As in many independent films the acting by
all in the film "Please Give" is above par. Catherine Keener plays Kate,
mother, wife and co-owner of a furniture resale store, acquiring the
furniture from the distraught children of parents who just died. Oliver Platt plays Alex her husband, partner in business and co-parent. Sarah Steele
is their 15 year old daughter, Abby, a disagreeable child, battling acne and not understanding
why her mother won't buy her a pair of $250 jeans but will give a $20
bill to a homeless person.

They have already
bought the apartment next door to them from Ann Guilbert,  Andra,  a
cantankerous grandmother whose daughter committed suicide and she
brought up her two granddaughters who now come by and check on her
everyday.

Rebecca Hall, the youngest
granddaughter, Rebecca, works as an x-ray technician taking mammograms, is shy,
repressed and seems to be destined to be alone. She shares an apartment
with her older sister Mary, played by Amanda Peet, who is 5 years
older, just been dumped by her boyfriend, drinks too much and is hostile
to the world.

Though Olivier has equal time in the film the
story mainly revolves around the women at all stages of life from the
teenager to the octogenarian. We come
to know about the relationship, or lack of one, between the
grandmother, her daughter and her daughters while we also get to see the
exchanges between the difficult daughter and the mother who feels
guilty about having so much while so many people are in need.

None of the characters are pleasant but the
actors are skillful enough to get you involved in watching them and
seeing how the story plays out.

The
director and writer, Nicole Holofcener. appears to be
the female equivalent of Woody Allen,
with her film taking place in a shiny, sun filled New York, telling
stories of New Yorkers who are real, have problems, some which are
solved and others ongoing. It is, like any good film, about
relationships.