Hitch (film)



Hitch is a 2005 American romantic comedy film directed by Andy Tennant and starring Will Smith. The film, which was written by Kevin Bisch, co-stars Eva Mendes, Kevin James, and Amber Valletta. Smith plays the main fictional character of the film, Alex "Hitch" Hitchens, who is a professional dating consultant who makes a living teaching men how to woo women. The film was released on February 11, 2005 by Columbia Pictures.

Plot
Alex "Hitch" Hitchens (Will Smith) is a professional "date doctor" who coaches other men in the art of wooing women, with a focus on long-term relationships. While coaching one of his clients, Albert Brennaman (Kevin James), who is smitten with a client of his investment firm, celebrity Allegra Cole (Amber Valletta), Hitch finds himself falling for Sara Melas (Eva Mendes). Sara is a gossip columnist and workaholic. While Albert and Allegra's relationship continues to progress, Hitch finds it difficult to initiate a dialogue with Sara, finding that none of his methods is working for catching her, while likewise being impressed with her ability to see through people's attempts to make advances. Throughout the entire process, he keeps his career secret, claiming to be a generic "consultant."

Hitch meets with Vance Munson (Jeffrey Donovan), a shallow chauvinist attempting to enlist Hitch to help him land a one-night stand with Casey Sedgewick (Julie Ann Emery), Sara's coworker and best friend. Although Hitch refused to help, Vance misled Sara into believing that he used Hitch's services.

After finding out Hitch's true identity, Sara publishes an exposé, causing Allegra and Albert to break up and Hitch's reputation to suffer. At a speed dating cafe that Hitch sneaks into, Sara and Casey confront Hitch and cite Vance as their source. Hitch explains that not only did he refuse to work with him, Vance's personality type is why women protect themselves, but that same protection also unintentionally made establishing genuine relationships difficult enough to create a demand for Hitch's services.

Hitch then tries to salvage Albert and Allegra's relationship. He confronts Allegra, and realizes that he doesn't really do anything significant besides giving his clients confidence and allowing them to get the attention of the women, and that most of his customers, particularly Albert, really were successful just being themselves. Allegra reconciles with Albert. The film ends with Albert and Allegra getting married as well as Hitch and Sara resuming their relationship.

Cast

 * Will Smith as Alex "Hitch" Hitchens
 * Eva Mendes as Sara Melas
 * Kevin James as Albert Brennaman
 * Amber Valletta as Allegra Cole
 * Julie Ann Emery as Casey Sedgewick
 * Adam Arkin as Max
 * Robinne Lee as Cressida Baylor
 * Nathan Lee Graham as Geoff
 * Michael Rapaport as Ben
 * Jeffrey Donovan as Vance Munson
 * Paula Patton as Mandy
 * Kevin Sussman as Neil
 * Ato Essandoh as Tanis

Production
The production budget was $70,000,000. Smith said that actress Eva Mendes, a Latina, was offered the female lead because the producers were worried about the public's reaction if the part was played by a White actress (creating a potential interracial taboo) or a Black actress (creating a studio fear that two black leads would alienate the white audiences). It was believed that a Latina and a Black lead would sidestep the issue. Robinne Lee's character (Cressida) was originally offered to Bollywood actress Aishwarya Rai, but she could not take it due to scheduling conflicts. The working title of the movie was The Last First Kiss, referring to a line that Hitch delivers to Albert: "This could be her last first kiss". Parts of the movie were filmed in Morningside Heights, Manhattan, at Columbia University, at Ellis Island, in the Fulton Fish Market, at the Wall Street Bull and the North Cove Marina.

Home media
The DVD and VHS release was released by Columbia TriStar Home Entertainment and was one of the first films to employ Sony's ARccOS Protection copy protection. The film is also available on UMD (Universal Media Disc) for the Sony PSP (PlayStation Portable).

Reception
Reviews for the film were positive. The film holds a 69% "Fresh" rating on Rotten Tomatoes, based on 180 critics, with an average score of 6.3/10. The sites consensus reads: "Despite Hitch's predictability, Will Smith and Kevin James win praise for their solid, warmhearted performances".

TV show
On October 22, 2014, Overbrook Entertainment and Sony Pictures Television started working on a TV show inspired by the movie for Fox.