Hitch (film)
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| Hitch | |
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 A promotional film poster for Hitch. |
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| Directed by | Andy Tennant |
| Produced by | James Lassiter Will Smith Teddy Zee |
| Written by | Kevin Bisch |
| Starring | Will Smith Eva Mendes Kevin James Amber Valletta |
| Music by | George Fenton Alan Elliott |
| Cinematography | Andrew Dunn |
| Editing by | Troy Takaki Tracey Wadmore-Smith |
| Studio | Overbrook Entertainment |
| Distributed by | Columbia Pictures |
| Release date(s) | February 11, 2005 |
| Running time | 118 min. |
| Country | USA |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $70,000,000 |
| Gross revenue | Worldwide: $368,100,420[1] |
Hitch (Originally titled Last First Kiss) is a 2005 romantic comedy film starring Will Smith, Eva Mendes, Kevin James, and Amber Valletta. The film was directed by Andy Tennant, from a screenplay written by Kevin Bisch. Smith plays a professional matchmaker, who makes a living teaching men how to woo women. The film was released on February 11, 2005 by Columbia Pictures.
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[edit] Plot Summary
Alex "Hitch" Hitchens (Will Smith) is a professional "date doctor", or consultant as Hitch terms himself, who coaches other men in the art of having the perfect date with the woman of their dreams.
At the start of the film Hitch is helping three guys get the girl of their dreams. Telling tips and revealing that three dates is all he needs, three dates he will get you there.
In a flashback scene, Hitch, a then-nerd, dated a girl in college who cheated on him and broke his heart; this moved him to become a date doctor to help men who are as hopeless with women as he once had been.
While coaching one of his clients, Albert Brennaman (Kevin James), who is smitten with celebrity Allegra Cole (Amber Valletta), Hitch finds himself falling for Sara Melas (Eva Mendes), a gossip columnist who is determined to unmask and ruin the so-called date doctor after one of his "clients" (with whom Hitch refused to work, unknown to Sara) had a one night stand with her best friend, Casey. However, where Albert and Allegra's relationship continues to progress, Hitch finds that, despite his being a master of the art, none of his tried and tested methods works for him.
Sara finds out that Hitch is the date doctor and mistakenly concludes that he helps men get women into bed, which makes Albert look like he's just after sex. Hitch reveals to Sara and her friend that he helps men have a chance to do the impossible by dating the women of their dreams. After wards, Hitch is hesitant to speak to Sara, and Albert is upset that the media thinks he really isn't in love with Allegra.
Hitch confronts Allegra and convinces her to reunite with Albert, before finally reconciling with Sara. In the process, he makes the startling discovery that he doesn't really do anything significant; while Hitch is able to give them the confidence boost to go after what they want, most of his customers (particularly Albert) really were successful by just being themselves.
In the end, Albert and Allegra get married and celebrate their marriage with Hitch and Sara, who are also together again. Casey, is sitting alone and a old woman comes up to her, asking her "Where's your date?" She answers with "I don't have one" the old lady later eats a cherry (presumably) and chokes on it. Casey saves her when her grandchild comes and she tells him to ask her to dance. As they go off, the old grandma gives Hitch a wink, which he returns. Hitch, reflecting on love's unpredictability, addresses the audience in the last line: "Basic principles... There are none".
[edit] Cast
- Alex "Hitch" Hitchens - Will Smith
- Sara Melas - Eva Mendes
- Albert Brennaman - Kevin James
- Allegra Cole - Amber Valletta
- Casey Sedgewick - Julie Ann Emery
- Max - Adam Arkin
- Cressida Baylor - Robinne Lee
- Geoff - Nathan Lee Graham
- Ben - Michael Rapaport
- Vance Munson - Jeffrey Donovan
- Mandy - Paula Patton
[edit] Production
The production budget was $70,000,000. Smith alleged that actress Eva Mendes, of Cuban descent, was offered the female lead because the producers were worried about the public's reaction if the part was played by a White actress (creating a potential interracial taboo) or a Black actress (creating a studio fear that two black leads would alienate the white audiences). It was believed that a Latina and a Black lead would sidestep the issue.[2] Robinne Lee's character (Cressida) was originally offered to Bollywood actress Aishwarya Rai, but she could not take the role due to scheduling problems.[3] The working title of the movie was The Last First Kiss, referring to a line that Hitch delivers to Albert: "This could be her last first kiss." Parts of the movie were filmed in Morningside Heights, Manhattan, at Columbia University.
[edit] Reception and box office
The film received generally positive reviews, garnering a 68% "fresh" approval rating from notable critics, a 61% approval rating from top critics, and a 73% approval rating from users on the Rotten Tomatoes website. It also received a 58/100 on Metacritic, indicating "mixed or average reviews." The film also ended up grossing $179,495,555 domestically, making it the tenth-highest grossing film of 2005, and one of distributor Columbia's few successes that year. It also grossed $368,100,420 worldwide and broke Sony's record for best opening weekend for a romantic-comedy film.[4]
[edit] Home video release
The DVD release was one of the first films to employ Sony's ARccOS copy protection. The film is also available on UMD (Universal Media Disc) for the Sony PSP (PlayStation Portable). A Blu-Ray version of the film is also available.
[edit] Trivia
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Lists of miscellaneous information should be avoided. Please relocate any relevant information into appropriate sections or articles. (November 2009) |
The fire station seen at the beginning of the movie when Hitch is coaching a client is the very same station used in Ghostbusters.
Will Smith suggested Kevin James (actor) for the film after liking his performance in The King of Queens.
[edit] See also
- Jordan Harbinger An NYC-based dating coach often compared to Will Smith's character in the movie.
- Chhoti Si Baat - A 1975 Bollywood film noted for sharing similar plot elements.[5]
- Partner - A 2007 Bollywood film starring Salman Khan and Govinda in which film director David Dhawan said he was inspired by Hitch.
- Cyrano de Bergerac (play)"
[edit] References
- ^ "Hitch (2005)". Box Office Mojo. http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=hitch.htm. Retrieved 2009-03-06.
- ^ "Was race an issue in Hitch casting?". MSNBC. 2005-02-23. http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/7019342/. Retrieved 2007-03-23.
- ^ "Aishwarya was almost in Hitch: director". IndiaGlitz.com. 2005-04-16. http://www.indiaglitz.com/channels/hindi/interview/6308.html. Retrieved 2007-03-23.
- ^ "Will Smith's 'Hitch' Tops Box Office, Sets Record For Sony". AllHipHop.com. http://www.allhiphop.com/hiphopnews/?ID=4074. Retrieved 2007-03-16.
- ^ "Exploits of a date doc". The Hindu. April 15, 2005. http://www.hindu.com/fr/2005/04/15/stories/2005041503170200.htm. Retrieved 2009-03-15.
[edit] External links
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Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to: Hitch |
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