50 First Dates (2004)

Rating: 6/10 (12 December 2011)

Unlike Click, this film managed to mix the traditional Adam Sandler shtick with a rather sweet and touching love story. Sandler and Barrymore certainly have the kind of chemistry required for their romance to blossom. This film takes a really wild idea of a man falling for a girl who happens to suffer from short term memory loss. It's a fictional kind of memory loss, where her brain resets every night. It's a bit like Groundhog Day and Memento with your usual wacky Sandlerness. In some respects he does play it slightly different, as he is quite understanding here and resists the urge to become the angry version of himself. As it gets towards the end I was astonished that it didn't bitch out with a quick fix to the problem. So many Hollywood endings have that love conquers all, happy ending, but this went with a bittersweet ending. Along the way we have the usual grotesque but likable characters, such as Schneider's Ula and Strus' Alexa. Each of these add enough humor, but it's Astin who steals the show, as a workout obsessed protective brother with a lisp. Certainly worth your while.