Between the Covers: Stories from My Bookcase

Sunday, December 2, 2012

Click (2006 movie)

You’ve seen the movie Click right? It stars Adam Sandler and Kate Beckinsale. I love this movie!

click

I’m surprised (really?) that I haven’t written about this movie before. I must have seen it at least five times over the years but I know we saw this in the cinemas when it was released here. Apart from Linger being one of my favorite songs and the couple’s theme song in this movie, I love this film for a number of other reasons. But first, a quick summary.

Sandler plays architect Michael Newman, and Beckinsale is his wife Donna.  They have two young kids. The story begins with Michael not getting the promotion he was expecting in return for all the work he’s had to put in. The wife is supportive, but for sure, Michael just can’t wait to get promoted already.  With all the confusion of which remote controls what appliance, he heads out to the retail store Bed, Bath and Beyond. In the Beyond section he meets Morty who gives him the Universal Remote.

Michael soon finds out the amazing features of his new gadget. He can pause everyone and everything around him, and rewind to any point in his life – in fact, this is how he remembers what their song is. Since he can rewind, he also tries to fast forward. That’s what he does for arguments with the wife, traffic, and even for sex – because he has loads of work to do for his boss Mr. Ammer.

Despite having missed out on time with the family, he finds that his promotion keeps getting delayed. He decides to fast forward to when he is finally promoted. The thing is, he skips through an entire year. He has no memory of it but it happened. A version of him who is on auto-pilot goes through that year. When it stops, he is being congratulated for his promotion, but he is also undergoing marriage counseling. The wife’s complaint? He’s just never there.

The thing is, the remote records the user’s preference, so without even hitting a button, it already knows when to fast forward – arguments, sex, traffic, promotion. So the boss just had to promise a promotion (to CEO) and Michael finds himself waking up to the day he is made CEO – ten years later.

And so the story goes. Michael can’t get rid of the remote control that he thought was meant to let him control his life. Only he finds that it actually set things out of control.

So why do I keep watching this film?

  • I love Adam Sandler
  • Maybe I got girl crush on Kate Beckinsale
  • Perhaps for its message?
    • It makes you think about what you value most, and how you show it.
    • There are no shortcuts in life. Or at least, they come with consequences.
    • The movie tells us that each day we have an opportunity.
    • Good guys deserve a break.

Alfred and I were supposed to leave for the mall this afternoon but Click was on. Our afternoon became a two-movie marathon afternoon. The second movie was top billed by The Rock. Kwento ko next time. Smile

0 comments: