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Adam Sandler, Emily Watson, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Luis Guzman, Mary Lynn Rajskub ... see more see more... , Don McManus

Adam Sandler and Emily Watson star in Punch-Drunk Love, an odd romantic comedy from gifted young director Paul Thomas Anderson. Sandler plays Barry Egan, a shy sad-sack with a great deal of repressed ... read more read more...anger that occasionally bursts forth in sudden violent outrages, who falls in love with Lena Leonard (Emily Watson), a co-worker of one of Barry's seven sisters. After calling a phone-sex line, Barry is extorted by bad-guy Dean Trumbell (Anderson regular Philip Seymour Hoffman), who eventually sends four goons to assault Barry and get the money. This film was screened in competition at the 2002 Cannes Film Festival, where Paul Thomas Anderson was named Best Director. ~ Perry Seibert, Rovi

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72% liked it

125,093 ratings

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79% liked it

180 critics

R, 1 hr. 35 min.

Directed by: Paul Thomas Anderson

Release Date: October 11, 2002

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DVD Release Date: June 24, 2003

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Stats: 7,161 reviews

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Flixster Reviews (7,161)

  • FilmFanatik
    February 1, 2012
    FilmFanatik
    I'm late to the game in seeing this one from Paul Thomas Anderson. I love his work, and I'm always eager to seek out other films that he's done. He hasn't done too many, as of this writing, but I always look forward to more. Punch-Drunk Love is probably the most curious film he's... read more ever made. It stars Adam Sandler, who I generally dislike in movies. It's strange because at a younger age when he was fresh off of Saturday Night Live and releasing comedy albums I liked the guy, but over time I just got tired of his laziness as an actor and a comedy writer. So I was walking on broken eggshells when seeing this one. Thankfully, thanks to strong direction from PTA, Sandler's acting style helps turn his performance into a very good one. Astonishingly good, I'd say. The story goes in different directions and defies conventions, which is what I enjoyed the most about it. I never knew what was going to happen next, and that rarely happens to me when I'm watching a film these days. It's a cute love story about two screwed up people coming together amidst the chaos of their lives, especially Sandler's. The score is great, as well. Overall, it's just a fun and enjoyable movie, albeit a little intense. I couldn't ask for anything more from PTA, or Sandler for that matter.
  • fb100001048934982
    January 28, 2012
    fb100001048934982
    Paul Thomas Anderson's 'Punch Drunk Love' is not an easy film to watch. It is probably PTA's most artistically driven film. Sandler provides a surprisingly good performance with his extreme bouts of rage and honest emotion. Hoffman adds a nice comedic touch to the film as well. F... read moreans of PTA's other work will be delighted, but the average movie goer may have a lot to complain about.
  • paulkoh110
    January 3, 2012
    paulkoh110
    In short, its an art house Adam Sandler film. With a marvelous direction from Paul Anderson, this obscure story blossoms toward the end. Despite its flaws, its a redemption from Magnolia and a great addition to the director's films.
  • fb1664868775
    November 20, 2011
    fb1664868775
    Paul Thomas Anderson uses Sandler perfectly in this very strange film. Sandler gives the best performance he ever has.
  • blkbomb
    August 8, 2011
    blkbomb
    Barry: I didn't do anything. I'm a nice man. I mind my own business. So you tell me 'that's that' before I beat the hell from you. I have so much strength in me you have no idea. I have a love in my life. It makes me stronger than anything you can imagine. I would say 'that's tha... read moret', Mattress Man. 

    I can't even begin to describe how much I love Punch-Drunk Love. It's a mesmerizing, original, extremely odd masterpiece from Paul Thomas Anderson. Pudding, frequent flier miles, a harmonium and a sex talk phone line fuel the movie. So that should give you a little idea to how odd a movie this is. Adam Sandler in a role that gives him some freedom. It shows that he can act when he decides to break away from the dumb comedies he is always appearing in. He's so good in his role of Barry Egan that it almost makes me hate Sandler for not doing movies like this more often. A supporting role from Emily Watson is absolutely fantastic as well. Her and Sandler are amazing on screen together.

    Punch-Drunk Love is like nothing I have ever seen before and probably will never see again. I consider it to be probably in my top 5 favorite movies ever; I love it that much. All the odd little ins and outs that Anderson uses work so well together. There is a scene in the film where Barry is in his office talking to a girl he just met, while he is receiving  phone calls that are totally tearing his life apart; that is absolutely phenomenal. Scene after scene, weird, almost surreal events taking place that shouldn't work. Yet, somehow they do. It's a romantic-dramedy that doesn't follow the usual formula. It's something completely different from anything else. 

    Honestly if you don't like this movie and it's because your an Adam Sandler hater; you need to get over it and look past that. Hate all of his other movies, but here, he's amazing; just like the movie. I'm not a huge fan of Sandler, but I'm a huge fan of his work here. I believe he got robbed of an Oscar nomination just because of his name. Like, nominating him would take away from the Academies credibility.

    If your sick of formula driven, predictable romantic-comedies; give this one a watch. It may just blow you away like it did me.
  • fb732260458
    March 19, 2011
    fb732260458
    This movie is the perfect example of Adam Sandler utilizing his lovable personality and comedic talent to create a fresh, off-kilter comedy rather than all the other derivative dreck that he pumps out year after year.
  • lewiskendell
    January 11, 2011
    lewiskendell
    I'm in love with this movie. I can't begin to explain all the things it does right, all the things it does absolutely perfectly. It has just enough of everything; just enough humor, just enough style, just enough tension, just enough love, and it was just surreal enough to make i... read moret all make sense. I real can't think of any substantial complaints to make.

    The first few minutes were a bit disorienting, because it was just so different. I love getting a completely unexpected experience from a movie, and Punch-Drunk Love was as fresh as they come. The next time someone asks me what my favorite kind of movie is, I'll tell them that I love movies just like this one. Movies that are brazen mishmashes of genres and styles, adding up too much more than the sum of their parts.

    Paul Thomas Anderson must be a brilliant man. The story and direction was immense, and whoever put together this score must have been inspired by the Muses. The cast was marvelous. I'll never be able to look at Adam Sandler the same way, again. Emily Watson's character may be one of the most appealing fictional personages that has ever been imagined. I'm really not trying to gush like this, but I can't help it. Punch-Drunk Love is easily one of my twenty-five favorite movies, ever. No, it's not for everyone, but you owe it to yourself to try to watch it at least once.
  • rjayhutchinson
    November 28, 2010
    rjayhutchinson
    Something about Sandler's relationship to the film's rather bizarre plot just clicks, creating this moderately entertaining film that perhaps comes off as more well-made than it actually was.
  • LorenzoVonMatterhorn
    November 12, 2010
    LorenzoVonMatterhorn
    "I have a love in my life. It makes me stronger than anything you can imagine."

    A beleaguered small-business owner gets a harmonium and embarks on a romantic journey with a mysterious woman.

    REVIEW
    ... read moreter>
    Filmmaker Paul Thomas Anderson once again shows his idiosyncratic talents at full tilt in this lopsided yet genuinely involving romantic comedy of off-beat proportions showcasing Sandler (in a surprisingly affective performance of his career) as a San Fernando Valley, CA small businessman whose bland lifestyle is out-of-balance when he meets a lovely young woman (Watson equally good) who inexplicably is smitten with each other in an unlikely meet-cute which leads to a series of surreal events. Sandler's man/child shlub is empathetic to a fault whether he's being emasculated by his seven harpy sisters, venting his pent up anger or soft-speaking his embroiled emotions all to a remarkable display of nuanced acting hitherto fore unseen. Funny, heartbreakingly poignant and highly original with tinges of pretentiousness are all earmarks of the uncanny Anderson (who also wrote the screenplay) who runs out of steam in the final act yet makes a big effort that cannot be overlooked as a talented show-off.
  • FrizzDrop
    July 13, 2010
    FrizzDrop
    The surprisingly poignant, and dramatic performance by Sandler is Golden Globe worthy, and essentially, very well intact.

View All Punch-Drunk Love Reviews

Critic Reviews

David Ansen
November 1, 2007
David Ansen, Newsweek

It's a romantic comedy on the verge of a nervous breakdown. Full Review

Eleanor Ringel Gillespie
November 2, 2002
Eleanor Ringel Gillespie, Atlanta Journal-Constitution

It is quite a vision. Full Review

Robert Denerstein
October 26, 2002
Robert Denerstein, Denver Rocky Mountain News

The journey toward redemption feels more like a cinematic experiment than a full-blown movie.

Mike Clark
October 25, 2002
Mike Clark, USA Today

Despite its title, Punch-Drunk Love is never heavy-handed. The jabs it employs are short, carefully placed and dead-center. Full Review

Joe Baltake
October 25, 2002
Joe Baltake, Sacramento Bee

In the end, Punch-Drunk Love is one of those films that I wanted to like much more than I actually did. Sometimes, that's enough. Full Review

Jay Boyar
October 25, 2002
Jay Boyar, Orlando Sentinel

Easily one of the best and most exciting movies of the year.

Eric Harrison
October 25, 2002
Eric Harrison, Houston Chronicle

[Anderson] uses a hit-or-miss aesthetic that hits often enough to keep the film entertaining even if none of it makes a lick of sense. Full Review

Susan Stark
October 25, 2002
Susan Stark, Detroit News

It's wacky. It's unpredictable. It's sure to give pause to Sandler fans and, smaller in number but every bit as dedicated, to Watson admirers too. Full Review

Terry Lawson
October 25, 2002
Terry Lawson, Detroit Free Press

Director Paul Thomas Anderson hasn't reinvented Sandler; he's just allowed those of us who tired very quickly of his innocent naif shtick to see how effectively it can be put in the service of somethi... Full Review

Steven Rosen
October 25, 2002
Steven Rosen, Denver Post

Everything about Punch-Drunk Love works in a Being John Malkovich sort of way save one. Sandler. When your star doesn't work, it's hard to get us to buy into the rest of a movie as unusual as this. Full Review

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Punch-Drunk Love Trivia

  • What movie did Adam Sandler star in?  Answer »
  • He was a "Happy" golf player who loves to "Click" around on his tv and has even fallen in "Punch-Drunk love"  Answer »
  • According to rottentomatoes.com, a site which compiled reviews from hundreds of critics and then averages it out to a percentage, Adam Sandler has only had 1 movie that didn't fall under the rotten category (under 60%). Name it.  Answer »
  • Which Actor connects these 3 movies? -The Salton Sea -The Count of Monte Cristo -Punch-Drunk Love  Answer »
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