Please Give (2010)
84%RT Audience Score:
Awards & Nominations: 4 wins & 6 nominations
Nicole Holofcener’s newest might seem slight in places, but its rendering of complex characters in a conflicted economic landscape is varied, natural, and touching all the same
Please Give is a film that will make you laugh, cry, and feel all the emotions in between. It’s a coming-of-age story for six adults who are all at different stages in their lives, and it’s surprisingly heartwarming. The characters are flawed, but that’s what makes them so relatable and lovable. Nicole Holofcener writes some of the most interesting female characters in the movies, and Catherine Keener delivers another dazzling performance as the lead. It’s a darkly comic film that’s perfect for our age, and it’s a must-watch for anyone who loves a good dramedy.
Production Company(ies)
Paramount Pictures,
Distributor
Sony Pictures Classics
Release Type
Streaming, Theatrical
Filming Location(s)
Bishop’s University, Lennoxville, Québec, Canada
MPAA / Certificate
Rated R for strong sexual content involving teens, and language
Year of Release
2001
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Color:Color
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Sound mix:Dolby SR
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Aspect ratio:1.85 : 1
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Runtime:1h 30m
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Language(s):English
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Country of origin:United States
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Release date:Release Date (Theaters): Apr 30, 2010 Limited
Release Date (Streaming): Aug 17, 2010
Genre(s)
Comedy/Drama
Keyword(s)
starring Catherine Keener, Oliver Platt, Amanda Peet, Rebecca Hall, Ann Morgan Guilbert, Sarah Steele, directed by Nicole Holofcener, written by Nicole Holofcener, Comedy, Drama, $4.0M Box Office, reviewed by Alyx Vesey, Candice Frederick, Ben Kenigsberg, Marjorie Baumgarten, Stephanie Zacharek, Roger Moore, Richard Propes, Felicia Feaster, Brian D Johnson, Tara Thorne, Anthony Bregman produced, R MPAA rating, estate sales, guilt, New York, furniture, economic landscape, complex characters, conflict, friendship, unexpected consequences, Kipling’s “white man’s burden”, liberal woman’s guilt, consumerism, reclaimed furniture, tension, archetypes, humor, social commentary, character-driven, mean-spirited, melancholy, slow pace, engaging, missing something, TV sitcom, one trick pony, cardboard characters, predictable plot, black humor, estate sales, bedridden old woman, granddaughters, shrew, mouse, nudity, language, sexual content
Worldwide gross: $396,897
Worldwide gross (inflation-adjusted): $668,886
Worldwide gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 2,676
Worldwide tickets sold (est.): 72,943
US/Canada gross: $307,233
US/Canada gross (inflation-adjusted): $517,776
US/Canada gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 2,316
US/Canada opening weekend: $41,215
US/Canada opening weekend (inflation-adjusted): $69,459
US/Canada opening weekend ranking (inflation-adjusted): 2,087
Budget and Earnings Details
Production budget (est.): NA
Production budget (inflation-adjusted): NA
Production budget ranking: NA
Marketing and distribution budget (inflation-adjusted est.): NA
Box office net earnings to date (inflation-adjusted est.): NA
ROI to date (est.): NA
ROI ranking: NA
Amanda Peet – Mary
Oliver Platt – Alex
Rebecca Hall – Rebecca
Ann Morgan Guilbert – Andra
Sarah Steele – Abby
Director(s)
Nicole Holofcener
Writer(s)
Nicole Holofcener
Producer(s)
Anthony Bregman
Film Festivals
Berlin
Awards & Nominations
4 wins & 6 nominations
Academy Awards
All Critics (142) | Top Critics (55) | Fresh (123) | Rotten (19)
Though some may argue that the film doesn’t fully challenge white female privilege (or tire of Kate’s crying), it’s to the film’s credit that it uses this as character detail and tries to mine humor and social commentary from it.
January 11, 2021
Alyx Vesey
Bitch Media
TOP CRITIC
Funny at times, Please Give is a surprisingly heartwarming coming-of-age film for six adults all passing through different stages of heir life.
September 11, 2017 | Rating: A-
Candice Frederick
Reel Talk Online
TOP CRITIC
November 17, 2011 | Rating: 2/5
Ben Kenigsberg
Time Out
TOP CRITIC
A stroll with these characters is a refreshing break from from the usual film exercises.
July 6, 2010 | Rating: 3.5/5
Marjorie Baumgarten
Austin Chronicle
TOP CRITIC
Holofcener writes, and helps to shape on-screen, characters we often don’t even like, and what do we do? We invite them home with us. Talk about a soft touch.
July 6, 2010 | Rating: 9/10
Stephanie Zacharek
Movieline
TOP CRITIC
Nicole Holofcener, who writes the most interesting female characters in the movies, delivers another dazzling role to her muse, Catherine Keener, in Please Give, a delightfully dry dramedy about guilt.
July 6, 2010 | Rating: 3.5/5
Roger Moore
Orlando Sentinel
TOP CRITIC
About the people who give, the people who don’t give and how we finally manage to connect with one another.
September 20, 2020 | Rating: 3.5/4.0
Richard Propes
TheIndependentCritic.com
Please Give is truly a film for our age; it’s darkly comic stuff from a mistress of the miserable-urbanites genre.
January 22, 2020
Felicia Feaster
Charleston City Paper
Holofcener brings a knowing empathy to all her characters, even the cruel cosmetician played by Peet. But she seems to have found a screen surrogate in Keener…
July 23, 2019
Brian D. Johnson
Maclean’s Magazine
The most underrated American director this side of Richard Linklater, Nicole Holofcener, continues to be a master of The Moment: a tiny but meaningful exchange or look or gesture that conveys more emotion than any awards-bait monologue could.
November 17, 2018
Tara Thorne
The Coast (Halifax, Nova Scotia)
In writer/director Nicole Holofcener’s crisp, poignant and funny new movie, Kipling’s “white man’s burden” has evolved into the liberal woman’s guilt.
December 3, 2017 | Rating: 8.5/10
Alexandra MacAaron
Women’s Voices for Change
In another director’s hands, this subject might have been rife with sanctimony. Instead, Holofcener has made a sly, urbane comedy with several smart actresses who make her acerbic dialogue lively and believable, character-driven.
September 18, 2017
Jeffrey Edalatpour
KQED (San Francisco)…
Plot
Lost and Delirious is the story of three adolescent girls’ first love, their discovery of sexual passion, and their search for identities. Set in a posh, private boarding school surrounded by luxuriant, green forest, Lost and Delirious moves swiftly from academic routine, homesickness, and girlish silliness to the darker region of lover’s intrigue.
Trivia
Goofs / Tidbits
No goofy or funny or odd comments were found in the Fresh Kernels database for “Please Give.”
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