It’s been a while, but this was a particularly good weekend … I think. Thank you, Mr. Lincoln and Mr. Washington!

Alex Hitchens (Will Smith), aka “Hitch”, is a “consultant” who makes a living by advising guys on how to behave towards a woman they want to date, in order to ensure a joint future. One job he undertakes is to hook up fat, clumsy accountant Albert Brennaman (Kevin James) with lovely celebrity Allegra Cole (Amber Valletta); one job he (rather violently) turns down is an attempt to hire him to hook up cad Vance Munson (Jeffrey Donovan) with uncertain young Casey (Julie Ann Emery) for a one-night stand.

At this point, the level of coincidence becomes positively Shakespearean. Hitch meets, in a bar, by sheer chance, lovely gossip columnist Sara Melas (Eva Mendes), who as it happens is a friend of Casey’s and also is following the life and times of Allegra Cole. The movie follows the ups and downs in the development of the relationships between Hitch and Sara, on the one hand, and Albert and Allegra, on the other. There are some ups, and there is at least one pretty bad down, largely due to Vance (who is otherwise not much of a presence in the film). Naturally, everything works out for the best in the end, even for Casey.

From my point of view there are mostly so-so romance films (Love, Actually) and pretty bad ones (How To Lose a Guy in Ten Days). I’ve largely been avoiding them in recent months. This one, however, strikes me as the best since Notting Hill. Enjoy!

i love the movie hitch and watch it about fifty times a day. ( LItterally)