Hitch: No One Is Immune

As soft and sweet as a marshmallow¹ and about as interesting, Hitch is one of those romantic comedies that make the most of New York’s recent transformation from a sleazy², hard-edged, interesting city into a mating ground for good-looking loft-dwellers with fascinating jobs. Unlike other examples of the genre, this one was filmed almost entirely in the city, which should gratify residents and tourists tired of the Hollywood habit of commuting, from one scene to the next, between Midtown and Vancouver.

In addition to savoring the neighborhood scenery and a few trendy gathering spots that have opened up since Sex and the City went off the air, audiences can enjoy the pleasant, easy company of Will Smith and Eva Mendes, two utterly charming screen performers pretending to tremble on the brink of love.

Ms. Mendes, whose slightly gap-toothed, dimpled smile will make short work of even those hearts resistant to her other lovely features, plays a newspaper gossip columnist named Sara Melas. As is customary in this kind of picture, Sara is determinedly single. Even Sara’s kindly boss worries that his star reporter is working too hard and letting her personal life languish³. 

Mr. Smith’s character is Alex Hitchens, also known as Hitch, the so-called “date doctor” of New York City. Hitch makes his living by coaching hapless⁴ guys who need help in winning over the girls of their respective dreams. Hitch will use any means necessary to instill romantic confidence in his clientele⁵. He was once a lonely wallflower himself, who learned about love and heartbreak the hard way. His latest project, Albert Brennaman (Kevin James), may be his most difficult. Brennaman, a junior accountant prone to clumsiness, has fallen head-over-heels for one of his clients, Allegra Cole(played by supermodel Amber Valletta), the daughter of the owner of his company. She is a celebrity and would obviously never consider dating him, but with the help of Hitch, Albert soon has some moves of his own.

At the same time, Hitch recently started seeing acid-tongued Sara Melas, the gossip reporter who makes a living covering and uncovering the love affairs of the rich and famous but has yet to find her own Mr. Right. Somehow, the date doctor’s patented prescription for love and happiness doesn’t work quite as well when he’s required to do the self-medicating and he has to learn the tricky art of just being himself, rather than the person he thinks women want to see.

Hitch is a glossy comedy on the outside, but as the screenplay reveals itself more and more we soon learn that it has an inner core of life lessons. People are not always who we assume they are, and Hitch, who clearly thinks he knows everything about winning women over, finds himself in the challenge of a lifetime with Sara.