Director: Susannah Grant
Production Company: Columbia Pictures
Cast: Jennifer Garner, Timothy Olyphant, Sam Jaeger, Juliette Lewis, Kevin Smith
Rating: PG-13 for some language, sexuality and mild drug use.
By Gregg Tubbs
(UMC.org)—Some things are just better the second time around. In the quirky and big-hearted romantic comedy Catch and Release, Jennifer Garner plays a brokenhearted young woman who gets a second chance at love and the opportunity to steer her life in a completely new direction. With second chances also come second thoughts—the chance to examine the choices and priorities of the past, uncovering surprising secrets and deciding, not just how to do things differently, but how to do them better. To change her life, she'll have to learn to master life's unexpected twists and rely on the comfort of good friends.
Conventional wisdom says “It's better to have loved and lost, than to never have loved at all,” but Gray Wheeler (Garner) might argue with that. Her fiancée Grady's sudden death has turned her wedding day into a painful and awkward wake. Surrounded by all the trappings of a wedding celebration, Gray bravely greets mourners instead of well-wishers, while internally despairing over her lost love and shattered dreams. This may seem like a grim way to start a romantic comedy, but writer-director Susannah Grant (nominated for an Academy Award® for her screenplay for Erin Brockovich) manages to keep things from getting too heavy by surrounding Gray with an endearing trio of friends who are determined to buoy her up.
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Reminiscent of The Big Chill, Catch and Release depicts a circle of friends brought together by the death of the person who was the glue that held the group together. Copyright © 2006 Columbia Pictures.
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Reminiscent of The Big Chill, this film depicts a circle of friends brought together by the death of the person who was the glue that held the group together. The friends—jovial, portly Sam (Kevin Smith); cautious, sincere Dennis (Sam Jaeger); and childhood buddy and Hollywood playboy Fritz (Timothy Olyphant)—all share Gray's sense of loss and disillusionment when unexpected, discouraging details about Grady's life surface—secrets he shared only with Fritz. As the four split, clash and regroup, they console each other and try to find a new “glue” to hold them together. Their group dynamics are alternately comical and touching, but always revealing. Grady was not the only one with secrets; each of them is something more or different than the others expect.
Catch and Release doesn't have one main theme, but touches on several. The idea of a person's image—one's self-image and the image we present to the world—is central. Gray imagined Grady (and perhaps herself) as nearly perfect. As she learns of an affair and an illegitimate child, she must come to terms with his flawed humanity and her own as well. Fritz, on the other hand, slowly reveals himself as more caring, more sincere and more devoted than the reckless rake Gray had always imagined him to be. Who could have guessed that the man of her dreams would turn out to be the one she liked the least? When she confesses to him, “You're not who I thought you were,” she could have been referring to any one of the group. Sam and Dennis also have other, truer sides to themselves, which they reveal in moments of poignant honesty. These moments open them to the possibility of being hurt or rejected, but ultimately, they are freed to be themselves.
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When Gray (Jennifer Garner) learns to forgive, she is able to move beyond the past and find a second chance for love with Fritz (Timothy Olyphant). Copyright © 2006 Columbia Pictures.
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We can learn much from watching these all-too-human characters try to recover from loss. First, we are reminded that none of us are perfect and we have all, as Paul put it, “have fallen short of the glory of God.” Once we've accepted that, we understand why Jesus warned, “Judge not, lest you be judged.” We also see the importance of being honest and the need to lower our defenses—with each other, with ourselves and with our Maker. As always, honesty takes courage, but also has great rewards. Grady never came clean with Gray, and her struggle to make peace with his memory and his secrets provides the film's dominant message. We see that love—lasting and resilient love—must always come with a generous dose of forgiveness. When Gray learns to forgive, she is able to move beyond the past and find a second chance for love with Fritz. Each character, in her or his own way, exercises forgiving love for the others--which is, after all, what enables each to have a second chance.
Catch and Release is an endearing amalgam of contradictions: a love story that's more about friendship; a story that begins with tragedy, but is all about starting life anew; an ensemble character comedy where no one is who they think they are, or who others think they are. Yet, somehow, it all comes together like a colorful quilt—rich in emotional and character diversity. It may be the middle of winter, but Catch and Release, with its message about new beginnings and resilient, forgiving love will make you think of spring.
Study Questions
- Why do you think the film was called Catch and Release? How does the title relate to the themes of the film?
- What was your impression of Fritz at the beginning of the film? How did your impression change as the film went on?
- Grady is never seen clearly in the film. Why do you think that is? What symbolic purpose does that serve?
- Each character in the film is different or more complicated than we are first led to believe. Who do you think turned out to be the most different? Who surprised you the most?
- Do you present a different persona to different people? Who do you share the “real" you with? Does God see the real you?
- Why do you think second chances are important? Is there someone in your life you gave a second chance? What enables us, particularly as Christians, to forgive others and enable them to have a second chance?
- How did Jesus give humanity a second chance? Are we worthy of that second chance or is it a gift? (See Romans 3:23.)
- Several characters have “confessional” moments. Why do you think it's important to “come clean"? Do you share confessional moments with God?
- What did Jesus have to say about forgiveness? (See Luke 6:36-38.)
- Did Gray finally forgive Grady? How do we know? Do you believe forgiveness is part of love?
Related Links
Catch and Release Official Movie site
Movie Trailers
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