THE RELUCTANT FILM CRITIC’S CORNER PRESENTS:

A review of “Punch Drunk Love,” a film by Paul Thomas Anderson.

Wow. This movie absolutely blew my mind. It left me in a giddy, nitrous oxide-induced state, like Dennis Hopper in “Blue Velvet.” Who’d have suspected that an Adam Sandler flick could be so great? Most of the credit belongs to P.T. Anderson, who’s made four features and, amazingly, has yet to produce a dud. Bravo to him.

Some credit, however, should go to Adam Sandler. His character in “Punch-Drunk Love” is very different from the usual Sandler persona. I’ve seen “Happy Gilmore” and “The Wedding Singer,” and was fairly indifferent to both. In fact, “The Wedding Singer” only managed to inflame passions when Sandler did that song which was supposed to be influenced by The Cure. When did Robert Smith ever verbally assault a woman via song lyrics? I think Sandler and whoever wrote the screenplay had him confused with Ike Turner.

But I digress. The point is, the socially-confident, quick-draw smirk-sporting Sandler of old has been replaced by a withdrawn, socially-awkward Homunculus. He’s an adolescent who’s managed to take baby steps into adulthood, yet retains that soul-crushing self-consciousness that he should have grown out of. Imagine Peter Parker without Spidey powers, and without Uncle Ben and Aunt May, either. You get the idea.

Make that Peter Parker without Spidey powers or parental guidance, but a great deal of Bruce Banner-esque subconscious rage. And yes, Sandler’s character, Barry Egan, explodes quite often. He explodes against small objects, glass doors, and a restaurant lavatory. But never is any of this rage unleashed against the people tormenting him. It’s really unhealthy rage; Egan bleeds his own hands and harms himself. The timing may be funny, but the violence is scary.

And then come the death threats! Phone sex extortion, five Aryan brothers from Utah, and eight Sandler sisters who incessantly, INCESSANTLY needle him. Poor Barry Egan. Everyone and everything seems to be a potential source of harm. Just observe that opening sequence: Sandler steps out of his office for a cup of coffee, and a terrifying car wreck occurs before his eyes!

But at the same time that car wreck occurs, a taxi cab pulls over and drops off a harmonium (small organ.) It has a calming effect on the Sandler character. I’m guessing this odd dialectic—car crash, then harmonium—reflects P.T. Anderson’s central theme: The world contains more than just harmful things. So then Emily Watson arrives, playing a divorcee named Lena. I wouldn’t go as far as to say she has a calming effect on Barry. But she provides him with compassion and understanding. Better still, she helps him channel his rage into the five Aryan brothers and their mattress-salesman boss. Way healthier!

“Punch-Drunk Love” is a story we’ve heard many times before. Wonderful woman sees through loser man’s loser façade, then helps him heal. It’s pandering to the desperate lonely guy’s ultimate fantasy, that the right woman will stumble into his life, and everything will magically change for the better. Emily Watson’s Lena accepts Barry for all his faults. In fact, GASP!—his sister showed her his picture, and she immediately fell in love with him! DOUBLE-GASP! What kind of film was used, and has Kodak patented it?

Do women like Emily Watson’s Lena—too good to be true—really exist? My first reflex is to say no. As I just stated, they are too good to be true, so therefore, they must be false. But my old pal Fernando Magri used to say the same thing, and now he’s happily married. So who knows? Philosophizing aside, I accepted Lena. I accepted her because I knew she was the right person for Barry. Now, I’m not saying Emily Watson isn’t attractive enough to land somebody better. She has a very pretty, pixie-like beauty. But there’s also a nurturing quality to Emily Watson, and I’m sure P.T. Anderson sensed it when he cast her. You just know that Barry Egan can trust this woman, can feel safe with her. You just know she’s what he needs.

So while the romance is earnest to the point of being wishy-washy, that’s okay because all the other plot lines are goofy and surreal as well. The movie is a carnival merry-go-round rotating around a pin. But Barry and Lena’s burgeoning relationship makes up that pin, so it’s a compelling one. You really want it to stick.