Movie Review: 50 First Dates (2004) – A Surprisingly Sweet Sandler Romance with a Twist

Movie Review: 50 First Dates (2004) – A Surprisingly Sweet Sandler Romance with a Twist 

Tags 50 First Dates review, Adam Sandler movies, Drew Barrymore, romantic comedies, memory loss romance, Hawaii films, 2000s rom-coms, Peter Segal, best rom-coms, comedy movie reviews, GuessTheGross, Valentine’s Day movies 

 Overview

50 First Dates is a 2004 romantic comedy directed by Peter Segal. It stars Adam Sandler and Drew Barrymore in a love story set in Hawaii, where a woman’s rare memory condition forces her suitor to win her heart anew each day.

Plot Summary

Henry Roth (Adam Sandler) is a carefree veterinarian living in Hawaii who enjoys casual flings with tourists—until he meets Lucy Whitmore (Drew Barrymore), a charming local woman with a unique condition. After a car accident, Lucy suffers from short-term memory loss and relives the same day every morning. Despite the challenge, Henry falls for her and commits to making her fall in love with him again and again. Along the way, he navigates her protective family, oddball friends, and his own immaturity in a quest for lasting love.

What Works

• Performance: Drew Barrymore brings sweetness and emotional complexity to Lucy, grounding the outlandish premise. Sandler tones down his usual goofiness to deliver a surprisingly likable romantic lead.
• Direction: Peter Segal smartly balances romance and comedy, keeping the tone light while letting the emotional beats shine through.
• Tension or Themes: The film explores themes of memory, commitment, and daily devotion with a surprisingly sincere touch, especially for a Sandler vehicle.

What Doesn’t Work

• The subplots—particularly those involving Sean Astin and Rob Schneider—veer into juvenile territory and feel disconnected from the emotional heart of the story.
• Some humor falls flat, relying on stereotypes and bodily gags that clash with the film’s more heartfelt core.

Final Thoughts

50 First Dates is one of Adam Sandler’s most balanced romantic comedies, blending his trademark silliness with genuine sweetness. While not without its flaws, the chemistry between Sandler and Barrymore elevates the film, making it a memorable Valentine’s Day treat or anytime date-night watch.

Rating

⭐ Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars

Call to Action

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What did you think of 50 First Dates? Leave a comment below or share your favorite moment from the film!

If you enjoyed this review, check out my takes on other romantic comedies here.

Movie Review: Valentine's Day

Valentine's Day (2010) 

Directed by Garry Marshall 

Written by Katherine Fugate 

Starring Jessica Alba, Patrick Dempsey, Anne Hathaway, Queen Latifah, Ashton Kutcher, Jennifer Garner

Release Date February 12th, 2010

Published February 14th, 2010 

Garry Marshall, how do I loathe thee, let me count the ways. I have loathed every inch of film you have ever cut and print. Every word on the page of one of your scripts has been like a dagger in my chest. Your magnum opus Pretty Woman is one of the most loathsome, irresponsible and despicable fantasies ever crafted.

I still have nightmares of your attempt to make an S & M themed romantic comedy starring Dan Akroyd and Rosie O'Donnell. In all seriousness, which concentric circle of hell did you escape from? Mr. Marshall's latest bit of awfulness is arguably his most banal, rendered so by having so much star power you may be to blind to realize how you're being terrorized.

Valentine's Day is ostensibly about love and its many complications played out over the hallmark crafted Holiday. 20 or some odd number of characters each has an interconnected part to play in this series of failed single romantic comedies wrapped into one massive failure.

Among the glitterati to loan there sheen to Mr. Marshall's failed vision of comic romance are Ashton Kutcher as a flower shop owner and Jennifer Garner as, prepare for the surprising twist, the best friend he's always loved but didn't know it. He's just become engaged to Morley (Jessica Alba) who is carrying on an affair with her blackberry. Meanwhile the best friend is sleeping with a married man (Patrick Dempsey).

Don't worry, like all despicable married men in romantic comedies, he's leaving his fabulously wealthy wife and children to be with his poor school teacher mistress. I must say, I did marvel at Mr. Marshall's ability to cram that many well wrung clichés into one storyline.

There are several thousand other stars in Valentine's Day including Oscar winners (Julia Roberts, Shirley MacLaine), Oscar nominees (Anne Hathaway, Queen Latifah), TV stars (Eric Dane and Dempsey both from Grey's Anatomy, Kutcher and Topher Grace from That 70's Show) and even pop stars and Twilighters (Taylor Swift and Taylor Lautner as the most vapid characters in an entirely vapid movie).

There are still countless other well known people in Valentine's Day but who really cares. At some point we in the audience belong to some weird version of Hollywood census takers, right down to the questions of demography as many characters are defined by their race in the most statistical of fashion. 

To count the ways that Valentine's Day is offensive would actually take longer than my list of reasons for hating director Garry Marshall. The film isn't merely a recycling dump of romantic clichés; it's also a garbage dump of racial and sexual stereotypes. Oh. And don't even ask about sex because despite the theme, sex is purely something that exists the night before Valentine's Day and not the day of. 

Ludicrously awful, Valentine's Day attempts to mask the odor of it's inanity with a traffic jam of celebrity. The pretty people wandering in and out of the 50 or so failed movies jammed into this one movie fails to distract from the sheer brainless insipidity of Valentine's Day.