My Date with Drew (2005)

Good story, Not enough for a whole film

Good movie but grossly overrated

Absolutely Fantastic

It is a whirlwind of delight --- attractive actors, stunning couture, spectacular sets and outrageous parties.

I caught this film on NetFlix streaming so, like the film-makers, I didn't invest much money in it. By the end I was less than impressed and highly disappointed. The concept was interesting and there was some good tension as the deadline loomed.Unfortunately, the film had no real depth. Audiences typically identify in some way with the protagonist in good films. I don't see how many people could truly identify with Herzlinger. Yes, many us have had crushes on celebrities, but most of us quickly outgrow them in favor of pursuing real attainable relationships. We don't nurture them into our late 20s at which point we decide to make a film in a desperate attempt to gain the attention of the object of our affection. That's the line that critics of this film, including myself, don't cross. The entire time I watched this film I knew it would culminate in some highly orchestrated pity-date with Barrymore and, regrettably, that would be the only payoff.There was no character arc. Herzlinger is pretty much the same pathetic guy from the beginning to the end of the movie. His journey took him from "Guy who likes Drew Barrymore" to "Guy who went on date with Drew Barrymore". So what? Who cares? There were so many opportunities to really explore Herzlinger's fixation on Barrymore and the effect it had on his relationships with real women. Case in point, when he actually gets to the point where he meets Barrymore at the Charlie's Angels II premiere (something the audience experiences through a cell phone), one of his friends has to introduce him to her because, evidently, he's paralyzed with fear. Nobody in the film really addresses this point. He's gone through all this trouble to meet Drew Barrymore and he can't go up and talk to her when she's standing four feet away from him. This is where the movie simply doesn't work. Nobody in the production really pulls him aside and gives him a reality check. Everyone just goes along with it and enables his neuroses.The filmmakers were obviously conscious of the fact that Herzlinger is not an ideal suitor for Drew Barrymore. They address this by interjecting montages of him working out, contemplating hair waxing, and patronizing Barrymore's facialist in an attempt to make him more attractive... on the outside. But they never explore the real issue: Herzlinger's interior emotional issues. No one, including Herzlinger himself, was brave enough to explore that in depth. I'm certain an interview with the inaudible ex-girlfriend (another in a long list of one sided cell-phone scenes) would have given some terrific insight. Perhaps one of his "friends" could have asked him things like "What do you honestly expect to happen with Barrymore?" No, they just giggle and enable. And Barrymore's people don't do him any favors either by indulging him. Reality check: he never ever actually asks Drew Barrymore out on a date. He has to be dragged kicking and screaming every time he gets close. Everybody around him, including Barrymore herself, has to arrange the date for him. It's truly sad.By the end, I had lost all hope that Herzlinger would have learned something from his experience. At the onset of the film I'd hoped in he would ultimately provide some insight on relationships, crushes, self confidence, and abandoning your own emotional needs in favor of pursuing the unattainable. Instead, he offers some hackneyed "Follow your dreams" sentiments. By that point it feels more like an endorsement to become consumed in habitually bad and unhealthy behavior. Herzlinger's date with Drew is likely the worst thing that will ever happen to him as it has undoubtedly reinforced his debilitating fear of growing up and pursuing a real relationship.A good film if you like Bravo-channel-worthy-reality-TV-trainwrecks. Otherwise, don't bother.

Even casting aside memories of the infamous summer of 2005, (during which the Internet Movie Database's Film General message board was overrun for months by the director's friends relentlessly hawking this documentary - and getting extremely unpleasant when challenged about their behaviour, trolling the board - in a monumentally misguided attempt at viral marketing that ensured everyone who encountered them waited for it to arrive on television rather than pay to see it) this film is impossible to like.Much of that stems from the unlikable Brian Herzlinger, a man with no personality to speak of. He's a poor enough actor to betray the fact that at times he's clearly reading scripted material or improvising imaginary see-I-got-you-back phone conversations with an ex girlfriend who cheated on him. And that's not even his most pathetic moment.Every attempt is made to enliven the concept but because it simply doesn't lend itself to a feature length film these attempts are doomed to failure, even if they weren't so hopelessly amateurish and inappropriate. They frequently employ six degrees of separation graphics as if they expect the audience to care that some guy's friend is a friend of some other guy's agent who knows someone who once worked with Barrymore. This kind of information is often presented in dramatic freeze frames as if to underline how important it is.Presumably resulting from a dearth of imagination and creativity we're left with seemingly never-ending footage of Herzlinger approaching teenage girls outside malls and telling them what the film's about. "Oh, cool" they respond unenthusiastically - and this footage made the final cut! Next we see him unsuccessfully stopping people in the street and asking them to take part in "A survey about Drew Barrymore." It continues like this until the final scene, which I won't spoil. Things get mildly interesting (and decidedly awkward) for a few minutes and then - thankfully - it's over.

"My Date With Drew" accomplishes what any movie wants to. It evokes genuine emotions. I identified with Brian's quest. Who didn't have a crush on a beautiful Hollywood celebrity at some point in their life? The difference is that most people see it as a pipe dream and Brian saw it as a challenge, an opportunity to make a dream into a reality. And he's a very likable and charismatic guy. So I was really rooting for him. The feel of the film is very real. I get that these people are just going through their options as they think of them and then exploring them on video. It's funny. It's sweet. And it has plenty of moments where I found myself truly engaged into Brian's process. Feeling his pain. His elation. And when he finally gets the call from Nancy that Drew wants to have the date, and I saw the look in his eyes, I was right there with him. Full of gratitude. Happy to be alive. Life is about moments like this. Moments when something you work for and want more than anything actually happens. And when Brian actually has his date with Drew and you see how sweet, charming, appreciative and charismatic she is, the themes of the movie are personified perfectly within her. This is who she is. This is who Brian is. They were destined to meet. It was kismet. For his life. For his career. And even for hers. "My Date With Drew" shows us that the power and perseverance of the human spirit will triumph over all the odds. Watch this film with people you care about. When it's over, you'll care about them even more. For me, this film is ultimately about gratitude. Drew was grateful of Brain. Brain was grateful of Drew. And when you see the behind the scenes footage of the film, you really get that everyone involved was grateful for everyone who shared the dream and stood by it. Always go after your dreams! And if you really want to share it with others... be bold enough to get it on videotape. :)

So a guy borrows a video-camera and makes a documentary about how he gets a date with Drew Barrymore in 30 days. His friends help and it becomes a big production. Unfortunately, this guy's sad attempt at breaking into show business isn't very interesting. Basically, they keep calling people in Drew's outer circle of gatekeepers in the hope of getting a lunch date with her. They do crash an event, and the guy says "Hi" to her, but is too overcome with her stardom to ask her out. Then they reenact the meeting because they didn't bring a camera into the event. I'm sure Drew is a wonderful person but pleeeease - she's not a goddess! So when they fail to get the date within 30 days they keep going (cheating!) until she eventually hears about it and decides she'd like the free publicity (and IMDb credit!). How is this even mildly entertaining?