A friend and I caught up today and decided to watch a few movies, as is our usual custom. The last movie we watched was P.S. I Love You. We have both seen this movie a number of times now, and every time I watch it I’m struck by the joy within it. I remember when it first came out critics didn’t really like it – probably rightly so in terms of technically good movies – but I was charmed by it and still believe its worthiness comes with the questions it asks about the finality of death. When we die, are we really gone?
You can answer this question in several different ways. Religiously, this question is answered by the notion of souls going either to heaven or hell once they die, and while I have a strong belief in an afterlife, I find it more interesting to look at the question from a philosophical stand point. This is also the avenue which is explored in P.S. I Love You.
One of the final lines of the film surrounds the idea that this world and this life is one which nobody comes out of alive. This is given as a motivational concept. It is perfectly sensible. To the best of our knowledge, we only get one life. It is the one material certainty in this life that we will, at some point, die and we don’t know when this will happen. Once this is realised, there are two choices. We can either become depressed, lamenting the fragility of life, or we can live life as best we can with what we’re given. This is one of the major themes in P.S. and is what makes it so touching when Holly accepts her fate and begins living her life.
Ironically, this response to the confirmation of death has further implications for the original question. P.S. I Love You urges viewers to make some sort of mark on the world rather than simply walking through it. These differences that you make become part of you, but do not leave this world when you do. How can a person be dead when a part of them is still alive on earth? Part of being alive is being able to influence this world. Even though Gerry in P.S. is physically dead, he continues to influence his wife, Holly, in profound ways. He has made his mark on her life and therefore lives on in her.
In the end, it is those who have lived their life to the full who can live on after death. They can be confident that the things they have done and the people they have known will ensure their survival. This is ultimately the beauty of P.S, I Love You: the message that in a world preoccupied with death, life is the stronger and more enduring force. This should inspire all of us.
Wow... you have put a lot of thought into this and came up with some amazing points to say the least. I have a slightly different spin on it probably because my mother clinically died when I was 4 and then was brought back to life and she remembers it all. Every once in awhile when the fear of dying grips me, I remember what she told me it was like and I feel much more at ease. My idea of living my best life, is to appreciate everything that I am surrounded with whether that be family, nature, beauty etc. But to never take for granted anything.
ReplyDeleteThat was a really great post you wrote!
Cheers
Tracy