Synopsis:
Harvey, played by Dustin Hoffman, is down on his luck at work, and he suspects he will soon be replaced by new talent. He leaves his chaotic work situation in New York to fly to his daughter’s wedding in London. Kate, played by Emma Thompson, is down on her luck with dating, and she has pretty much given up on finding her guy. Kate and Harvey first cross paths at Heathrow, where Kate works, in a not-so-friendly exchange. Once reunited with his daughter, Harvey learns that her stepfather is going to give her away at the wedding. The next blow comes in the form of his employer cutting out his ideas for the account they are working on. In a final attempt to defend those ideas, Harvey decides to leave immediately after the wedding ceremony, missing the reception to fly back to New York. At the airport, however, he learns that he has been let go from his job. He crosses paths with Kate again in the airport bar and strikes up an awkward conversation. Realizing he has nothing to lose, he asks Kate to attend the wedding reception with him. She reluctantly agrees, and at the reception, they hit it off.
50 Dates at 50 Take:
This movie is about taking chances. Harvey realizes these are some of his last ones, and so he goes for broke. If more of us lived life like that, we would have fewer regrets. Despite having a high level of frustration on several fronts, Harvey conducts himself quite well. On Kate’s side, this movie is about thinking love has passed you by and then finding it when you least expect it. Even a terrible day can ultimately turn into a great one.
Why You Need to Watch It:
Many of us in the dating process subconsciously condition ourselves for disappointment. We rationalize why things won’t work before we even meet with our date, especially if we’ve had a string of failures. This movie encourages us to not give up when the chips are down and life seems to be falling apart. When things are at their worst, that’s when the unanticipated happens. It’s highly likely that, like Harvey and Kate, we’ll find the one we’re looking for when we least expect it.
Year Released: 2009
