"Punch Drunk Love" - Film Review

It’s weird to admit it but I think I actually liked Adam Sandler in a film. But Punch Drunk Love isn’t really an "Adam Sandler Movie" but rather a Paul Thomas Anderson film that just happens to feature the polarizing star. Comedians have recently taken a shining to starring in more unexpected dramatic work. Jim Carry appeared in The Truman Show and Eternal Sunshine of a Spotless Mind. Ben Stiller starred in Greenberg. Here Anderson is able to get Sandler to rid himself of all his “Sandler-isms” (No goofy voices or weird, unnecessary variations in tone of voice) in order to get out of him an incredibly believable and fascinating character study (similar to Terry Gillam’s attempts to get Bruce Willis to stop his “Willis acting clichés”, such as his well-known steely gaze, for Twelve Monkeys). There’s times that you forget that this is Adam Sandler as the lead of the film Barry Egan. It’s a total departure and it’s tremendously satisfying to see him demonstrate real depth as a performer, bringing deep sadness and darkness to the quiet exterior of the main role.

The cinematography by Robert Elswit is nicely distilled and detached in a Kubrickian manner. Every shot is pale, white, and sanitized, revealing little and obscuring all. This is matched wonderfully by Jon Brion’s hyper, evocative original score that speaks volumes to the inner state of Barry. Sandler’s performance is understated with bursts of violence and rage, but more often than not it’s a minimally drawn upon slate where every slight muscle movement says so much of the deep struggles in Barry’s troubled mind. 

Barry appears to be plucked out of his stupor by a friend of his sister. However, Emily Watson who plays Barry’s love interest Lena Leonard isn’t a manic pixie dream girl. Though she finds something worthwhile in damaged, awkward, unstable Barry, there’s hints that she’s a tad fucked up herself (that whole scene where they’re having sex and saying things like, “I want to smash your skull in”, as if that’s the most sincere, heartfelt pillow talk, is deeply disturbing). 

Paul Thomas Anderson continues to produce striking films. While Punch Drunk Love is much more low-key and personal than Anderson’s other works including Boogie Nights, There Will Be Blood, and Magnolia it remains quite unlike any other film out there. His films are visually bold, thematically rich, and filled with great performances, and Punch Drunk Love is no exception. While Punch Drunk Love is more slight and less imposing than these other films, it’s still an interesting character study with an improbably great performance from Sandler that’s filled with Anderson’s typically unique, memorable visual and stylistic choices.

Grade: B+