Punch-Drunk Love
Release year: 2002
My Rating: ★★★★ out of 5
Tagline: I have a love in my life. It makes me stronger than anything you can imagine.
Synopsis: A socially awkward and volatile small business owner meets the love of his life after being threatened by a gang of scammers.
If Little Nicky was the desert for watching Adam Sandler for 3 months, Punch-Drunk Love is like the old fashioned after a hearty meal. If there's ever a space to see Sandler's range as an actor, this is the spot.
Punch-Drunk Love is a weird movie, and I think that is what makes it so intriguing. Everything in the movie feels so ever so slightly off in such an intentional way that it draws you in. Director Paul Thomas Anderson is known for movies like this. In terms of critical acclaim, Anderson might be one of the most consistent filmmakers of his generation. And yet, he saw potential in Adam Sandler that probably not a person in the world thought he had this point. And he showed the world what this man is capable of.
This is either Sandler's best performance or near the very top. It's the type of performance where you don't have to hear what he says to understand what he's feeling. He is so expressive in a way that doesn't mean he's making big faces or dramatic movements. You just see the hurt that lies underneath him looking at him, and how he carries himself. This is what great acting is. This is what separates Sandler from so many other actors he is compared to. Not many serious actors could do what he does here even close to at his caliber. And this is coming from the person who just played Little Nicky in a funny voice for an hour and a half straight.
I think this is the Adam Sandler movie I need to rewatch the most. It sticks in my head, but not in a way that I feel confident in saying what this movie is. I want to give it another opportunity, fishing for what I can find in it, and maybe one day, it'll click. It's a movie where you know so much more lies beneath the surface, and each time you watch, you might get one more piece.
I've heard a lot of people get a lot out of this movie. Many even call it one of their favorites and most meaningful to them. I can't say I have that myself, but I can see where they're coming from. I want to find that, to see it. So I can't say confidently yet of the quality of this movie, but it is clearly worth a watch. Or a few.
