Punch Drunk Love
Directed by Paul Thomas Anderson.
Starring Adam Sandler and Emily Watson.
I’m one of those secret silly-movie rental fanatics on recovery days (‘days after’ big parties or exhausting weeks) so I know a bit about Adam Sandler. I’ve seen Happy Gilmore and Big Daddy and, really, all of his silly-movie undertakings. His acting never wavers: he’s comical in a shy little-boy, wouldn’t-you-just-love-him- to-love-you-if-he’d-only-grow-up sort of way (because his movies inevitably have a happy ever after love story conclusion and, yes, he usually grows up). Now, after seeing Punch Drunk Love, I’m asking the million dollar question: is Adam Sandler following in the footsteps of such comedians as Robin Williams, Tom Hanks and Jim Carrey and proving to be a diversified actor, capable, even excelling in serious dramatic roles? Not to confuse the plot — Punch Drunk Love is a comedy and a love story, but it is a far cry from the typical Adam Sandler silly-movie.
Strange things happen to Barry Egan, Sandler’s character and these are things he cannot really understand. Nor can we. And these are things he’s not sure if he needs to understand. Nor are we. The movie bumbles along in such an almost disjointed way that I really didn’t know what to think. Do I like it? Is it moving too slowly? Is it beyond my philosophical appreciation? Nevertheless, I was intrigued. Sandler’s character is darkly hilarious, pitiful, uneasy and dangerous. It is painful to watch him with a roomful of loud and insensitive sisters, slowly losing his mind. Just as painful as it is to watch him carry on a conversation with Lena Leonard played by Emily Watson. And just when the pain makes you ask, do I like it? is it moving too slowly? is it beyond my philosophical appreciation?, something happens and you’re laughing out loud. Sandler is brilliantly and entertainingly disturbing. I may not have known what I was thinking throughout the course of this not-what-it-seems film but I couldn’t take the smile off my face for at least ten minutes after it ended.
The film is directed by Paul Thomas Anderson, who also did Boogie Nights and Magnolia, the former being a wild romp of a movie aptly set to a cocaine, porn-fantasy script with a funky soundtrack, the latter being a melodramatic segmented feeling, more than anything, with a melancholy soundtrack. With Punch Drunk Love, Anderson has widened his repertoire to include a quirky dark comedy with a delightfully eccentric soundtrack. All three movies, in their own unique way, have the ability to remind you, days afterward, that film is cathartic. Likewise, all have a superb cast with a few unforgettable roles (Julianne Moore in Boogie Nights and nearly everyone in Magnolia, Phillip Seymor Hoffman — appearing in each of Anderson movies — included). And, they all have the sort of soundtrack you wouldn’t mind adding to your CD collection. Go see this one. It’s a good break from the everyday.
Heather Taylor Johnson
