that�s a must-see for hopeless romantics. Just be sure to stock up on Kleenex before you press play.
|
|
|
|