“Think you can be a pervert and not pay for it?”
Two decades this film has been in my life. Two Paul Thomas Anderson dominated decades of astonishing films, and there are many arguments to be made that this is in fact his finest ever creation. Our own punch drunk love appreciation of any art form is myopically warped. The two people in all the world I love to the moon and back despise the Coen Brothers directed No Country For Old Men and I forgive them for being wrong. But it is a film that’s tough to love, much like Paul Thomas Anderson’s masterpiece here, and a masterpiece lest we forget that isn’t even as great as his previous masterpiece Magnolia, three years before. Now that’s a film that’s tough to love!
But love them we do, in our own wonderfully warped ways.
Punch Drunk Love is a heart soaring love story. I mean, what else can explain this conversation between two young lovers?
Barry: “I’m lookin’ at your face and I just wanna smash it. I just wanna fuckin’ smash it with a sledgehammer and squeeze it. You’re so pretty”.
Lena: “I want to chew your face, and I want to scoop out your eyes and I want to eat them and chew them and suck on them”.
Paul Thomas Anderson — An appreciation
My first ever film blog! Sydney, Boogie Nights, Magnolia, Punch Drunk Love, There Will Be Blood and The Master.medium.com
“I want you to know that I wanted to kiss you just then”.
Paul Thomas Anderson’s fourth cinematic masterpiece is an underrated piece of pure joy. Here’s a dissection of the bizarre opening ten minutes that will tell you so little about the film you’ll simply have to watch it for yourself. With no opening credits whatsoever the film opens on a long shot of “Barry Egan” (Adam Sandler) clad in a blue suit sitting at an office desk in an empty, barely furnished office in an industrial estate. The long shot frames Barry in the corner of the bare room, with a distinctive partial blue nominal strip of paint breaking up the otherwise staid, neutral coloured wall. In the middle of a telephone call, Barry is pedantic about a coupon offer, frustrated and apathetic at the responses received he exits the office into a very early morning stillness.
Staring at the exit gate of the industrial estate, the camera pans away from Barry and continues to move, slowly swooping (a familiar pattern throughout the film) out of the gates and into a deserted, still and quiet road. It’s interesting to note both the pale blue “hue” that surrounds Barry and the complete lack of any sound as he approaches the exit gates until a passing car overturns unexpectedly and spectacularly, breaking the complete silence, as does a delivery van that swiftly drops off a piano at the kerbside and drives off.
Cutting back to Barry, now seated again and in the middle of another frustrating telephone call, this is quickly cut away from as Barry repeats his earlier leaving of the office, however this time a car pulls into the estate and he’s greeted by “Lena Leonard” (Emily Watson) with an odd request: “Is it ok if I leave my car with you?”. An awkward conversation ensues to which Barry accepts to help Lena and she leaves to go to work but not before the two share brief glances at each other. Barry appears stressed by either the conversation or the odd request (or both) and hides in the corner of his office, with the camera panning to him sneaking a look at the exit gates and the piano that is still sitting at the kerbside.
Again in complete silence, Barry approaches the piano, but with a swift change in camera to the opposite side of the road we see and hear a roaring truck approach, seemingly on a collision course with the piano. Back to the original camera angle, we see Barry cradling the piano and rushing back to the office. Playing some gentle, indistinct notes on the piano, barely audible, the silence returns somewhat before the crashing sound of the roller blinds introduce us to “Lance” (Luis Guzman) in yet another PT Anderson film. Cue further awkward conversations between Barry and Lance, with Barry backing away and out of the office as a multi coloured stream of effects fill the screen to end the opening ten minutes.
In addition to Adam Sandler, Emily Watson and the returning Luis Guzman, Philip Seymour Hoffman also returns to a PT Anderson film, this time as an owner of a bedding store in a flat out bizarrely brilliant role as “Dean Trumbell”. And Barry has seven nagging sisters! “Elizabeth” (Mary Lynn Rajskub), “Susan” (Lisa Spector), “Nicole” (Nicole Gerbard), “Gilda” (Mia Weinberg), “Anna” (Karen Hermelin), “Kathleen” (Julie Hermelin) and “Rhonda” (Hazel Mailloux). And he has five Brothers in Law, one called “Walter the Dentist” (Robert Smigel). Confused?
Here’s the two stars of this wonderful film:
“Barry Egan” (Adam Sandler) Simply never better and a career defining performance. Desperate for love, escape and normalcy away from his hen pecking sisters, Sandler plays borderline psychotic Egan in a brilliant portrayal. Nervous, twitchy and out of control, Sandler is brilliant and far funnier playing dead pan serious than anything in his “funny” roles. A sublime performance of nervous tension, chaotic mood swings and nuanced touches of real perfection.
“Lena Leonard” (Emily Watson) Smiling, flirtatious and eyes that shine and light up the screen. Desperate to secure a date with Barry despite his frailties and oddities. The smaller of the two headline roles, but Watson is superb throughout.
The greatest compliment I can pay this film is that it is a complete one off.
A quirky love story with a bizarre central narrative surrounded in bizarre and surreal sub plots that will make you laugh hard, even at the most surreal of circumstances. The central love story is a delight and a joy, with characters that are eminently likeable despite their foibles. Plot spoilers prevent me from disclosing any further than simply stating there are so many humorous (some very darkly comedic) scenes that will make you smile, especially the “Gay Boy” interlude, the restaurant restroom and the most joyous of all scenes, the iconic silhouette kiss from the film posters. A common theme in the film separate from previous PT Anderson films seems to be of being busy, distracted, looking elsewhere, of life going on without you and you looking at it from the periphery. There are many segments depicting this, and of moments of silence broken, often in the most unexpected of ways.
Brilliantly captured by Paul Thomas Anderson and regular Director of Photography collaborator Robert Elswit, the real kudos here belongs to Jon Brion for his musical score. In keeping with the film, it’s quirky and full of strangely colliding odd sound effects (especially when Barry is alone) and joyously uplifting when together with Lena. One music track stands out “He Needs Me” by Shelley Duvall. Jeremy Blake also deserves great credit for the bizarre, acid trip like feel to the multi coloured interludes. Written and Directed by Paul Thomas Anderson, common themes of human separation, desire, a need for human interaction and compassion are all again to the fore amidst a chaotic mix of a dysfunctional family and hilarious central narratives.
Your heart is guaranteed to swell by the end of this beauty of a film.
Thanks for reading. Just for larks as always, and always a human reaction rather than spoilers galore. My three most recently published film articles are linked below or there’s well over 200 blog articles (with 400+ individual film reviews) within my archives from which to choose:
“Dunkirk” (2017)
The Best of Christopher Nolan — Vol 4.medium.com
“Gone Girl” (2014)
The Best of David Fincher — Vol 4.medium.com
“Collateral” (2004)
The Best of Michael Mann — Vol 4.medium.com