DVD Review: P.S. I Love You

The holiday season of 2007 saw the release of P.S. I Love You, a film based on the 2004 best-selling novel by Cecelia Ahern. P.S. I Love You is written as a romantic comedy, so the film follows the standard formula of having a gimmicky plot device. The gimmick here is as straight forward as the story. A young married couple--an Irish-born man named Gerry Kennedy (Gerard Butler) and his American-born Irish wife Holly (Swank)--are very happy together. Then, after nine years of marriage Gerry dies of a brain tumor. I know, it doesn't exactly sound like a romantic comedy. Hold on, here's the gimmick that's supposed to give the film a comedic twist. Before he died, Gerry wrote Holly a series of letters guiding her on how to get on with things and live her life to the fullest. These letters show up off and on for a whole year after Gerry dies. After weeks of inconsolable grief, Gerry's first letter arrives on Holly's 30th birthday and urges her to go out with her married friend Sharon (Gina Gershon) and her single, but constantly looking friend, Denise (Lisa Kudrow). The next one tells her to splurge on a new outfit. Later, Holly and her two girlfriends are sent on a trip to Ireland, all pre-paid by Gerry. All of the letters conclude with the line, "P.S., I Love You."

I can see how the idea of a grieving widow getting letters from her dead husband might have worked as a novel. As your sitting on a beach or reading a few pages before drifting off to bed, that kind of thing might seem terribly romantic. However, on film I found the concept of a dead person directing someone's life from beyond the grave more than a little uncomfortable. If you're okay with that concept, this movie may be for you. On film, the concept comes off as a series of strange incidents, strung together to create a story. Holly is portrayed as a young widow who has lost the love of her life and wants everyone to know it. After about 45 minutes of the 127 minute film, P.S. I Love You begins to feel like an extended wake.

Despite some flaws P.S. I Love You still has some merit for a rainy Saturday night viewing. The acting is first rate. Both Swank and Butler do an excellent job with the material they were given. Butler has to do m7uch of his acting via flashback, and for Swank who is so good at sinking her teeth into heavy dramatic roles, P.S. I Love You seems almost too easy. Lisa Kudrow and Gina Gerson offer up some laughs in their limited time onscreen and Harry Connick Jr. seems to enjoy his role as a socially inappropriate bartender. Connick's role was one of his best turns on the big screen. Each of his scenes added a spark and excitement to a film that is otherwise a fairly depressing affair. There are also cute segments in a karaoke bar, a singing messenger, and a "wild" dog, plus some gorgeous photography of Ireland late in the picture. However, at 127 minutes the film is much too long for its slender subject matter and the neat and tidy conclusion seems far to pat.

The DVD offers both widescreen and standard versions of PS. I Love You on the same disc. The picture is very clean and clear. The audio is available in Dolby Digital: English 5.1 Surround, French 5.1 Surround and Spanish 5.1 Surround. Subtitles are available in English, French and Spanish.

The P.S. I Love You DVD offers some special features: "A Conversation with Cecelia Ahern" is about seven minutes in length. The young author discusses her book on which the film is based. Next, is a music video for "Same Mistake" by James Blunt. The song is featured in the film. Then there's "The Name of the Game Is Snaps: Learn How to Play" an advertisement for the goofy game in the movie. Finally, There are a series of additional scenes that last about twelve minutes.