the Mind’s Chew Toy

When Will Smith stars in a romantic comedy, it’s almost a guaranteed hit. Throw in extremely awkward “King of Queens”‘ Kevin James, and you’ve got the makings for an hilarious movie called Hitch. The previews showcase some of the funniest scenes to hit theaters in awhile, so Heather and I knew we had to check it out.

The last time we went to the theater, however, graphic novel adaptation Sin City (2005) won out over Hitch (mostly because of the Quentin Tarantino influence more than anything else). Sin City (2005) turned out to be pretty good, but we were definitely not going to miss Hitch as soon as it hit DVD.

Last Tuesday, that finally happened, so Heather and I snatched Hitch off the shelf, and settled in for what promised to be a fun couple of hours.

Will Smith has the uncanny knack to make very few missteps when it comes to the roles he chooses (Wild Wild West has been his only big blunder so far while he’s found success with Independence Day, and I, Robot (2004) to name a few). He always seems able to pick the characters that the audience will relate well to, never blundering too much by picking a role so out of character that audiences will be too confused. He’s found his own unique nitch, and he’s doing an impressive job of showcasing that niche in the best possible way.

His acting seems so genuine in each movie, it’s easy for the audience to relate to his character. His character always seems to contain a certain amount of smoothness that audience members always strive for, but don’t always achieve. Will always has a positive attitude, and the audience can tell he really loves what he does. The exuberance Will displays for his craft is catching, and the average viewer will be able to tap right into that and enjoy his performance as much as he obvoiusly enjoys performing. It’s a great quality that few actors have, and it never gets old to see. It’s a quality that more stars should have, but unfortunately, don’t achieve.

This exuberance is shared (at least in Hitch) by Smith’s costar, Kevin James. He will do anything for a laugh. While this sometimes gets a bit pathetic on his TV show “King of Queens,” it’s refreshing to see on the big screen, and really gets the audience rooting for this guy from the beginning. Sure, he’s overweight and kind of a doofus. But he possessess that exuberance, that love of acting, that makes him so endearing to the audience.

It’s hilarious to see some of what his character will do to get the woman of his dreams, but at the same time it’s heartwarming. His little celebrations are shared with the audience in such a way that the audience will feel like they are right there sharing the happy moment with him. True, that’s partly the way the film is directed, but it’s in good part due to his joy at being in the film that spills over onto the audience. They get caught up in the good moments right along with James, and they love every minute of it.

Unfortunately, the side story of James and Smith isn’t the main story in Hitch. For the main part of the film, the story goes to a somewhat too-familiar place - that of Mr. Smooth becoming all thumbs when he meets Miss Right. This has been done over and over again, almost to death. True, Smith and co-star Mendes do have a decent chemistry together - but only at times. At other times, their relationship becomes the major failing point of the film. Some of their scenes together just bottom-out before they finish, and get to be a bit uncomfortable for the audience. Luckily, there are very few of these moments, and most of their on-screen time together is enjoyable to watch.

Hitch starts out as a unique comedy with a great comedy duo (Will Smith and Kevin James). Then, just when you can’t stop laughing, it changes it’s mind and becomes more about the overdone “Mr. Smooth meets Miss Right” scenario. This, which really takes over about 3/4 of the way through the film, reduces Hitch to just another romantic comedy - for a time. Luckily, it’s able to pull itself back together at the end (although it’s with an ending you can see coming miles away).

Hitch should have kept the Smith and James team going as the main plot of the movie, and thrown in the Smith/Mendes thing as a side plot, instead of the other way around. As it is, it’s got some really funny moments that pull it ahead of the crowd - but not as much as it could have been.

Still, it’s definitely worth renting, and we’ll probably pick it up to own - because while it isn’t as good as it could have been, Hitch is still pretty darn good.