When she sees you, she sees death

PLEASE GIVE (2010)

Can we all agree that 2010 has been a rather crummy year for cinema? I can only name a few films that have really struck me as adequate – mostly independent features like Cairo Time, Mother and Child, Leaves of Grass – but the rest of the year is practically a wasteland. Even the hyped, highly anticipated movies – Inception, Alice, Iron Man 2, Robin Hood, etc. – seem a touch forgettable at the moment. Not all-around terrible, just forgettable. But then came Nicole Holofcener’s Please Give which, while not exclusively unique or original or even superior to the lemons I just listed, offers an often overlooked truth that makes you say, “you know, I may actually appreciate this film in a week or so.”

Catherine Keener was perhaps what initially drew me to this film, yet I found myself fully absorbed by Rebecca Hall, who’s currently gravy training off The Town. Only a supporting character, however, Hall aptly plays Rebecca, a breast cancer radiology technician whose grandmother lives in an apartment adjacent to Kate (Keener) and her husband Alex (Oliver Platt). The couple own a used furniture store specializing in modern decor purchased from the relatives of recently deceased homeowners. They also happen to own Rebecca’s grandmother’s apartment with the sole intention of expanding their living space once the cranky old beldam croaks.

Kate eventually develops a guilty conscience regarding her work, so she seeks to compensate for it by “giving back” – offering money to the homeless, volunteering, etc. This, of course, only serves to restrain her guilt, and – maybe – as a diversion from looking into a more “ethical” profession. Then there’s the “I'm immune to guilt because I contribute to society” mentality that becomes evident in Kate’s daily life, but even she begins to realize the transparency in that way of thinking.

We ultimately find her avoiding the reality of what she does for a living, and integrity plays the most integral role in this film. In essence, Please Give conveys the message of how society has become so accustomed to lying that we find it abnormal when people are explicitly honest. Kate pussyfoots around the truth with her customers, she feigns complacency amongst her family, but at the end of the day, the fact remains that Kate resells dead people’s furniture.

In conventional, feel-good fashion, the film closes with cliché ribbons and bows as Kate comes to identify with the sentimental value and worth of the items she sells for personal gain; and while this conclusion may be as kitschy as some of the furniture sold in her store, the path taken to get there is well worth the ride.

8.5/10