Hitch - Der Date Doktor

What - a Will Smith movie with nothing blowing up? I was all prepared to hate this movie. I mean c'mon, a chick flick with Will Smith? It seems Will Smith can only play one character - himself - but in this one he tones that down and comes across as a real human being.

I was so surprised by this movie. I ended up laughing through the whole thing and came to care for and relate to all the characters.

There was NOTHING about racial stereotypes. It wasn't about a black guy teaching a white guy to dance at all. It was about a bunch of characters who legitimately grow from the first scene to the last.

Take you girlfriend and go!

This was a movie that, at the end, I thought "Now that was an enjoyable 2 hours!" I hate spending around $20 (not including baby-sitting $$) for my husband and myself to have that "It was OK" feeling.

I think I like Will Smith better as a comedic actor than an action hero. He was well cast in this. His character was very likable, as was Kevin James'.

There were several laugh out loud scenes. It's also a romantic movie, so guys, if you want to impress the lady in your life, take her to this. Women will like it as much as any chick-flick, but I wouldn't categorize this as one. There is plenty of guy humor in it for men to enjoy. I think that's one of the reasons why this movie is so perfect as a date movie. It has romance AND slapstick. I don't usually like slapstick that much, but it wasn't overdone and I can't think of any those scenes that didn't deliver laughs.

I definitely recommend this movie. The first thing my husband said to me after it was over was "I want to see it again!"

I just really enjoyed this movie. I don't laugh out loud easily & this one did it. Kevin James was a riot. The humor wasn't silly and most of the characters were as real as people ever get in romcoms. The movie relied on relationship rather than sex, which is a huge plus for me.

"Hitch" starts off well, with some genuinely good advice for men and their relationships and introduces to us the interesting characters. Basically the story is about Hitch (Will Smith), a man who knows all of the ropes when it comes to dating women, taking Albert (Kevin James) under his wing. Normally the guy would have as much chance of getting together with the apple of his eye (Amber Valletta as Allegra) as a skyscraper has of surviving a Godzilla attack, but Hitch is a real pro, so love might just be in the air.

I never thought I'd say this… but Kevin James is actually good in this movie. Will Smith is charming as usual, but the both of them really work together. There's chemistry between the actors and there are ample touching, funny and even romantic moments (well, not between James and Smith). When the two male leads are doing their comedic parts, the film is enjoyable and when it's being truthful, it feels genuine. What really hurts the movie is the last third of the running time. The story was deliberately avoiding the usual tropes that romantic comedies always have to labor through… and then it flat-out turns into a generic romance plot. Why was it necessary to include the big misunderstanding, the chase, the earth shattering revelations and the dramatic resolution, all because no one can just sit down, talk and explain themselves to the other people? This is a movie that contains one of my all-time pet peeves because just like in every bad horror movie where the dumb teenagers get themselves killed because either they've never seen a horror movie in their entire lives, or horror movies just don't exist in this film, the people of "Hitch" suddenly all lose their brains and make the same dumb mistakes we've seen over and over. For its good parts "Hitch" is worth seeing but unfortunately it fumbles the ball right before the end and falls just short of being a truly great, original romantic comedy. (On DVD, October 30, 2012)

In this romantic comedy, Alex 'Hitch' Hitchins (Will Smith) is a legendary but anonymous date doctor in New York City. Hitch advises klutzy male wallflower clients on ways to make good first impressions on the women of their dreams. To contact Hitch, a man must have a referral from one of his former clients. Once Hitch accepts you as a client, he will coach you on your first three dates; after that, you're on your own. Hitch's newest client is Albert Brennaman (Kevin James), a fat tax accountant in love with a celebrity client, Allegra Cole (Amber Valetta). Allegra doesn't know that Albert exists, so Albert contacts Hitch to make his dream come true. Hitch decides to make Albert a client, even though, he knows this is going to be tough. While working on this job, Hitch meets Sara Melas (Eva Mendes), a gossip reporter for a daily tabloid, who is following Allegra's every move. Sara has given up on men, and Hitch wants to cut through that layer, because he is the master of love, so he thinks. With Valentine's Day around the corner, this is a good date movie. Women will love it, and men may pick up a few pointers. The movie is hilarious and filled with verbal and slapstick comedy from beginning to end. There are several scenes that may make you bust a gut laughing. (Columbia, Run time 1:55, Rated PG-13)(8/10)