Punch Drunk Love (2002)
Directed by Paul Thomas Anderson
Written by Paul Thomas Anderson
Starring Adam Sandler, Emily Watson, Phillip Seymour Hoffman
Release Date October 11th, 2002
Published October 10th, 2002
Paul Thomas Anderson's Magnolia was, in the eyes of this critic, an unqualified masterpiece. While some complained about its quirks, its length, and it's strange use of frogs, I defy anyone to create a scene as moving as the final shot of Melora Waters' smile at the end. The film was a long journey, but well worth the trip. Anderson's latest isn't quite the epic that Magnolia was but, in its minimalist manner, it is almost as moving, and it is a far greater surprise, considering it features an awesome lead performance from, of all actors, Adam Sandler.
In Punch-Drunk Love, Sandler plays Barry Egan, a schlubby, put-upon brother to seven overbearing sisters. Barry owns his own business selling novelty plungers, and spends his free time collecting Healthy Choice pudding. (More on the pudding later.) In the opening, we see Barry standing in front of his office, a converted garage, when, in typical PT Anderson fashion, he witnesses a massive car crash that is immediately followed by the unusual delivery of a small piano left at the end of an alley. Barry then meets Lena (Emily Watson), who is dropping off her car to be serviced at the garage next door. Actually, that was the excuse she was using so she could meet Barry before Barry's sister—who is Lena's best friend—could set them up.
The connection isn't immediate but Lena does see something in him. In the meantime, a lonely Barry makes the mistake of calling a 900 phone sex number. As it turns out the 900 number is part of an extortion scam being run by a furniture store manager in Utah named Dean Trumbell (Anderson favorite Phillip Seymour Hoffman). Eventually Barry and Lena do get together and it is their unique love story that is the soul of this very unusual film.
The pudding subplot is actually based on a true story. A guy in Los Angeles figured out that if he bought three thousand dollars worth of Healthy Choice pudding cups and redeemed them as part of a Healthy Choice frequent flier mile giveaway, he could earn enough miles to never have to pay for a plane ticket for the rest of his life. That actually happened, and it is these little details and character quirks that surround all of Anderson's characters. They can occasionally get tiresome if they become too obvious, but thanks to the amazing lead performances of Sandler and Watson, that never happens in Punch-Drunk Love.
Sandler is perhaps the biggest surprise of the year. I don't know if it's because the role was so well written or if he benefited so greatly from the supporting cast—Watson especially—but somehow, Sandler crafts a really stellar performance. (Did I just write that? Yes I did.) For the first time in his career, Sandler proves he can act. For a Saturday Night Live alum, that is saying something.
At a mere 89 minutes Punch-Drunk Love is barely a subplot compared to Magnolia, but that isn't a bad thing. As quirky as Punch-Drunk Love is, it's good that it never wears out its welcome. Watching Barry strain and push for any longer would make him more difficult to like, and he is already difficult to like. I don't think Punch-Drunk Love is as brilliant as Magnolia but, in its own way, it's charming and sweet, and features two very Oscar-worthy performances. Punch-Drunk Love is a unique, wonderful love story that shows a side of Adam Sandler that we will likely never see again.
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