Love Liza

Before you watch this film you must ask yourself, how depressed am I? There is not a bright light in this film anywhere. If you are already on the edge and don't want to go over, I would not recommend watching this film.

That said, Phillip Seymour Hoffman gave an Oscar-worthy performance. He was completely terrific and should have won the Oscar for this film. Kathy Bates was great too. Everyone was great. The story was believable and well scripted.

But, unless you enjoy slumming in depression, I would forgo watching this film. There are too many other films that offer even the smallest ray of positivity to spend your time on this one. A tiny smile generated from a film is, in my humble opinion, better than being left looking for the razor blades.

I gave it a 7 because of the craftsmanship exhibited by the actors and filmmakers. If I had to give it a rating on how it made me feel afterward, I'd probably have to give it a 1.

I call Philip Seymour Hoffman my favorite actor, so of course when I found a movie where he is the center of attention (not usually the case) I felt obligated to see it. His older brother wrote the screenplay, no doubt with Philip in mind for the part.

To tell you the truth, the overall feel of the movie wasn't so great. I'm sure that Hoffman played the character well, but we only get to see this character in this very strange part of his life. There's no context to judge how much of his behavior is situational. He seems to be cracking up, laughing at the office in a way that makes the others leave the area, and generally behaving in a way that shows lack of judgment. We understand that his wife just took her own life, it's revealed early on in the film, so we understand why he is behaving the way he is, we just don't know what he's normally like. I enjoyed Jack Kehler's character. He seems to be the kind of person you'd like to avoid talking to more than just briefly, but it makes sense that he gets on well with Hoffman's character during his time of turmoil. There were some things they chose to put in the movie (like his glass falling over at the beach, the flowers falling over at the cemetery, and the glove compartment not shutting) that felt like they would happen in real life - like real life metaphors, and I appreciated that element. I thought the gas huffing was a little strange until I read that there was a definite connection to the way his wife died. It's a tricky film to judge. It's hard to empathize with character because he's just so outside the norm, but it's easy not to judge him because it's hard to imagine anything much worse happening to a person.

If you really like Philip Seymour Hoffman I would tell you to go ahead and rent the film, I would at the same time tell you to keep your expectations lowered.

This movie had decent directing, decent story, well done cinematography. The only thing that really made it worth watching was Seymour Hoffman's awesome performance. The movie was a bit quiet at times, I think there was a point in the movie when not a word was said for at least ten minutes. But if your someone who'll see a movie just for the acting, than this one is worth renting, probably not buying though, it's far too depressing.

Philip Seymour Hoffman plays Wilson, a software engineer who has just lost his wife to suicide. The movie traces Wilson's descent into gasoline sniffing, erratic behavior, wanton risk taking, and ultimate self-destruction.

P.S.H. and Kathy Bates turn in good performances but, whereas Hoffman is the central focus, his performance is a little more mannered and forced than we have come to expect from him.

Maybe there is no more meaning to grief than as a highly personal experience, but as a moviegoer having suffered through this man's trauma for an hour and a half I wanted more reward. The hook to keep us interested was the suicide note, but it turned out to be rather generic. At the end we are just left with lots of questions: what was Wilson's wife like, did he drive her to suicide, how come he had no friends, what was it in the relationship that the suicide knocked him for such a loop, what was he like before the suicide, does the final scene imply that Wilson has taken the final step into madness or that the only way for him to recover was to leave everything behind?

If you are a P.S.H fan, then maybe there is enough here for you, but I think this movie will be a little too dark for most viewers.

One never knows how grief will affect anyone. The loss of a loved one is something no one is prepared for. When tragedy strikes, as it's the point of this film, the surviving spouse is so desolate that he cannot deal with his loss. That is why Wilson, the grieving husband of Liza goes to the deep end trying to cope with her untimely death.

Liza's death is not spoken of until Wilson receives a telephone call from the local newspaper editor that is trying to write an obituary about her death and asks whether he wants to mention the suicide, or not. We get a clue about what happened to Liza when Wilson goes to the garage and sees her car. This is a link, perhaps, as to why he resorts to sniffing gasoline, as a way to obliterate the tragedy from his mind, as Wilson tries to comprehend what could have motivated her suicide.

"Love Liza" is a different kind of film. It will irritate some viewers, but ultimately, it will reward those that stay with the story. The screen play written by Gordy Hoffman could have used some editing, but his story feels real. Todd Luiso directed with conviction.

The film's main character, Wilson, is brilliantly played by Phillip Seymour Hoffman, one actor who is always a pleasure to watch for the intensity he brings to his appearances. In fact, his Wilson is one of the best roles he has played. Kathy Bates, on the other hand, as the mother of the dead Liza, is only seen briefly, but her scenes convey the impression how this woman is suffering as she seeks answers about her daughter's untimely departure. Sarah Koskoff, Stephen Tobolowsky and Jack Kehler, especially, make good contributions to the film.

This film is a must for Phillip Seymour Hoffman's fans.