So I saw "Punch-Drunk Love". I never heard anything bad about the film from anyone so I figured that, at the very least, I might dislike it mildly. I was in the video store and they had a copy and I rented it and I am so upset that I spent money on the ensuing 95 minutes.
What didn't I like? The noises: There were these random, irritating noises that were just placed at various points throughout the movie; sounds that normally would be edited out of a film because they are too distracting or they mess with the flow of the scene they are in. The soundtrack: There were scenes, with dialogue, where the soundtrack was going and it shouldn't have been; scenes where your focus should have been on the characters but it was next to impossible - not to mention that the choice of music was annoying. The dialogue: Sure, the dialogue had a zillion times more meaning than what was in Revolutions, but a large portion of it was spent spewing out random sentences; you could place fifty sentences into a hat and then pull them out at random and achieve the same dialogue as the movie.
JACK: My foot is in so much pain.
LISA: You appear to be combing your hair.
JACK: Sometimes, I wander through grocery stores while I try to figure out what I want.
LISA: My mother left my father when I was six.
JACK: Mars is the fourth planet.
Upon reading reviews of the film, it appears that many people who loved this thing also liked The Royal Tenenbaums; which brings me to my point. What in the hell is up with the people who like these movies? I mean, I understood both films. I get what they are trying to say. I just don't understand how they are funny or romantic or whatever.
I can't, for the life of me, figure out why Adam Sandler signed up for this film. The man certainly isn't hurting for work. This is DEFINITELY not his style of humor (if it can even be called humor). The only thing I can surmise is from his performance: he played the character so well that he must have given one hell of an audition or someone saw hints of it in his other movies.
Basically, it comes down to me just not finding the films funny. Again: I understood them. I get that Barry was messed up because of his sisters, I get that it only messed him up to a degree, I get that the girl was messed up, I get it all. What I don't get is why did the film need to be made? What purpose does it serve? I mean, Emily Watson's character is basically a stalker who forced her way into Adam Sandler's character's life. He seems shy, but then he just nonchalantly goes to dinner with her and then she decides she wants to kiss him, just like that. I mean, there's no basis for the romance to have started, let alone continue. You could say, "Love at first sight," but we all know that's bullshit - it's just toning down "I wanna fuck you really hard because you're hot". Then she's like, "I WANNA BITE YOUR FACE!" and he's like, "I WANNA SMASH YOUR FACE IN WITH A SLEDGEHAMMER!" and he's screaming at his sister that he's going to kill her... okay. Okay. Gotta calm down.
Someone please explain this to me. I just don't get it.