DVD reviews
Punch-Drunk Love Starring: Adam Sandler, Emily Watson, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Luis Guzman Director: Paul Thomas Anderson
The film: Paul Thomas Anderson likes to take chances. He tackled a behind-the- scenes look at the Hollywood porn industry in Boogie Nights (1997) and then coaxed heart-throb Tom Cruise to play against type in the gripping Magnolia (1999). Both films were unqualified critical successes, but met more subdued responses from the people who ante up at the box office.
This time around, Anderson pushes the boat out once again - pairing one of cinema's most unlikely couples in a dark, at times almost pitch-black, romantic comedy. Adam Sandler is best known for his dumbed-down comedy routines and films that have him playing the fool; Emily Watson for impassioned dramas such as Lars von Trier's Breaking The Waves (1996). But Anderson took a punt and put them together as would-be lovers fighting towards each other against the odds.
Sandler mostly keeps his face-pulling under control in his role as Barry Egan, a put-upon singleton and brother to seven sisters who seems to have rage simmering inside him. He is desperate to break free from the constraints of his existence and finds escape in the form of Lena (Watson ). She's a friend of one of those sisters and seems to recognise the true Barry that beats within.
A lot of the film is about overcoming the obstacles fate throws before us, and Barry becomes our champion. Sandler gives the role just the right edge - here is a man on the brink, a man who knows another setback may just push him over the edge. And so he acts in desperation, and we cheer him on. Anderson throws in his oddities as well, including one nail-bitingly tense phone sex session that shows the act in all its savage grimness.
Again, he has produced a film that will not be to everyone's liking, but one that will have you transfixed just the same. The extras: Good value is provided with some added Anderson madness, including a 12-minute short and an ad for the mattress man (Philip Seymour Hoffman). There're also deleted scenes and trailers. The verdict: Another triumph for one of modern cinema's true innovators.