Life"¦ it is made up of many unique characteristics that help make each one unique; however, deep down, all people share a certain commonality that brings all lives together - love.
It is that raw commonality that director Ken Wardrop focuses on as he searches the minds of over 70 Irish women to bring forth a rarely shown look at the development of women, from child to adolescent to adult. The transformation is displayed in chronological order here, and each woman spills on the man in her life, whether it be father, husband, or son. The main focus is how priorities and emotions develop and change over the course of one's life, and the lasting effect that comes with His and Hers is nothing short of interesting.
With that said, I will comment that too much time was spent on the older years, those of reflection, and not enough of the years dealing with childhood. Young innocence gives the film a grand entry, stirring laughter from its opening moment; however, it comes and goes too quickly to really appreciate it.
The highlights from the film are miniscule when compared to the flow and impact of the entire feature (though a high school girl's obsession with a boy and a mysterious text does stick in my mind almost an entire day after seeing the film).
Other women occasionally brought a sense of humor or distress within their minute or so of screen time, but in all honesty, the film took a standard, cookie-cutter feel by about the half way point. I completely understand what Wardrop and his crew were attempting to achieve, but there just wasn't enough variety to really sell the picture for me.
Additionally, many of the scenes that were voiced over seemed staged, taking away from the 'realistic' feel of this documentary. It didn't ruin the film for me, but it was an added afterthought that has continued to bother me.
All together His and Hers is not a bad film. It runs about 20 minutes too long, but the emotions it evokes are unquestionably powerful. It appeals more to the female side of the gender spectrum, and that is to be understood. The film is about women but made by a man - so in essence, there is a lot of valuable insight to be gathered. It isn't perfect, but it is headed in a good direction.
