Truly Madly Deeply is an intelligent, moving, and deeply funny story about love and death. Nina (Juliet Stevenson), a scatterbrained professional translator, has lost the love of her life, Jamie (Die Hard's Alan Rickman). ... more »As her life (and her flat) slowly falls to pieces, she's inundated by an endless stream of repair men and eligible suitors. But rather than go on with life, Nina dwells on her dead love, slumped at her piano, endlessly playing half of a Bach duet. Then, in a truly magical sequence, his cello suddenly joins her melody ... and Jamie's back from the dead. At first it's bliss. (Think of the superficially similar blockbuster Ghost--only with real people instead of pretty faces Demi Moore and Patrick Swayze.) But Nina gradually realizes it's a thoroughly real Jamie who's back, complete with every annoying, argumentative fault she'd conveniently forgotten. (He might be dead, he explains, but he still attends political meetings.) Moreover, he has to hide whenever any of the living are around. And he's constantly ice-cold. And he invites his dead pals to her place at all hours. What's a living woman to do? Director Anthony Minghella went on to create the melodramatic period piece The English Patient--but in this film, he shows a far more sensitive, subtle touch. The photography is brilliant, capturing the simple beauties of suburban London. And the wonderfully acted characters, quirky and all too real, will keep you laughing--and always guessing what will happen next. --Grant Balfour« less
Emma R. (sanjosemom) from SAN JOSE, CA Reviewed on 4/20/2010...
A magical chick flick.
Wonderful!
1 of 4 member(s) found this review helpful.
Loretta B. (bellorri) Reviewed on 3/31/2008...
This story touches your heart with Nina's grief and the wish she has to have Jamie back. Only Alan Rickman could have pulled off the hilarious part of a "dead" man returned to his love.
1 of 2 member(s) found this review helpful.
Movie Reviews
Truly Madly Deeply Love this Movie!
Kenneth M. Gelwasser | Hollywood, Fl USA | 01/30/2002
(5 out of 5 stars)
"I saw "Truly Madly Deeply" at a small, art house cinema over a decade ago.I remember that I really loved this film and now after recently seeing it again on DVD, I am reminded why. It is a film that brings about very strong emotions of how we feel about the special people in our lives. This is the story of women name Nina who has lost her husband, Jamie.The grief that she experiences is so profound, that she just can't get over the loss.Jamie eventally starts reappearing to Nina as a ghost (along with some very funny, video loving, ghostly friends).It is through these spectral visits, that Nina learns some very important lessons about living life. This is both a very funny but emotional story. My Favorite humorous scene is when one of Jamie's ghostly buddies, berates Nina for erasing a video tape of Wody Allen's "Manhattan".Apparently all these spirits are cinema buffs! It is not to often that we get to laugh and understand a character's pain all at the same time. Juliet Stevenson is just plainly brilliant as she has us experience her character's deep love for her late husband.Alan Rickman is very funny as a ghost, who is romantic but all too real, with his complaints and fussiness (he is constantly whining about the flat).This is one of those films, that after viewing, you want to find your love one, whether they are a spouse or child or any other special person in your life and hold them, just a bit tighter."
Intelligent, Hilarious, and Deeply Moving (with great DVD Ex
Angela D. Mitchell | Hobbiton | 11/02/2005
(5 out of 5 stars)
"This? Is a great movie about loss and love that isn't dreary or heavy, but lighter than air.
It's funny, tender, moving, and intelligent. If I had to name a personal favorite, although I have thousands in my "top 100 list" this movie would be it. Minghella just wrote something delicate and funny, human, compassionate, and that exudes not only a love for people in all their differences, but that also just as wonderfully exudes a love of music and of literature.
Telling the story of Nina, a woman coping with a devastating loss, the script is whimsical and lighter than air and yet about some incredibly big, deep stuff. Juliet Stevenson is hilarous, klutzy, befuddled, and lovable as Nina -- sweetly goofy in some scenes, and then absolutely wrenching in others. And it's great to see Alan Rickman in a rare (and very charming) romantic leading role as Jamie (who knew he could sing?). Michael Maloney's role is tougher in some ways, but he has a touching and quite charismatic opening scene, as well as one of the funniest first-date-scenes I've ever seen.
Ultimately, Truly Madly Deeply is a lovely, resonant story about grownups who don't talk like they're in a movie. The performances are fantastic, the romantic triangle is unique and likeable, and every character is a memorable and believable person you're happy to have met, from the romantic Polish handyman, to Nina's prickly yet big-hearted Scottish boss (a fabulous Bill Paterson), to the philosophical rat exterminator (who's pretty sure rats can talk to each other), to Nina's best friend, a very pregnant Spanish filmmaker who manages to keep a cheery attitude even when forced to clean houses for a living. Everyone we meet in the movie is smart, individual, and delightful (even the ghosts, who spend most of their afterlife watching movies on borrowed VCRs).
The DVD itself looks great, with a few notable informational tidbits and features. My favorite special feature is the smart, funny, and fascinating DVD commentary from director and screenwriter Anthony Minghella (better known for "The English Patient") -- Minghella's commentary is as rich and interesting as the movie itself, like having him over to dinner to discuss life, death, love, and film.
Ultimately, Truly Madly Deeply is a wonderful experience. It's also a great reminder in these sometimes difficult post-9-11 times, that -- for anyone who's ever lost a loved one, the sun does keep shining (even when the feet want to march elsewhere)."
Truly, Madlyk, Deeply
LisainPasadena | So. Pasadena, CA USA | 11/14/2003
(5 out of 5 stars)
"One of the finest films about grieving and death I have ever seen. Humorous as well as infinitely touching, this film examines the depths to which we can fall in not letting go of one we love. Alan Rickman, Juliet Stevenson and Michael Maloney all give absolutely riviting, beautiful performances. Alan Rickman, one of the finest actors of our generation, again proves himself master at subtle comic delivery and timing, as well as breaking our hearts. Juliet Stevenson gives a magnificent performance as a woman who cannot let go, and gets that second chance she has dreamed of; she reaches to places few actors dare to go. Michael Maloney is charming and moving as the man who dares to love Juliet despite herself. In the best of British tradition, this film moves slowly and quietly, creating characters we come to love, encompassing both pain and humor as it illustrates the need for each of us to accept and move on. Beautiful. You will not be disappointed. (PS: The cello scene is one of the most moving ever captured on film...you will know it when you see it!>)"
I love this film truly, madly..well, you know
M. J. Walters | Chicago, IL USA | 04/10/2002
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Nina can't move ahead with her life after the loss of her lover, Jamie, so Jamie returns to her. And for a while she's overjoyed. But then she starts to remember why Jamie often made her crazy, remembers that he wasn't a saint or an angel, but a man. And losing him was a tragedy, but not one she can't ever recover from. She's alive and she wants a life. She can't have that with Jamie, and finally she gets the closure she needs to say good-bye to him, and move on.So many comparisons were made between TMD and Ghost, but comparisons do justice to neither film. Taken on its own merits, I'd have to say that TMD is one of the sweetest love stories I've ever seen because it's one of the most real. Nina is a real woman who gets blotchy when she cries, has second thoughts, says and does foolish things and loves deeply. She has needs and desires which she puts on hold out of grief, but when she gets a good, solid nudge from the ghost of her lover, she recognizes how much of life is ahead of her and she accepts, finally, that loss is a part of that life. I'm not sure why this film means so much to me. At a guess I'd say that it transcends my love for Alan Rickman by miles. Possibly it's because I first saw it after losing someone I loved, or maybe I was just ready for the gentle humor and lessons about life, love and loss that the film offers. I highly recommend this film."
..and I shall go on living.
M. J. Walters | 03/29/2000
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Truly, Madly... is one of my all-time favorite movies. It plays out a scenario that anyone who has lost a dear loved one can relate to. We see Nina in unconsolable grief over her loss--when to her shock then utter delight, her love returns. And for a time she builds her life around him, living in a fairy-tale-world. As time goes by she finds herself reluctantly being drawn back to reality. The poem by Pablo Neruda offered in Spanish for her to translate is the poignantly bittersweet turning point. This film should not be missed--I,m so glad to own a copy. Now all I need to do is find Bach's wonderful cello/piano duet."