Hitch (2005)
Directed by Andy Tennant
Dating coach Alex 'Hitch' Hitchens mentors a bumbling client, Albert, who hopes to win the heart of the glamorous Allegra Cole. While Albert makes progress, Hitch faces his own romantic setbacks when proven techniques fail to work on Sara Melas, a tabloid reporter digging for dirt on Allegra Cole's love life. When Sara discovers Hitch's connection to Albert – now Allegra's boyfriend – it threatens to destroy both relationships.
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Like "The Taming of the Shrew" or Emma, Hitch meets his match in tabloid columnist Sara (Mendes), who mistakes his helping schlub Albert (Kevin James--the real surprise of the show) to woo heiress Allegra Cole (Amber Valletta) for something venal instead of something wonderful.
Hitch (Smith), a smooth, fourth-wall breaking ladies man (like Alfie or Robert Downey Jr. in The Pick-Up Artist), makes his living helping the helpless attract the attention of their ladies fair.
This isn't to say that contrived episodes don't rear their ugly heads from time to time -- that's what keeps "Hitch" from being great guy-centric romantic comedy in the vein of Stephen Frears' "High Fidelity."
Hitch -- a sort of Budweiser-era version of the Vicomte de Valmont from "Dangerous Liaisons" -- likes that spirit.
This puts him on roughly the same career arc as Yente in Fiddler on the Roof, except that he works anonymously and in a much bigger shtetl.
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It is a universally recognized fact that if a women sends her man to rent a romantic movie, he will return with "True Romance," the one where Christopher Walken slices open Dennis Hopper's hand to get him to tell where Christian Slater is hiding.
Smith's courtesy and charisma charm the audience from the moment he introduces himself to us, literally, í la Ferris Bueller's Day Off or Alfie.
One should expect little from the man who has directed an Olsen twins movie (It Takes Two, the one with Steve Guttenberg, no less), Matthew Perry's first Friends-to-film entry (Fools Rush In, its title an apparent nod to audiences that went to see it) and Sweet Home Alabama, one of those interchangeable romantic comedies located at the bottom of Reese Witherspoon's barrel.
The film is directed by Andy Tennant, maker of "Fools Rush In" and "Sweet Home Alabama."
Having been at the helm of a number of similar films--including "Anna and the King," "Ever After" and most recently "Sweet Home Alabama"--director Andy Tennant once again realizes the potential he had in the underrated "Fools Rush In" starring Matthew Perry and Salma Hayek.
Currently a huge, runaway hit in the States, Hitch is directed by Andy Tennant, who cut his romcom teeth on Sweet Home Alabama and Ever After (although the less said about Fools Rush In, the better).
Eventually, the two plotlines must meet, and given director Andy Tennant’s schlocky track record — “Fools Rush In,” “Ever After,” “Sweet Home Alabama” — you can guess how it’s going to go down.
Director Andy Tennant is no stranger to the genre (with films like "Sweet Home Alabama," "Ever After," and "Fools Rush In" under his belt) and what's fun about his latest romantic comedy is watching Smith and Mendes play off one another with sophisticated wit and charm.
One should expect little from the man who has directed an Olsen twins movie (It Takes Two, the one with Steve Guttenberg, no less), Matthew Perry's first Friends-to-film entry (Fools Rush In, its title an apparent nod to audiences that went to see it) and Sweet Home Alabama, one of those interchangeable romantic comedies located at the bottom of Reese Witherspoon's barrel.
One should expect little from the man who has directed an Olsen twins movie (It Takes Two, the one with Steve Guttenberg, no less), Matthew Perry's first Friends-to-film entry (Fools Rush In, its title an apparent nod to audiences that went to see it) and Sweet Home Alabama, one of those interchangeable romantic comedies located at the bottom of Reese Witherspoon's barrel.
And "Hitch," directed by Andy Tennant (who made the exceedingly charming "Ever After," as well as the sugary bit of cardboard known as "Sweet Home Alabama") and written by first-timer Kevin Bisch, is just the latest example of a movie that doesn't have to be as bad as it is, considering that it's peopled with enjoyable performers, actors who possess either outright charisma or at least an acceptable amount of likability.
Director Andy Tennant ( "Sweet Home Alabama" ) falls back on montage sequences, manufactured misunderstandings and poorly conceived slapstick from time to time (heavily tapped for the movie's terrible trailers and TV ads).
The film is directed by Andy Tennant, maker of "Fools Rush In" and "Sweet Home Alabama."
Of course, part of what makes a recipe work lies in the quality of the ingredients, and the ones here are generally of the finest kind, from the clever screenplay by newcomer Kevin Bisch to the nigh-perfect casting to the smooth direction of Andy Tennant (forget that he made Sweet Home Alabama).
Director Andy Tennant is no stranger to love stories, having previously helmed Fools Rush In, Ever After, and Sweet Home Alabama.
Likewise Mendes, who starred opposite Denzel Washington in "Out of Time" and "Training Day," gives as good as she gets, proving she's as adept at comedy as she is drama.
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It’s not The English Patient , but it hits the spot.
Judged solely on the theatrical trailer, Hitch would be easy to mistake for a gross-out gag fest like the Farrelly brothers' There's Something About Mary.