Punch Drunk Love

I am not a fan of Adam Sandler’s brand of humor, but when the previews for Punch Drunk Love promised to subvert it and present Sandler with a Jim Carrey-like leap into more substantial material, I was curious to see the results. And while I cannot exactly tell you what Punch Drunk Love is, I can tell you it fails miserably to make us look at Sandler in a new light.

Love’s quirky tale of romance begins with Barry Egan (Sandler), a loveable loner whose seven sisters make his life miserable. Unable to make a substantial connection with any woman, Barry finds his life changed by three events: The arrival of a harmonium outside his place of business, a misguided phone call he places to a phone sex hotline, and a chance encounter with Lena Leonard (Emily Watson), who turns out to be the girl of his dreams. From this initial meeting, Barry falls helpless in love with Lena, but his ability to express it may jeopardize the relationship before it even starts.

Punch Drunk Love, which was assembled by Paul Thomas Anderson, the man behind Boogie Nights, Magnolia, and Hard Eight, is not a bad film. It’s just misguided. It’s full of quirks rather than actual human behavior. For instance, Barry makes his living selling plungers and collects labels from Healthy Choice products for frequent flyer miles he may never use. Sandler’s brand of humor is muted rather than replaced, so that while the toilet humor is gone, the random fits of rage are alive and well. To her credit, Watson plays this mess straight and you wish, for her sake, the film were better. Her Lena has blinders on when it comes to Barry’s exasperating quirky behavior, a sign that either she’s desperately in love or just plain desperate. Neither one ever comes across clearly, so you just don’t know why she’s fallen for Barry.

Thankfully, the film doesn’t overstay its welcome. Love’s 94 minute running time is a milestone in terms of Anderson’s other works, and it features the most intriguing film score of any film this year courtesy of musician/producer Jon Brion. At times, it seems the film would work better if you closed your eyes and just listened. All in all, Punch Drunk Love is an interesting idea that seems to be missing the ingredient it needs to make it fully work.

Submitted 14 December 02. Posted 15 December 02.