Holly and Gerry (Gerard Butler, “300”) are a married couple who are meant to have a full life together, except that never happens because Gerry is tragically taken from Holly in his prime. Suffering from the unexpected loss, the young widow retreats into her apartment to watch old movies, eat take-out, and mourn. Her mother (Kathy Bates, “Failure to Launch”) and friends are unable to get her to move on, as weeks go by and she doesn’t return to work. When a package arrives with a tape recording of Gerry’s voice, Holly is prompted to go out and do something to help take her mind off him. As the weeks go by, letters continue to arrive from Gerry, helping Holly learn to live without him and get her life back.
Butler doesn’t appear in the movie for long, but the few scenes he has make an impact, showing us what kind of man Gerry was and how much he loved Holly. Even without Gerry in most of the scenes, the director and the star help us feel his presence throughout the story. There’s a wonderfully assorted cast of character actors playing Holly’s friends, including the quirky Lisa Kudrow (TV’s “Friends”), sympathetic James Marsters (TV’s “Smallville”) and awkward Harry Connick Jr. (TV’s “Will & Grace”). A minor strain on the credulity of the story is how quickly Connick Jr.’s character is established as the natural romantic replacement for Holly’s husband. Add to that how unrefined this new guy is, being both insensitive and immature, and you quickly hope they don’t end up together.
Finding a replacement for Gerry is only a minor thread in the tapestry of the overall story, and an unusual twist at the end of the story resolves the matter to your likely satisfaction. There are few stories that will provoke as much laughing as crying, but “PS. I Love You” manages to give all your emotions a work-out for two heartfelt hours.
Rated PG-13 for sexual references and brief nudity.
