Truly, Madly, Deeply

What do the dead do? They huddle for warmth and watch videos, of course — much to the consternation of Nina (Juliet Stevenson), who had been lamenting the death of her boyfriend Jamie (Alan Rickman) before he and his chalky-faced cronies returned from the beyond. Made around the same time as Ghost in Britain, Anthony Minghella's bittersweet romantic comedy about how we need to let go of the dead strikes a clear note at a time when so many, so young, must come to acceptance after coming to grief.

One reason to rent Truly, Madly, Deeply is the unique, reflective mood the movie instills, effortlessly evoking past intimacies. Another is Stevenson's stunning performance. Nina's initial scenes of grief are hair-raising, as is her joy at Jamie's return. And Rickman, best known for his superb villains (Die Hard, Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves), shows a gentler, more sensitive side as the departed cellist. His softly keening chamber music will play quite nicely in the privacy of any viewer's room. A