Opening Day: 21 September 2006

Synopsis:

Heck (Matthew Goode) and Rachel (Piper Perabo) are a happy young couple about to embark on life together. But at the church, Rachel catches the eye of an unexpected guest. In that moment, she realizes that maybe Heck isn't the one for her. Of course, they will never know for sure unless they give it a shot.

Movie Review:

Imagine Me and You is a quaint little British romantic comedy where the lovebirds are gay. Who would have guessed that from the movie title? I, for one, did not make the connection from Imagine Me and You to the Happy Together song to the Leslie Cheung and Tony Leung love-fest to gay themes until about the last five minutes of the show. Yes, when the song actually factored in the lovers finding each other and they were happily smooching while the song is being played in the background.

This film poses the question: What will you do when you met the love of your life, at first sight no less, when you are married to a good man that is also your best friend in life? Never mind that the other party is a woman. Love is the ultimate unstoppable. Commitment is cheap. In the politically-incorrect world of British filmmaking, homosexual love may be nothing but a plot device to attract the attention of audiences deprived of an ordinary love story between two women by the major studios in Hollywood. Nonetheless this movie is also smart enough to downplay the sexual orientation card – there are no coming-out struggles or social denunciation from family members and public. In fact, writer and first-time director OI Parker (is it O-I or OOI?) began the script as a heterosexual love story before realizing that he was writing a gay story all the while. (For those who are interested in more gay-themed BBC Films productions, there is also My Summer of Love, starring Emily Blunt prior to her Pradas.)

Piper Perabo (Coyote Ugly) plays the newly-married Rachel while the handsome Lena Headey (The Brothers Grimm) is the all-too-cool lesbian florist Luce. Piper is one of those actors who are more expressive because their mouths are the most dominant feature on their faces. The sturdy set of her of shoulders and her prominent jaw-line as well as a bullish mien adds a sense of sincerity to her acting that the audience will sympathize with. Lena, with all the appropriate tattoos at the right places, is perfect for a girl-crush. On the other side, Matthew Goode plays the poor husband who was cuckooed by Luce. This represents another milestone for the man who was also cuckooed by Jonathan Rhys Meyers in Match Point. Now the man is much in the mould of Hugh Grant – harmless, goofy and altogether too unassuming for his own good.

Imagine Me and You is one of those comfortable little English films that the actors obviously enjoy working on and this obvious camaraderie contributes mightily to the charm of the show. This is not a great movie and it does not involve great acting. However, it does have many witty lines and it makes people laugh.

Movie Rating:

(Come on, we know that the British are better at romantic comedies)

Review by Lim Mun Pong