Please Give (2010)

Whilst waiting for my dad to turn up,I talked to a family friend about movies about to leave Netflix UK. Going down the list,he pointed out an indie Comedy Drama that he had greatly enjoyed a few years ago,which led to me giving in for a viewing. The plot:While trying to be supportive of their daughter Abby suffering a terrible skin condition,Alex and Kate run a store specialising in used modern furniture. Feeling bad about making profit from those who don't know the value of their furniture,and also weeping due to her plans for an extension being ruined by cranky neighbour Andra.Feeling that Abby's skin condition might be improved by a visit to a spa,Alex goes to a spa run by Andra's granddaughter,and gives more than he ever expected.View on the film:Playing off each other, Catherine Keener and Oliver Platt give excellent performances as Kate and Alex,with Platt giving Alex a straight ahead,robust approach that neatly bounces off the crossed- wires of Kate. Feeling guilty over needing Andra to die for the extension,and uncomfortable over how much the furniture makes,Keener gives Kate a bitter Black Comedy edge,where every attempt Kate makes to feel better backfires. Joined by a scene stealing Ann Morgan Guilbert as Andra, Sarah Steele cuts deep into Abby's primal scream to pour out Alex's fraught weaknesses.Taking inspiration from the Mumblecore genre,the screenplay by writer/director Nicole Holofcener gives the free-flowing dialogue a darkly comedic flavour,with the arguments between Kate and Abby being fought over the imperfections standing at odds between the mother/daughter. Placing everyone in a state of arrested development, Holofcener brilliantly rolls out a fully developed family,where the private issues Kate,Abby and Alex are dealing with are threaded with the overlapping family problems,in a movie which donates to the viewer generously.

I loved this movie because it was so real! It showed just how good and how hard this life can be. We are all flawed creatures with the ability to rise above again and again. Everyone has warts, wounds, scars and secrets. I saw myself, my family, my friends and my enemies in these sad funny characters. Love, loss, life and death is the reality of this world and this movie reflected that. I smiled and I wept. I had to think and rethink some of my prejudices and judgments. The ensemble was a good mix of great actors. Some familiar and some new, but none that seems as if they were acting. I watch a lot of films, this was better than most of the "blockbusters" I have seen this year. I will watch for more from this writer/director.

"Please Give" is the story of a husband and wife who butt heads with the granddaughters of the elderly woman who lives in apartment the couple owns, how things are intertwined and how circumstances eventually gets to them in both right and wrong way.Cast-wise, pretty good. Oliver Platt is very likable as the cool and flirty husband, with Catherine Keener playing his better half wondrously. Rebecca Hall is the core of this movie, giving a very powerful performance of a doting granddaughter, who sacrifices a lot for taking care of her grandmother. Amanda Peet does decently in her role of a beauty conscious stony-hearted sister of Rebecca Hall. A special mention for the two grandmothers, who were very natural in their act."Please Give" is not entertaining; neither will it remain in your mind for quite some time. It might get irksome someplace, but having said, it's because it has been made in a very lifelike or rather natural, devoid of unnecessary cheap entertaining stuffs. It gets funny most of the times, but not ROFL stuff. It's decent enough to be enjoyable.Overall, "Please Give" is a sincere attempt to portray the life of two neighbors and their twist with life, once they get to know each other well or rather unwell. It's not recommended for people seeking fun and entertainment. Rather, it's a movie for someone looking for a mild funny, mild serious (non)-family movie.My Verdict: 6/10

At least Woody Allen's movies about New Yorkers had some humor and plot twists. What we have here is boring self-absorption. What is it about New Yorkers that their every little feeling is amplified out of context to be the be-all and end-all of existence? Why would I care about your guilt or any other feelings you have that make you uncomfortable. The characters in this movie give me no reason to care about them at all.... they're all too full of themselves.I'm sorry but like most people I do NOT see New York City as the "Center of the Universe". It's just a big, busy, overcrowded and overpriced mess of a city that exists for nothing more than self-glorification. Give me a break, I'd rather be in Philadelphia or Chicago or Seattle. At least the people in those cities have a horizon that isn't limited by the Hudson and the East Rivers.I rarely walk out of movies before they are over but I did on this one. A waste of my time.