P.S. I Love You (2007)

Discovering What Women Want

P.S.: I Love You is a good love story. I know, it's a chick flick. Well, it's a chick flick that has something to offer guys. Gerard Butler (300) is not exactly your soap-opera-idol type, nor is Hilary Swank (Million Dollar Baby). It's an interesting match, and makes for enjoyable interaction, both playful and feisty. Oh, did I mention that one of the couple dies in the first act?

Hold on. I didn't just ruin the movie for you. That's the main point: Gerry (Gerard Butler) is dying, so he clandestinely writes a stack of letters to his wife, Holly, each ending with, "P.S.: I love you." Then he has someone send them to her one-at-a-time over the course of a year. The letters guide Holly into a new life. And they provide writer-director Richard LaGravenese (Freedom Writers, Horse Whisperer) with a vehicle for doing a ton of flashbacks between Gerry and Holly. It's quite effective.

This is a comedy, and it is very funny. For the most part, Gerry's the funny man and Holly's the straight person. Gerry's a sly Irishman that knows how to wheedle; and Holly's a determined career woman that doesn't have a clue what she wants. As a matter of fact, Gerry asks her point-blank: "What do you want?" It is a poignant question that permeates the film. As Gerry holds his discontented wife in his arms, he says, " I know what I want, 'cause I'm holding it in my hands. Do you?" She doesn't. And it takes Gerry's death for her to figure that out.

Using post mortem love letters to reveal Gerry and Holly's relationship is quite clever. It is fun getting to know this off-the-wall couple: Gerry, an Irish musician, who is the life of the party and brings humor even to his own death; and Holly, the cautious and pensive artist, questioning everything and offering pithy observations. We see that they love each other very much; but, like many of us, Holly doesn't appreciate what she has until he's gone. Fortunately, she gets a second chance with Gerry's letters; and, predictably, over the course of the film, Holly realizes what she is missing and what she now wants.

The journey that Holly takes is painful for her, but fun for us. Most women will find it difficult to hold back the tears. But woven throughout are funny, even hilarious, moments, especially because of Holly's two wacky friends, played by Lisa Kudrow (Friends) and Gina Gershon (Rescue Me). Also, Harry Connick, Jr. plays an utter dork - but a philosophical one; Kathy Bates is Holly's practical mother - but a kind-hearted one; and Jeffrey Dean Morgan becomes Holly's new love interest - all entertaining performances.

Obviously, this isn't the first time the subject of what women want has been breached. Back in 2000, a film by that title, starring Mel Gibson and Helen Hunt, made a half-hearted though entertaining effort at answering that question. Advertising creative Mel Gibson miraculously acquires the ability to read women's minds, which leads him to believe he now knows what they want, and can turn that knowledge to his advantage. However, he is mistaken because - as Holly points out to Harry Connick's character in P.S.: I Love You - even women themselves don't know what they want. So, even if men could read their minds - as many women seem to think we should - that still wouldn't help. No, like women's handbags of generations past, women's minds will always and forever remain mysteries, and rightly so; until God chooses to reveal them, which, I predict, will leave a lot of guys with perplexing looks on their faces and uttering, "You've got to be kidding." I'm sure I will be one of them.

Gerard Butler and Hilary Swank are wonderful in P.S.: I Love You. Butler, who typically switches between action hero (300, Beowulf And Grendel, Tomb Raider: Cradle Of Life) and romantic lead (Phantom Of The Opera, Dear Frankie), has his best romantic role to date in this film. This is also the first time since Phantom that he has been able to show off his musical abilities. And, even though he's from Scotland, he is really Irish, so he has that going for him as well. But, don't expect him to have those abs from 300 - they are long gone.

Swank is a two-time Academy Award-Winning Best Actress: Boys Don't Cry (1999) and Clint Eastwood's Million Dollar Baby (2004). She loves the outdoors (sky diving, river rafting and skiing), which makes her perfect for the scenes in Ireland - a very outdoorsy country and my favorite part of the movie, especially her scenes with Gerry. Swank is honey and vinegar personified - exactly what the good-natured Gerry needs and, between the two of them, the right chemistry for this romantic comedy.

If someone were to ask me, "What do women want," I would say, "I know what they need: a good pair of practical shoes. What they probably want is the most impractical, outrageous pair of designer shoes out there." I would have said that before watching P.S.: I Love You. Now that I've seen it, it is extremely interesting to me that shoes do play an important role in this film, and in Holly's figuring out what she wants. If women ever did discover the joys and comforts of practical footwear, there would be a revolution. Suddenly, they would know exactly what they wanted, and there would no longer be a need for Hollywood, New York or Paris. I don't think that's going to happen in my lifetime.

Waitsel Smith July 24, 2008

Gerard, Harry and Jeffrey, oh my!

This is a heartfelt love story with good music, amazing scenery in Ireland and Gerard Butler, Harry Connick, Jr., and Jeffrey Dean Morgan. This movie has pretty much everything a girl (at least this girl) could want. The friendships between the women are realistic - they get mad at each other and then work it out. The parent/child relationships are complicated - also realistic. I highly recommend this movie. July 24, 2008

P.S. I love Gerard Butler!

Gerry and Holly married while they were young and free of worries. Years later they feel the pressure as the reality of marriage and all it entails kicks in. The scene starts off with Gerry (Gerard Butler) and Holly (Hillary Swank) emerging from the subway walking towards their home. The couple is arguing about their different views on life with emphasis on children, money and getting their dream home. The argument heats up to the point where Gerry storms out and quickly rushes back in and they fell in each other's arms and make wild, passionate love.

The credit rolls in and the next scene is that of Gerry's wake. The viewers are told that he has died of brain tumour at the young age of 35. The next three weeks see a decline in Holly as we see her spiralling down, crying and watching black and white movies, suffering from hallucinations of her late husband. Then as she sings along to Judy Garland, her mother (Kathy Bates) and best friends (Lisa Kudrow and Gina Gershon) walk in reminding her that it was her 30th birthday. They open a cake from Gerry and Holly thinks it's a prank until they play the accompanying tape recorder where Gerry tells her of his plan for her, how he has written letters which will arrive on various occasions. Those letters become a source of strength for her as she follows his advice and finds herself doing things she would never have thought herself. While Gerry has planned for the letters to serve as a guide for Holly to figure out what she wants in life, they serve as a way for the viewers to find out more about the couple and their beginnings.

The tasks include a trip to Ireland where we are treated to a spectacular view of the countryside and Ireland's splendor come to life. Here we see Holly meet another Irishman who turns out to be an old friend of Gerry's. We find out about her first meeting with Gerry and it is one of those moments that make a romantic movie truly heartmelting. Hillary Swank portrays the grieving and lost widow quite well and the supporting characters were good and added some much needed laughter. The highlight for me though was Gerard Butler who was just truly charming. I think I am now officially a drooling fan. That smile is enough to weaken any woman's knees and any woman would understand how Holly could have fallen in love with a perfect stranger. I thought he was great as King Leonidas in 300 (Full Screen Edition) yelling out "This is Sparta!" in his almost naked glory. But now he has been elevated to real sweetheart material after seeing him in this movie. And God I love a man who can sing.

P.S. I LOVE YOU, while far from perfect, is more than your average run-of-the-mill romantic movie. While I find that the whole letters after death thing lacked plausibility (the cynical may even find it creepy), the idea is simply clever. It provided the sentimentalism that is certain to leave many readers teary and satisfied with the film. July 21, 2008

P.S. I love Hillary Swank

Hillary Swank is incapable of staring in a bad film. Just rent the movie. And who knew Gerard Butler(King Leonidas) could pull of a great comedic performance and sweep Hillary Swank off her feet. The dude can act. I hate to admit it, but he gave my wife swollen eyes. I think I better take singing lessons, and start going back to the gym. Rent it, buy it, just make sure you see the movie. Hillary Swank is going to have at least another two academy awards under her belt by the time she is ready to retire. This is another classy choise to ad to her resume. July 17, 2008

Sending a handsome Scot to do the job of a handsome Irishman

P.S. I Love You is a chick flick if ever there was one, and it employed a bunch of talented people who make it look really good. I am the type of female moviegoer who didn't see any problem with Sean Connery playing the Mufti in The Wind and the Lion because he looked so good doing it. Gerard Butler in this role is just as mesmerizing and intoxicating and is able to muster an Irish accent part of the time. There is also more eye candy. Not since Dona Flor and Her Two Husbands have I felt guilty at having fun watching a movie about a grieving widow. It is a comedy, isn't it.

It is not a perfect film, but it is enjoyable for all the emotional buttons it push and how it tickles the mind. I loved the casting. Hilary Swank should do more comedy. Her voice is suited to it. It was fun to James Marsters being human and American. Nellie McKay is wonderful. The line --There is no such thing as a vampire slayer - might not be the funniest line but it tickled. The production value is high. I enjoyed most of the sound track. A couple of married men saw it with their wives and each recommended it to me on separate occasions. The message of holistic love about life is fruit for thought. Yes, I did cry a little. Also, I am giving the game of Snaps a try as a party game. Oh, this movie introduced me to the beautiful songs of Laura Izibor.

If you needed a theme to match other movies with this, I would pick some of the old ones Holly watches. You could have a letter theme and watch it with The Love Letter. For an Irish theme In America and Into the West both havie a theme of bereavement. Dona Flor and her Two Husbands is a lot sexier and really goes for comedy, very faithly like the book by Jorge Amado. July 16, 2008

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