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Picture it: Mid-2000s. The idea of a documentary involving stalking, er, trying for a date with the person of your dreams was, in fact, original back then. Especially when that person is a fairly big Hollywood star and you're a nobody.Fast forward to today, it's no big deal. It's happened several times this year, alone, thanks to some honorable military personnel and YouTube.But for argument's sake, we'll stick with what they conceive as an almost internet-barren 2003 (that's when it was allegedly shot.) It's been awhile since then, but I don't remember having too much difficulty navigating the web 8 years ago.I digress. This had 2…TWO…things going for it at that time: originality and the actual date itself. C'mon, that's not a spoiler; it's the freaking title! Okay, here's the problem. Beyond the fake money scheme they added for "tension," and I hated this self-absorbed, selfish and arrogant pr|ck. Sorry, let me back up.We have Brian who's had a crush on actress Barrymore since he was a sperm cell and his mission is to get a date with her. He becomes obsessed with this. The date, that is. Does he really care about Drew? No, she's just an object to him. His mission is strictly the date…WHETHER OR NOT SHE WOULD WANT IT.So, he convinces his closes friends to illegally scam the now-defunct Circuit City for a video camera (they purposely purchase said camera in order to use it for 30 days and then deceitfully return it within the 30-day return policy) and follow him everywhere. Never (or barely) does he thank these guys who dropped everything to chase him as if they were his own disciples. It's always: JUST ABOUT HIM AND HIS Obsession. The more the movie crept along, the more I hated him.Anyways, he's won some game show with the amazing first place prize of $1,100 and he plans to use that plus the fraudulent Circuit City video camera to make it 30 days without a care about a place to live (RENT anyone?), transportation (cars need gas…EVEN in 2003) or heck, I don't know, FOOD. This hairy dude – believe me, he loves to show the world, he has a lot of body hair – doesn't look like he (or his ignorant followers) are missing any meals and yet, they never accounted for this simple flaw.He's also mooching off his parents an entire $100 so he can continue his foolish and selfish quest of landing the meaningless date? If you've seen this, or even half of it, he unbelievably complains he can't get their money fast enough. And yet, he still has most of the HUGE game-show money left. That doesn't matter to him – that's for his obsessive behavior in regards to the date. What matters to him is: taking is parent's money. (News flash, #1: Both Western Union/Money Gram existed in 2003, so if he really needed to use his victimized parents for money, he could've gone that route VS having to get a check in the mail and cashing it RIGHT before both the post office and the bank closes. Was this guy's schedule so full, he always had to wait until the last minute to take someone else's hard-earned money? And #2 $100 ain't gonna do sh|t in regards to food, transportation or living arrangements. ESPECIALLY in L.A.)Oh, and poor Drew. She's about to promote her terrible Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle movie – and this is Brian's way in to stalk her some more by criminally breaking into the movie premiere without a bit of remorse.During all this, said creep Brian, accepts a job he knows he'll hate, he doesn't want and he's quick to criticize the job he hasn't even started yet. Ahh, before you judge, he's just upset it will get in the way of his stalking. It's been awhile since this was shot, but if his employer sees this…please fire this idiot. If not for insubordination, just plain stupidity.It boils down to: Drew FINALLY finds out about his scheming and accepts the offer for a date despite her being in a committed relationship.Saying this movie isn't about stalking, is like saying The Punisher isn't about revenge. But, beyond the obvious stalking this guy is so obsessed with having a date with Drew, he shows zero repentance for all laws he's breaking, the friends he's using and most definitely, for Drew herself. She's no longer a human to him, she's just a goal.Mercifully, the two finally have the said date, in which, he pretty much dominates. Let me tell you: if I was star-struck by someone, I would want to hear them speak. But, this egotistical brat must think he's hilarious – BELIEVE ME, HE'S NOT A BIT FUNNY – since he controlled the entire conversation with his boring banter. He even says things he knows she'll agree with him on.I'll admit, the original concept at the time, and I'm talking long before the stolen camera began recording, and the actual date itself were good, but the rest of the 85 minutes weren't worth 5 minutes of your time.Here's a better documentary: (making of Boondock Saints) Overnight. The movie's "even-worse-than-Brian" writer/director Troy Duffy. At least in that documentary, you know the guy's an @ss up front and you root for him to fail throughout. With My Date with Drew, you're actually supposed to cheer on his criminal activity, his selfishness and his stalking. He was, in all reality, a real-life Borat.Well, I didn't cheer or remotely agree. I couldn't get onboard. Kudos to Drew for being flattered, albeit, illogically calm and being willing to participate – even though, I'm certain her security men were close. Very close.Like most awkward first dates (and Drew's had a least 50 of them) you'll want this to be over the moment it starts.
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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.
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"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. :)
