50 First Dates Review
by Shannon Patrick Sullivan (shannon AT morgan DOT ucs DOT mun DOT ca)February 25th, 2004
50 FIRST DATES (2004) / ***
Directed by Peter Segal. Screenplay by George Wing. Starring Adam Sandler, Drew Barrymore, Blake Clark. Running time: 99 minutes. Rated PG for mild language by the MFCB. Reviewed on February 24th, 2004.
By SHANNON PATRICK SULLIVAN
Synopsis: Henry Roth (Sandler) is afraid of commitment until he meets Lucy Whitmore (Barrymore) in a diner one day. Henry, though, is initially unaware that Lucy was involved in a serious car accident, an accident which has impaired her short-term memory to the extent that she wakes up believing every day is the day of the crash. Despite the reluctance of Lucy's father (Clark), Henry becomes determined to win her heart.
Review: "50 First Dates" gets off to a shaky start, evincing shades of everything from outright spoof to lame gross-out humour. It's probably no coincidence, though, that the movie finally hits its stride at just about the time that Sandler and Barrymore share their first scene together. Their chemistry here isn't as winning as in "The Wedding Singer" -- their characters there were rather more dynamic than the relatively pedestrian protagonists of "50 First Dates" -- but it nonetheless rates a respectable second place. Certainly, on the basis of these two films, I look forward to a third pairing somewhere down the line. Less successful are the supporting characters: I was never quite sure what to make of Sean Astin as Lucy's lisping, steroid-chugging brother, or Lusia Strus as a strange German man-woman, and could have done with less of Rob Schneider's Ula. But George Wing's script is a good one, wringing pretty much all the potential out of his core concept without become too protracted. Happily, it also allowed me to suspend my disbelief as to the details of Lucy's amnesia (if her memory is wiped clear every night, what would happen if she didn't go to sleep?). I particularly liked the fact that Wing opted not to take the easy way out, instead delivering one of the most unexpectedly delightful endings to a mainstream comedy in quite some time.
Copyright © 2004 Shannon Patrick Sullivan.
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