50 First Dates
I must admit, Adam Sandler and Drew Barrymore have that certain onscreen chemistry that makes their flirting and falling in love a joy to watch, be it in The Wedding Singer or here in 50 First Dates.
I am watching 50 First Dates more than a few months after it came out. At the time that it was showing I said that I didn't want to watch it because (a) I had just watched Finding Nemo and one character with short-term memory loss was enough for me at the time; and (b) I had no date to watch this, one of the best date movies there is. There, I said it. One of the best.
I know quite a number of people will disagree. First of all, the plot is quite contrived. Barrymore's Lucy, bonked in the head in an unfortunate car accident, is caught in a loop that makes her relive the day of the accident over and over, much like Groundhog Day. However, unlike Groundhog Day and that X-Files episode where Mulder and Scully get killed, it won't stop when the "right thing" happens, because the whole world is changing around her. In a strange move, her father and brother (a buff yet lisping Sean Astin) decide to keep her at home and pretend that everyday is October 13; putting together birthday cake and a little party.
That is, until Sandler's Henry Roth, noted wooer of female tourists, comes into the picture. He is taken with her pancake houses and, of course, the fact that she is as pretty as Drew Barrymore. The former commitment-phobic Henry now dedicates his life practically, first to flirting with Lucy, and then, later, to helping her deal with her condition. Sometimes a little tough love is needed, indeed.
This is a happy-sad film--it will exercise your lachrymal glands, but elicit a soft smile at the end of the picture. It is sheer unadulterated mush, but with happy bursts of energy, especially from a good supporting cast including Sandler's bud Rob Schneider (with his usual over-the-top antics), Dan Aykroyd as Lucy's head doctor (I think this was supposed to be a cameo), the strangely androgynous Lucia Strus as Henry's ocean park assistant, Amy Hill, Rakishi look-alike Pomaka'i Brown, constant comedic support Blake Clark, and a variety of sea creatures who actually steal some scenes. Sean Astin's turn as Lucy's lisping, steroid-using brother is also quite comical, and it seems he was able to shed the Sam-weight quite well.
50 First Dates is a wonderful morsel of a movie that would have been worth Greenbelt4. It might not be a Great Picture, but it's one definitely worth seeing once, and maybe once over in a few years' time.
In hindsight: Is it a coincidence that Lucy's father is named Marlin? As in the father of Nemo? Strange movies with short-term memory loss.
I am watching 50 First Dates more than a few months after it came out. At the time that it was showing I said that I didn't want to watch it because (a) I had just watched Finding Nemo and one character with short-term memory loss was enough for me at the time; and (b) I had no date to watch this, one of the best date movies there is. There, I said it. One of the best.
I know quite a number of people will disagree. First of all, the plot is quite contrived. Barrymore's Lucy, bonked in the head in an unfortunate car accident, is caught in a loop that makes her relive the day of the accident over and over, much like Groundhog Day. However, unlike Groundhog Day and that X-Files episode where Mulder and Scully get killed, it won't stop when the "right thing" happens, because the whole world is changing around her. In a strange move, her father and brother (a buff yet lisping Sean Astin) decide to keep her at home and pretend that everyday is October 13; putting together birthday cake and a little party.
That is, until Sandler's Henry Roth, noted wooer of female tourists, comes into the picture. He is taken with her pancake houses and, of course, the fact that she is as pretty as Drew Barrymore. The former commitment-phobic Henry now dedicates his life practically, first to flirting with Lucy, and then, later, to helping her deal with her condition. Sometimes a little tough love is needed, indeed.
This is a happy-sad film--it will exercise your lachrymal glands, but elicit a soft smile at the end of the picture. It is sheer unadulterated mush, but with happy bursts of energy, especially from a good supporting cast including Sandler's bud Rob Schneider (with his usual over-the-top antics), Dan Aykroyd as Lucy's head doctor (I think this was supposed to be a cameo), the strangely androgynous Lucia Strus as Henry's ocean park assistant, Amy Hill, Rakishi look-alike Pomaka'i Brown, constant comedic support Blake Clark, and a variety of sea creatures who actually steal some scenes. Sean Astin's turn as Lucy's lisping, steroid-using brother is also quite comical, and it seems he was able to shed the Sam-weight quite well.
50 First Dates is a wonderful morsel of a movie that would have been worth Greenbelt4. It might not be a Great Picture, but it's one definitely worth seeing once, and maybe once over in a few years' time.
In hindsight: Is it a coincidence that Lucy's father is named Marlin? As in the father of Nemo? Strange movies with short-term memory loss.
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