We’ve discussed grief so frequently around these parts that it almost feels as if there’s nothing more that can actually be said about it. However, this is less a case of it being a topic that has become far too saturated to actually evoke unique thought, and more a matter of the fact that it’s one of the universal experiences. The unfortunate reality is that death is an inevitability, and at some point, we are all going to lose someone we love, which is simply part of what it means to be human. The foundation of many of these works – regardless of the medium in which they were produced – is that loss is something that can take on many shapes, and there is no two-way to actually grieve someone who is no longer present. Yet, some elements help us work through these emotions, and they often emerge in the most unexpected forms. This is what inspired Jim Rash (in his first solo directorial outing, following the films he co-directed with Nat Faxon, such as The Way, Way Back and Downhill) to make Miss You, Love You, a film that addresses loss through a blend of sardonic dark comedy and soft-hearted melodrama, a perfect combination for the story it tells. The film follows two people who are forced to become unexpected companions – the first is Diane, who has recently lost her longtime husband, and who is in the stages of planning his funeral, which is set to take place in a week. Instead of her son (a world-renowned journalist with whom she has a contentious, and frankly icy, relationship), she is helped by Jamie, his assistant, who is sent to give Diane whatever aid she may need in these crucial moments as she prepares to say goodbye to her beloved partner one last time. Over the course of a week, the pair balance the administrative duties of preparing a funeral with their own existential quandaries, which emerge in a series of intense conversations between two very strong personalities who initially find themselves at odds with one another, but prove to have more in common than they expected. A very simple film with an enormous heart that tends to be concealed under an unexpectedly complex set of layers, Miss Youu, Love You is a strong offering from Rash, who proves his skill at looking at a few different sides of the human condition.

When dealing with a subject like death, there are several avenues that a film can take, which can involve choosing the perspective (whether it is through the eyes of someone dealing with their own impending mortality, or their loved ones who surround them) or the specific moment in which one’s death has to be addressed. In the case of Miss You, Love You, the story takes place in what many consider to be the most difficult part of the grieving process, namely, the days that follow the death of a loved one. The initial shock has likely worn off, and you are left in that liminal space where the pain is beyond monumental, but you don’t have the luxury of just receding out of public view, since there are important arrangements to be made. No one wants to be preparing their loved one’s funeral on their own, which is where this film finds its foundation, since it introduces a secondary character to assist the widow through the coming days. Rather than making this character someone in the family or a close friend, the film opts to choose someone absent from the life of the deceased, in this case, the assistant of the widow’s estranged son, who is standing in for him for the time being, playing the role of a child without actually having any tangible connection to the deceased. It’s a fascinating premise, and one that the film explores in detail, following Diane and Jamie as they work through complex emotions – their own individual problems are bad eough as they are, but when coupled with the open hostility shown by the former, who expresses her wholehearted intention to make life as difficult for the latter as possible, it makes for an intriguing concept, allowing the film to touch on the subject of death from several different angles. The film uses its characters to ask two questions: in the case of Diane, it questions how someone can say goodbye to a partner with whom she shared the best years of her life, and for Jamie, it is about mourning someone he had never met, going through the motions to help someone else process her grief while also maintaining his own sanity. It’s a strong premise, and even at its most traditional, the film finds ways to capture something truly remarkable.

Miss You, Love You is constructed as a chamber drama – some may even be surprised to hear it isn’t based on a stage play, since its structure and style give off the impression that it had its origins in the theatre, specifically considering that it is focused primarily on two characters in a single location, being driven by dialogue more than anything else. Part of its very simple approach comes the need for strong actors to compensate for some of the more spartan material, since everything this film communicates has to be through their performances. Rash reunites with Allison Janney, giving her a tremendous leading role that showcases her skill as not only a scene-stealing supporting player, but also someone who can command the screen as the principal focus. Every time she is given the chance to lead a film, we’re astonished by how her ability to draw our attention through such simple but evocative means. Diane is the archetype of an older widow grappling with the fact that her perfect domestic life has now been disrupted, being caught somewhere between mourning the death of her husband and being furious at him, since it was his death that led her entire life to be uprooted. It’s a brilliant performance from someone who finds the nuance in absolutely every moment – there’s something so wonderfully captivating about how Janney holds our attention, inviting us into the world of this character while also keeping us at an appropriate distance. This is represented in the character of Jamie, portrayed exceptionally by Andrew Rannells, who similarly does not get frequent opportunities to lead a film, but finds so many layers in whatever character he is given. It’s a straightforward film that relies on both leads to carry the story, and there’s so much nuance in everything that Janney and Rannells are doing, right down to the most intricate detail. Their chemistry is incredible, and there are so many layers that bring the film together, making it an unexpected but very effective pairing of two gifted actors.

As we would expect, Miss You, Love You is a film that covers a considerable amount of emotional ground, exploring the concept of grief from two very distinct perspectives, while also having additional points of discussion like the pain of estrangement between a parent and their child, the burden of being a perfect partner and even identity, with the film containing some subtle but moving insights into queer issues that may not be the focus, but do play a vital role in understanding these characters in more ways that one. Considering all of this, it is unsurprising that the film will contain some moments of quite intense emotion, since the entire premise is built on a very sensitive story that cannot be executed without being slightly sentimental at times. Rash is not someone who has been known to avoid clichés for the most part, but he does know how to use them effectively, which means that despite some slightly more heavy-handed moments, nothing in this film is unnecessarily unearned or overly dense to the point where it loses its lustre. The foundation of the film is constructed as a story of two people getting to know one another in the aftermath of a tragedy, but rather than going for every predictable narrative beat, the director chooses to focus only on those that make sense. The film is primarily quite a harrowing drama, but there are frequent moments of humour infused into the fabric of the story, which reflects the fact that even in a time of immense mourning, there is room for laughter – if anything, this should be what binds people together, since perpetual misery is not the balm that many think it to be. Rash avoids the most obvious and tackiest tricks – there’s no sudden emergence of the estranged son, nor is there a scene in which the two protagonists decide that they are going to be a fixture in each other’s lives. Instead, the film follows two people who had a simple business transaction that may have evolved into something more meaningful, but is ultimately over once the funeral has ended, and allowing them to go on their own paths, separate from one another while accompanied by the lessons they learned, is perhaps the most earnest way this film could’ve explored these core ideas, and it ultimately proves to be the best possible method of telling such a story.

Far from revolutionary, but also deft in how it avoids becoming too overly derivative, Miss You, Love You achieves its core intentions, even if it can sometimes take a few very clear turns towards the conventional, which is forgivable considering the nature of the story and what it was trying to accomplish with this simple but evocative narrative. Death is not a subject that is easy to explore on screen, and grief itself has taken on a life of its own as far as developing a strong canon of works that explore the challenges that come with processing the death of a loved one. I’m not entirely sure whether Miss You, Love You will be able to stake a claim as one of the more notable entries into this genre, since there are so many bold and daring films that explore it from several different angles. Yet, at no point does the film seem all that interested in actually exploring this particular subject in much detail, choosing instead to tell a story that will resonate with viewers, even beyond its focus on death. When he look beyond the obvious subject matter, we see that Miss You, Love You is a film about two lost souls finding each other at a crucial moment, being the guide through a challenging set of circumstances that they both were not expecting to have to navigate quite so soon, but which is immensely helped by them both being willing to open up to one another after some time. It’s a film that says what it needs to say, never overstaying its welcome and finding the right tonal and conceptual balance that is absolutely vital to understanding the many compelling layers that inform and inspire the film and its heartfelt perspective on a situation that we all have to endure at some point. Through empathy, heart and humour, Rash achieves a very special set of ideas, leading to a film with a genuine, heartfelt compassion and enough good-natured charm to keep even the most cynical of viewers at least partially invested.