Hitch

"Hitch" is a cute, if somewhat unoriginal, movie made better than its material by great performances from Will Smith and Kevin James. Plus, it's not as much of a "chick-flick" as one would think. With good-hearted jabs at both sexes, "Hitch" provides a light romantic comedy that's been missing from theaters for a while.

Smith stars as Hitch, a date doctor who helps his male clients overcome their short-comings in the dating department by teaching men how to woo women by actually listening to them and by treating them well. James is Albert, a man hopelessly in love with money mogul, and tabloid fodder, Allegra Cole (Amber Valletta). Along the way, Hitch meets Sara (Eva Mendes), a woman as stubborn about the opposite sex as Hitch himself is. You see, both Hitch and Sara are able to provide advice about dating, but neither seems to heed their own advice. The complication for everyone involved comes in when Sara, who works for a gossipy tabloid, discovers what Hitch does for a living and seeks to exploit his work as a way of manipulating women.

That, unfortunately, is the one element of the movie that slows everything down. Of course, you can't have a romantic comedy without a complication, but this causes Sara to come across as much more abrasive and uncaring. Honestly, completely unbiased, you feel bad for the guy in this one.

The comedic moments are very well done, and you haven't seen all of them in the previews. Kevin James is the big winner here, playing his role of the bumbling but brave and big hearted guy to the hilt, and balancing nicely with Will Smith. I'd say check out "Hitch" either at a matinee or wait for video. I give it a B.

"Hitch" is rated PG-13 with a running time of 2 hours.