Along Came Polly
Along Came Polly | |
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![]() Theatrical release poster | |
Directed by | John Hamburg |
Written by | John Hamburg |
Produced by | Danny DeVito Michael Shamberg Stacey Sher |
Starring | Ben Stiller Jennifer Aniston Philip Seymour Hoffman Debra Messing Hank Azaria Bryan Brown Alec Baldwin |
Cinematography | Seamus McGarvey |
Edited by | William Kerr Nick Moore |
Music by | Theodore Shapiro |
Production company | Jersey Films |
Distributed by | Universal Pictures |
Release date |
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Running time | 90 minutes |
Country | United States |
Language | English |
Budget | $42 million |
Box office | $178 million [1] |
Along Came Polly is a 2004 American romantic comedy film written and directed by John Hamburg and starring Ben Stiller and Jennifer Aniston.
The story follows Reuben Feffer who finds his life taking a different turn when he reconnects and falls in love with his old classmate, Polly. Chaos ensues when his ex-wife, Lisa, returns to reconcile with him.
Plot[]
Reuben Feffer, a risk analyst for life insurance, is celebrating his honeymoon with his new wife, Lisa Kramer, on the island of St. Barts, but catches her having sex with Claude, a French scuba instructor. Returning home to New York alone, he attempts to piece his life back together. Reuben goes to an art gallery with his friend, Sandy Lyle, where he runs into former junior high school classmate Polly Prince.
Reuben and Polly begin dating, with her introducing him to activities he once wrote off as "too risky". This included eating at a Moroccan restaurant which ends badly due to Reuben's IBS (Irritable bowel syndrome). Luckily, Polly gives him a second chance where they end up salsa dancing and later enthusiastically having sex together, with Reuben shouting "50" at the climax.
The contrast between their two personalities is a source of comedy until Lisa returns and tells him she wants to reconcile their relationship. Meanwhile, Sandy, a self-centered, former teen idol, is trying to make a comeback by having a documentary filmed about his starring role as Judas in an amateur production of Jesus Christ Superstar.
Reuben is torn between the free spirited Polly and the safe and familiar Lisa. To solve this issue, he enters information about Polly and Lisa into a computer insurance program which measures risk. The computer tells him that, despite his numerous blunders with her, Polly is the least risky choice for Reuben.
Polly joins Reuben on a sailing trip where he is to inspect Leland Van Lew, a high risk client and his other best friend, but she is offended when she sees his risk analysis of her. She rejects his proposal to move in together, telling him that he would be better off going back to Lisa. Back home, Reuben tries talking to Polly, but to no avail. He eventually invites Lisa to Sandy's opening show, where he learns that Polly is leaving New York in a few hours.
After a speech given by his father, Irving, to Sandy about not living in the past, Reuben realizes he wants to be with Polly and not Lisa, and he rushes to her apartment to stop her from leaving. Meanwhile, Sandy fills in for Reuben for his risk analysis presentation on Leland and successfully grants Leland his insurance.
Reuben eventually catches up with Polly and tries to persuade her to stay. Polly is not convinced she should stay with him, so Reuben eats food off the ground to prove he is capable of taking risks. Polly is finally convinced and ends up dating Reuben, but they both agree they will take their relationship step-by-step and not rush into marriage.
Reuben and Polly vacation on the same beach where he and Lisa had their honeymoon. Reuben again encounters Claude, but instead of being angry, he thanks Claude for showing the ugly truth about Lisa before heading into the water with Polly to join Leland on his new boat.
Cast[]
- Ben Stiller as Reuben Feffer
- Jennifer Aniston as Polly Prince
- Debra Messing as Lisa Kramer
- Philip Seymour Hoffman as Sandford "Sandy" Lyle
- Alec Baldwin as Stanley "Stan" Indursky
- Hank Azaria as Claude
- Missi Pyle as Roxanne
- Bryan Brown as Leland Van Lew
- Jsu Garcia as Javier
- Michele Lee as Vivian Feffer
- Bob Dishy as Irving Feffer
- Masi Oka as Wonsuk
- Judah Friedlander as Dustin
- Kym Whitley as Gladys
- Kevin Hart as Vic
- Cheryl Hines as Catering Manager
- Todd Stashwick as Security Officer
Reception[]
Box office[]
The film opened at #1 at the box office in the United States, earning US$27,721,185 in its opening weekend, ending the month long reign of The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King.[2] The film was released in the United Kingdom on February 27, 2004, and topped the country's box office for the next two weekends.[3][4]
The film was a financial success, making $178 million at the box office worldwide off a $42 million budget.[5]
Critical response[]
Along Came Polly received negative reviews. The film holds an approval rating of 27% at Rotten Tomatoes, based on 162 reviews, with an average rating of 4.78/10. The consensus reads, "Though the supporting actors are funny, Stiller and Aniston don't make a believable couple, and the gross out humor is gratuitous."[6] Metacritic, which assigns a weighted average score from 1 to 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, gave the film a 44 based on 35 critics.[7]
Soundtrack[]
Along Came Polly | ||||
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Soundtrack album by | ||||
Released | 2004 | |||
Genre | Score | |||
Label | Universal Records | |||
Theodore Shapiro chronology | ||||
|
All tracks are written by Theodore Shapiro.
No. | Title | Music | Length |
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1. | "Don't You (Forget About Me)" | Simple Minds | 4:23 |
2. | "Everything's Alright" | 3:46 | |
3. | "Hey Mama" | The Black Eyed Peas | 3:34 |
4. | "Hey Sexy Lady" | Shaggy ft. Brian Thompson, Tony Gold and Sean Paul | 3:20 |
5. | "Jamming" | Bob Marley | 3:47 |
6. | "Let's Do It Again" | The Staple Singers | 3:26 |
7. | "Luve Me, Luve Me" | Shaggy ft. Samantha Cole | 3:29 |
8. | "What's the Buzz" | 2:19 | |
9. | "Represent, Cuba" | Orishas | 3:42 |
10. | "Heaven on Their Minds" | 4:06 | |
11. | "Let My Love Open the Door" | Pete Townshend | |
Total length: | 35:52 |
References[]
- ^ "Along Came Polly". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved May 9, 2021.
- ^ Kaufman, Gil (January 20, 2004). "'Along Came Polly' ... And Down Went The 'King'". MTV Movie News. Retrieved 2011-05-25.
- ^ "Weekend box office 27th February 2004 - 29th February 2004". www.25thframe.co.uk. Retrieved 19 August 2020.
- ^ "Weekend box office 5th March 2004 - 7th March 2004". www.25thframe.co.uk. Retrieved 19 August 2020.
- ^ "Along Came Polly". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved May 9, 2021.
- ^ "Along Came Polly (2004)". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved June 15, 2019.
- ^ Along Came Polly, retrieved 2018-05-13
External links[]
- 2004 films
- English-language films
- 2004 romantic comedy films
- Adultery in films
- American films
- American romantic comedy films
- Films about vacationing
- Films directed by John Hamburg
- Films produced by Danny DeVito
- Films set in New York (state)
- Films set in the Caribbean
- Saint Barthélemy culture
- Films with screenplays by John Hamburg
- Universal Pictures films
- Films scored by Theodore Shapiro