Punch-Drunk Love

Punch-drunk love is a very unique addition to the films of Adam Sandler, in that it’s somewhat serious. Punch-drunk love follows Barry Egan, a lonely man who has quite a bit of pent-up anger. He pretends to be calm on the outside, but at a family gathering, he gets upset when his sisters make fun of him and he ends up shattering a glass barrier. He ends up calling a…dirty hotline for his loneliness. He’s not interested in what they’re “selling,” he just wants to talk to somebody. The lady on the other end of the phone tries to extort him for money, and problems start to arise for Barry. He’s being blackmailed and when he refuses to give them what they want, they send thugs after him. All the while, his sister introduces him to Lena. As it turns out, they kinda like each other and they end up going on a date. Barry ends up going on a trip with her, and things are looking pretty good. Unfortunately, the thugs show up and hit Barry and Lena. Barry beats them up, and Lena goes to the hospital. Barry is afraid that if they continue to send people to extort him, Lena can’t be with him. He leaves Lena in the hospital to deal with the problem himself. He finds the head honcho of the organization blackmailing him, and they reach an agreement. Barry will be left alone provided he never goes to the police with any of the information he has on them. Barry finds Lena has left the hospital already. He heads to her apartment, apologizes for not being there, and the two make up and everything wraps up pretty nicely.

Punch-drunk love is a decidedly more mature and serious film than anything else Adam Sandler has done. It seemed to me to be well-paced, as I was always interested and never bored. The story was engaging and the characters interesting. There are even a few jokes thrown in to lighten up an otherwise dark(er than usual) film. All in all, I don’t have a bad thing to say about punch-drunk love. It’s just a good movie. If you’re looking for classic Sandler goofiness, you might be disappointed, but I think that this movie succeeds on its own merits as a more serious film.