Along Came Polly
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Along Came Polly
Plot
Screenwriter John Hamburg directs his second film (since his 1998 debut Safe Men) with the romantic comedy Along Came Polly. Ben Stiller plays Reuben Feffer, a professional risk assessor who never takes chances in any aspect of his life. When his new bride Lisa (Debra Messing) leaves him for a European scuba instructor named Claude (Hank Azaria), he finally decides to a risk of his own. At a party, he meets free-spirited Polly Prince (Jennifer Aniston), whom he remembers from his seventh-grade Model U.N. Unlike the control-freak Reuben, she's spent her life living on the edge. They reluctantly begin a romance and Polly introduces him to a new world of spicy food and suggestive dances. Along Came Polly also stars Philip Seymour Hoffman as Reuben's washed-up best friend Sandy Lyle and Alec Baldwin as the obnoxious insurance company boss Stan Indursky. ~ Andrea LeVasseur, RoviReview
John Hamburg had previously worked on the screenplays for Zoolander and Meet the Parents before this film, proving that he had the ability to shape material for Ben Stiller. With Along Came Polly, Hamburg graduates to the director's chair as well, and his inexperience behind the camera is noticeable. Although he takes his time and carefully establishes the failed marriage that opens the movie, the body of the film lacks continuity. There are bits of business that seem like they will payoff later but never do, and the scenes fluctuate wildly in their pacing. Although the film fails to work as a whole, there are moments that generate real laughter. Philip Seymour Hoffman uses his potent physicality to get laughs out of both an introductory pratfall and a handful of basketball scenes. In his too few scenes, Alec Baldwin finds the perfect tone as Stiller's boss, combining authority, unctuousness, insincerity, and affection in equal measure. Stiller himself is very comfortable playing this type of character -- for him it is the equivalent of an old pair of sneakers. He's fine, but he does nothing new. Jennifer Aniston could have been interesting, but aside from goading Stiller's character into coming out of his shell, she has almost nothing to play. The film glosses over her emotional issues in order to focus on Stiller's gastrointestinal issues. Along Came Polly lacks inspiration, but for all its faults, it does give the supporting performers enough room to make it better than it could have been. ~ Perry Seibert, RoviCast
- Ben Stiller - Reuben Feffer
- Jennifer Aniston - Polly Prince
- Philip Seymour Hoffman - Sandy Lyle
- Debra Messing - Lisa Kramer
- Alec Baldwin - Stan Indursky
- Hank Azaria - Claude
- Bryan Brown - Leland Van Lew
Credit
Martin Whist - Art Director, Kathleen Chopin - Casting, Joann Fregalette Jansen - Choreography, Anne Fletcher - Choreography, Cindy Evans - Costume Designer, Daniel Silverberg - First Assistant Director, John Hamburg - Director, Alex Daniels - Second Unit Director, Nick Moore - Editor, William Kerr - Editor, Jane Bartelme - Executive Producer, Dan Levine - Executive Producer, Theodore Shapiro - Composer (Music Score), Randall Poster - Musical Direction/Supervision, Andrew Laws - Production Designer, Seamus Mcgarvey - Cinematographer, Danny DeVito - Producer, Michael Shamberg - Producer, Stacey Sher - Producer, Don Diers - Set Designer, Greg Berry - Set Designer, Mary Saisselin - Set Designer, Illusion Arts - Special Effects, Geoffrey Patterson - Sound/Sound Designer, Alex Daniels - Stunts Coordinator, John Hamburg - Screenwriter, Larry Blanford - Second Unit Camera, Greg Curtis - Special Effects Coordinator, Darren King - Supervising Sound Editor, Industrial Light & Magic - Visual Effects| Along Came Love (1937 Film), Along Came Kinky... Texas Jewboy for Governor (2009 Film) | |
| Along Came Ruth (1924 Film), Along Came Sally (1934 Film) |
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Along Came Polly
| Along Came Polly | |
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 Film poster |
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| Directed by | John Hamburg |
| Produced by | Danny DeVito Michael Shamberg Stacey Sher |
| Written by | John Hamburg |
| Starring | Ben Stiller Jennifer Aniston Debra Messing Philip Seymour Hoffman Hank Azaria Bryan Brown Alec Baldwin Michele Lee |
| Music by | Theodore Shapiro |
| Cinematography | Seamus McGarvey |
| Editing by | William Kerr Nick Moore |
| Studio | Jersey Films Red Hour Productions |
| Distributed by | Universal Pictures |
| Release date(s) |
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| Running time | 90 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $42 million |
| Box office | $171,963,390 |
Along Came Polly is a 2004 American romantic comedy film written and directed by John Hamburg, starring Ben Stiller and Jennifer Aniston in the lead roles. It was a commercial success though not well reviewed.
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Contents
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Plot
Reuben Feffer (Ben Stiller), a risk assessment expert, is celebrating his honeymoon with newlywed wife, Lisa Kramer (Debra Messing), on the island of St. Barts but catches her having sex with Claude (Hank Azaria), a French scuba instructor. Returning home to New York, he attempts to piece his life back together. Reuben goes to an art gallery with his friend, Sandy Lyle (Philip Seymour Hoffman), where he runs into former classmate Polly Prince (Jennifer Aniston). Reuben and Polly begin dating, with her introducing him to activities he once wrote off as "too risky," such as eating at a Moroccan restaurant and salsa dancing. Eventually, they have hot and sweaty sex.
The contrast between their two personalities is a source of comedy throughout the film until Lisa returns and tells him she wants to reconcile their relationship. Reuben is torn between the free-spirited Polly and the safe and familiar Lisa. To solve this issue he enters information about Polly and Lisa into a computer insurance program which measures risk. The computer tells him that, despite his numerous blunders with her, Polly is the best choice for him. Polly joins Reuben on a sailing trip he's going in order to inspect Leland Van Lew (Bryan Brown), a high risk client, but gets offended when she sees his risk analysis of herself and rejects his proposal to move in together, telling him that he'd be better off going back to Lisa. Back home, Reuben tries talking to Polly but no avail. He eventually invites Lisa to Sandy's opening show, where he learns that Polly is leaving New York in a few hours. After a speech given by his father, Irving (Bob Dishy), to Sandy, Reuben realizes he wants to be with Polly and not Lisa, and he rushes to her apartment to stop her from leaving. Polly is not convinced she should stay with him, so Reuben eats food off the ground to prove he is capable of taking risks.
The movie ends with Reuben and Polly on the beach where he and Lisa had their honeymoon at the beginning of the film. Reuben again encounters Claude, but instead of being angry he thanks Claude, and then heads into the water with Polly-- nude.
Cast
- Ben Stiller as Reuben Feffer
- Jennifer Aniston as Polly Prince
- Debra Messing as Lisa Kramer
- Philip Seymour Hoffman as Sandy Lyle
- Alec Baldwin as Stan Indursky
- Hank Azaria as Claude
- Missi Pyle as Roxanne
- Bryan Brown as Leland Van Lew
- Jsu Garcia as Javier
- Michele Lee as Vivian Feffer
- Bob Dishy as Irving Feffer
- Masi Oka as Wonsuk
Box office
The film opened at No. 1 at the U.S. Box office raking in $27,721,185 USD in its first opening weekend, ending the month-long reign of The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King.[1]
Reception
Along Came Polly received mixed to negative reviews; critics commented that Aniston and Stiller did not make a convincing couple. The film holds an approval rating of 26% at Rotten Tomatoes based on 152 reviews (39 positive, 113 negative).[2] Nevertheless the film was a financial success, making $171 million at the box office worldwide off a $42 million budget.[3]
References
- ^ Kaufman, Gil (January 20, 2004). "'Along Came Polly' ... And Down Went The 'King'". MTV Movie News. http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1484436/along-came-polly-tops-box-office.jhtml. Retrieved 2011-05-25.
- ^ "Along Came Polly (2004)". Rotten Tomatoes. http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/along_came_polly/. Retrieved June 12, 2010.
- ^ "Along Came Polly". Box Office Mojo. http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=alongcamepolly.htm. Retrieved June 12, 2010.
External links
- Official website
- Along Came Polly at the Internet Movie Database
- Along Came Polly at AllRovi
- Along Came Polly at Box Office Mojo
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Mentioned in
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Missi Pyle
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Judah Friedlander
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Masi Oka
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