Accepting Uncertainty Through P.T. Anderson’s Punch Drunk Love
April 24, 2024
Writer: Zach Haas
Editor: Ava Londa
Punch Drunk Love is a romantic drama directed by Paul Thomas Anderson, featuring Adam Sandler in his first departure from comedies. Sandler plays Barry Egan, a shy and timid bathroom supply business owner, who lives a carefully ordered, mundane existence. No matter how hard he tries to pre-orchestrate his life, something always manages to test Barry’s patience. However, Barry’s encounters with surreal events shake things up in his hyper-contained world. The film begins with Barry witnessing an inexplicable car accident followed by the appearance of a mysterious harmonium on the side of the road. In an equally unexpected encounter, he meets Lena. Lena adds an element of spontaneity to his life–an element he was sorely missing. From the opening super-wide shot of Sandler sitting at a desk in an empty room with a stack of papers head high, I knew Punch Drunk Love was a film unlike any other. After finishing it, I found it to be one of the most profound movies I’ve ever seen, due in part to Sandler’s incredible performance, which inspired me to take life a little less seriously.
Anderson’s film uses colors– specifically blue, red, and white– as the visual language to physically embody the emotions found in Barry’s emotional world. . The first and most poignant color introduced is blue, which is found in Barry’s home, workplace, and most notably in the suit that he wears. Blue also emphasizes his isolation and loneliness. Red contrasts with the blue, representing an ‘opportunity escape’--a chance for him to take a step, and later a full-fledged leap, outside of his carefully constructed world. When Lena enters and meets Barry for the first time she is wearing red – a sure symbol that the pair’s relationship will catalyze a significant change in Barry’s life. Naturally, the red becomes increasingly prominent as Barry emerges from his shell and begins embracing the beauty in the unexpected, even getting a rush from it. Barry’s most impulsive and spontaneous decision is to follow Lena to Hawaii to confess his love. On this journey, red follows him nearly everywhere: in the red truck that Barry runs toward when leaving his office to go see Lena in Hawaii and in the two women’s outfits at the airport terminal as Barry boards the plane.
Most of the time, Barry keeps his emotions suppressed, but he has a tendency to fall victim to outbursts. Supplemented by John Brion’s rhythmic score, the tension leading up to those outbursts is utterly anxiety-inducing. A great example is when he visits one of his sisters’ birthday parties; His sisters’ badgering finally pushes Barry to the limit and, seemingly out of nowhere, he kicks out the glass on their sliding door in a fit of rage. The scene is equal parts sad and hilarious, portraying consequences of repressed emotions and their ability to manifest into destructive behavior. There isn’t a film I’ve seen that portrays anxiety as viscerally as Anderson’s.
Barry finds it hard to connect with people on an emotional level so, naturally, he isolates himself. Although this allows him to feel safe in theory, it only exacerbates his loneliness. Barry’s feelings of isolation are spelled out heart-wrenchingly in a moment of vulnerability with his brother-in-law: when asked if he thinks he is depressed, he says, “I don’t know if there’s anything wrong with me because I don’t know how other people are.” Barry lives in a prison of self-judgment, only escapable by learning to be kind to himself. The film’s visual language tells this same story, often isolating Barry and his blue suit within vast, empty, white spaces that engulf Barry in his isolation. While we may not live in this extreme isolated state all the time like Barry does, I’m sure we can all admit we’ve been there. I know I can.
Where Barry's journey becomes most universal, however, is in his eventual acceptance of vulnerability. When Barry learns to simply react to situations as they arise, and sometimes make decisions in the spur of the moment, he learns to truly live. He experiences an ecstasy of freedom in his life that he never knew existed. His newfound embrace of spontaneity is fueled by none other than the power of love. Love allows Barry to experience vulnerability and comfort at once–that is freedom. As cliché as that may sound, Barry needed a kick of some sort to discover the freedom in stopping. When he stops trying to control every little part of his life and begins following his heart and instincts, he gets swept up in the beautiful mysteries of life from love to adventure. Giving up the desire to control everything in our lives is a simple action we can all allow ourselves to try a little more often.
Life has so much to offer and we only get one go at it. As one character says in Texas Ex Richard Linklater’s Waking Life, “Whatever you do, don’t be bored. You couldn’t have chosen a more exciting time to be alive.” As tempting as it is to settle for comfort, remember that this convenience may get in the way of all that the world has in store for us. The best we can do is to live in the moment and take everything obstacle life throws at us one at a time. When Barry learns to go with the flow, the film’s tone shifts from melancholic to one of hope and possibility. The anxiety-inducing score turns into melodic orchestration as Barry starts viewing obstacles as opportunities. While we might not live lives nearly as ordered or mundane as Barry’s, his shift in perspective is one we can all strive for. By embracing spontaneity and accepting uncertainty we will be prepared for all the cards we are dealt with an open mind, bringing about new avenues we never would have considered.
