The Film
They say charity begins at home, but in the movie Please Give, now out on Blu-ray, it seems the family of three loses sight of that concept and gives to strangers while neglecting things back at home. Kate (Catherine Keener) has a job that brings with it a certain amount of guilt. She's a mid-century vintage furniture store owner who buys furniture from the children dealing with their deceased relatives' estates on the cheap in order to sell the items for a profit. To balance her guilt, Kate walks around with a wad of bills in her pocket and passes up to $20 out to homeless people on the street. Yet she won't buy her daughter the pair of jeans she wants, albeit a $200 pair of jeans. Additional characters include Kate's husband Alex (Oliver Platt) and their elderly neighbor and granddaughters. Put together, it's a portrayal of the lives of an assortment of self-absorbed -- and possibly one selfless -- people living in New York City.
Please Give Lexi Feinberg's movie review a read for more insight on the film.
The Picture
While writer/director Nicole Holofcener (Friends with Money, Walking and Talking) is no stranger to feature-length films, much of her experience comes from TV with shows such as HBO's Bored to Death, Six Feet Under and Sex and the City as well as the British series Cold Feet and long-running Gilmore Girls. Perhaps it's due to this smaller screen experience, but the film lacks the detail that the 1080p high definition transfer to 2.35:1 film should be able to provide. Overall, the picture has a soft quality that fails to make the most out of the Blu-ray format.
Skin tones generally appear pale and undersaturated, particularly in brighter scenes. One character, Mary (Amanda Peet) takes this in the other direction with an over-cooked look brought about by too-frequent visits to tanning salons.
The Sound
The DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 presentation relies primarily on the center channel in this dialog-heavy movie. That's appropriate, and conversations come through clearly and where they should come from. In external scenes, in the city streets, ambient sounds come in through the rear speakers as you would expect. But there's nothing here that's overly exciting from an audio perspective.
The Extras
A handful of special features show behind-the-scenes action including cast interviews, outtakes and bloopers (of which there are plenty) and a Q&A piece with writer director Nicole Holofcener. While the film isn't exactly biographical, the Q&A suggests it draws on the director's experiences and feelings. If you didn't already think the movie was a bit self indulgent, your impression may be swayed here.
Final Thoughts
Please Give owes more to its cast than to the plot and storyline. Performances by Catherine Keener, Amanda Peet, Oliver Platt, Rebecca Hall and other actors make the lackluster film otherwise entertaining. At some point, you may think the film could be re-titled "Please Forgive" as it doesn't ever really arrive at a point.
Product Details
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