Official Synopsis:
Buy a new outfit. Be a disco diva. Learn to fish. Take a chance. Travel. Laugh. Love. Sometimes all you need to start really living is a little shove in the right direction - and that's just what Holly Kennedy gets. From the handsome, big-hearted love of her life. From a series of mysterious letters. And from gal pals who know that a friend in need is a friend in need of some laughs! Based on Cecelia Ahern's joyful bestseller and boasting a top cast led by two-time Academy Award winner Hilary Swank and Gerard Butler (300), P.S. I Love You is your very own message full of fun, love, triumph and romance. Open it now. (P.S. You'll love it!)

  
Our Take:
There’s really only one reason I watched P.S. I Love You and that’s because my wife saw it in theaters and absolutely loved it. Admittedly, I was curious to see 300’s King Leonidas (the charismatic Gerard Butler) in a completely different kind of role, but P.S. I Love You looked like the worst kind of chick flick to me, and my interest was pretty low. However, as a married man, I understand the value of watching a movie like this with my wife every now and then, and so I sat down to what I only hoped would not be too painful of an experience.

It turns out that P.S. I Love You is the best kind of chick flick. It’s a terrific film, at times funny, poignant, romantic, musical, and genuinely enjoyable. The story has some tearjerking moments to be sure (those guys who consider themselves a little more sensitive, be warned: this movie will make you cry), but it will also have you laughing out loud in the very next moment. It really does manage to find both heavy drama and real, genuine laughs in the story, and a large part of that comes from the extremely sharp script by Richard LaGravenese and Steven Rogers. The rest of the credit goes to the stellar Gerard Butler, who is as magnetic as a romantic Irish goofball here as he was as a mighty warrior king in 300. Clearly it doesn’t matter what kind of role you cast this guy in, he’s terrific in everything. I think it’s only a matter of time before he becomes a household name. (You heard it here first!)

Unfortunately, the DVD release for P.S. I Love You is a little anemic, with just a few perfunctory special features thrown in for good measure.

* Additional Scenes.
* A Conversation with Cecelia Ahern – An interview with the writer of the novel that the movie is based on.
* James Blunt Same Mistake Music Video.
* The Name of the Game Is Snaps: Learn How to Play – This will make sense after you watch the film.

While I wasn’t sure how Hilary Swank would hold up anchoring a romantic dramedy, the fact is that she does a great job here (she does get all the heaviest scenes, though). It helps that she’s surrounded by a terrific supporting cast, which includes Jeffrey Dean Morgan, a very funny Harry Connick Jr., Lisa Kudrow, Kathy Bates, Gina Gershon, James Marsters, and a criminally underused Dean Winters. For my money, Gerard Butler steals the show, but P.S. I Love You as a whole works really well, making it one of the few chick flicks to earn my ringing endorsement.

RECOMMENDED!

Overall Picture:
Movie: A
DVD: C+

- Mike Spring

Editor