Product: 50 First Dates (Widescreen Special Edition) (2004)
Rating: 3.0
Slight but well done romantic comedy
"50 First Dates" is a big, loveable puppy dog of a romantic comedy. It bounds all over the place, wags its tail, and begs to be liked. Like a big dog, it is sometimes messy and doesn't always make much sense. But its relentless affability wins you over.The movie has little in common with sophisticated successes like "My Best Friend's Wedding" or "Four Weddings and a Funeral". "50 First Dates" asks us to believe that love conquers all, no questions asked. Either you buy the concept or you don't.Henry [Adam Sandler] is a veterinarian who has a way with women. Living the good life in Hawaii, there seems to be no end to his conquests. One day, in a quaint little restaurant, he meets an intriguing woman named Lucy [Drew Barrymore]. They hit it off and promise to meet again. The problem is that, when Henry meets Lucy again, she acts as if she has never met him. It turns out that Lucy lost her short-term memory in a car crash. When she wakes up each day, she doesn't remember the previous day. Undaunted, Henry teams up with Lucy's family to force her to remember him.Ironically, much of makes the movie work is that neither of its stars are that naive. Both Sandler and Barrymore are worldly creatures. Theirs are tongue-in-cheek performances. They also have together what used to be called `chemistry'. They make a most believable couple.Lucy's illness doesn't exist in the real world. It's just another in a long line of movie illnesses which Hollywood has been inventing for decades. At least here, there is no miraculous cure, which makes for a satisfactory ending. To say more would be to spoil the movie.