Truly, Madly, Deeply

This article is about the film Truly, Madly, Deeply. For the song, see Truly Madly Deeply.

Truly, Madly, Deeply is a 1990 film made for the BBC's Screen Two series.

Overview

The film was written and directed by Anthony Minghella and stars Juliet Stevenson and Alan Rickman. Minghella has said he wrote the script specifically as “a vehicle for [Stevenson] to express all her talents. She plays piano, likes dancing and has a quirky side to her which she usually can't express in the classical parts she is asked for”. The title comes from a word game played by the main characters, in which they challenge each other to by turns repeat and add to a series of adverbs describing the depths of their mutual affection. The working title for the film was 'Cello', a reference not only to the cello within the film, but also to the Italian word for heaven.

Plot

Nina, an interpreter, is beside herself with grief at the recent death of her boyfriend, Jamie, a cellist. When it appears that she is no longer able to cope with life, Jamie reappears as a "ghost" and the couple are reconciled – either in Nina's imagination or in an actual reunion: it is up to the viewer to decide. Nina is of course ecstatic, but Jamie's behaviour – turning up the central heating to stifling levels, moving furniture around and inviting back "ghost friends" to watch videos – gradually infuriates her, and their relationship deteriorates. Although happy and able to return to a somewhat normal state, Nina's relationship with Jamie is put under strain by his erratic behaviour. She meets Mark (Michael Maloney), a psychologist, to whom she is attracted, but she is unwilling to become involved with him because of Jamie's continued presence. Over Nina’s objections, Jamie decides to leave to allow her to move on. A common interpretation is that Jamie’s return was to remind Nina that he was not perfect and drive this point so far that she could let go of him. This is supported by the scene at the end of the movie in which Jamie watches Nina leave with Mark and one of his fellow ghosts asks, "Well?", implying a “Did we do it?”, and Jamie responds, "I think so. Yes."

Reception

The film was very successful, winning several awards including a BAFTA for best original screenplay. Its combination of serious themes with comic scenes and music and strong performances from the actors made it extremely popular. Ian Hislop included the film in his list of disliked things in the UK TV series Room 101.

Comparison with other films

Although often referred to as the British Ghost (most famously by Hislop, who described it as "Ghost for people who can do crosswords"), its plot really bears little resemblance to that of the Hollywood movie.

The 2000 Charlotte Rampling film Sous le sable (aka Under the Sand) also features a woman whose partner dies and then imagines he has returned, before embarking on a new love affair.

Awards

Won

• Australian Film Institute's Best Foreign Film Award
• BAFTA's award for best original screenplay
• Rickman and Stevenson won Best Actor and Best Actress awards from the Evening Standard British Film Awards

Nominated

• Rickman and Stevenson were nominated for best actor and actress by BAFTA

References

External links