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Along Came Polly poster

Along Came Polly

year 2004decade 00sdirector John Hamburggenre Comedygenre Romance

90 minutes

Cast

Selected cast credits · Film reference

Ben Stiller Reuben Feffer
Jennifer Aniston Polly Prince
Debra Messing Lisa Kramer
Hank Azaria Claude
Bryan Brown Leland Van Lew
Alec Baldwin Stan Indursky
Michele Lee Vivian Feffer
Bob Dishy Irving Feffer
Missi Pyle Roxanne
Jsu Garcia Javier
Masi Oka Wonsuk
Kym Whitley Gladys
Cheryl Hines Catering manager
Todd Stashwick Security officer
Mitch Silpa JCS director
Christine Barger Mary Magdalene

Along Came Polly | The Rewatchables

host Bill Simmonshost Sean Fennesseyproducer Craig Horlbeck theme Shart Week
Explore episodeClose episode

Most Rewatchable Scene

Art-gallery shart into basketball

In the discussion (12)
Approx. transcript time · 00:35:28Read transcript
  • The wedding entrance is a rewatchable scene: Sandy's pratfall, frosting consumption, former-child-star recognition and claim of an E!True Hollywood Story establish Hoffman's willingness to do anything for a laugh.
  • The wedding's risk assessment and Baldwin introduction are praised. The honeymoon discovery is another scene nominee, including Lisa's immediate attraction to Claude, the scuba equipment hitting the boat, her disheveled explanation and Claude driving Reuben to the airport.
  • Reuben urinating beside his boss is a rewatchable scene, with the long pee, fart and blunt judgment of Lisa. Baldwin's accent and comic persona anticipate The Departed and 30 Rock, with Outside Providence an earlier example.
  • The gallery shart sequence flowing into basketball is called the winning seven-minute stretch: Sandy's art-world introduction, awkward walk, boasts, misses and refusal to switch defenders are highlighted.
  • Sandy preparing greasy pizza with fingers in the pepper jar and pouring grease between slices is a rewatchable-scene choice.
  • The Moroccan dinner date is nominated for Reuben's sweating and refusal to disclose IBS despite avoiding unfamiliar food being the obvious choice.
  • The bathroom disaster is considered funny but derivative and weaker than There's Something About Mary or Dumb and Dumber; preferences distinguish juvenile from gross humor.
  • The salsa date and more basketball are additional scene mentions; a longer unedited Hoffman basketball cut is wished for.
  • Polly discovering the list supplies drama, while the disastrous Jesus Christ Superstar performance leads to the father's speech as a late scene nominee.
  • The father's advice to enjoy the ride unexpectedly supplies genuine wisdom.
  • Sandy handling the insurance meeting is the final scene nominee: the expected romantic chase gives way to his redemption, his hand lands on the wrong man's shoulder, and child-star recognition closes the deal. The performance evokes Affleck in Good Will Hunting.
  • The art-gallery shart into basketball wins most rewatchable scene; hypothetical seven-minute movie compilations are brainstormed, not a completed ranked list.

What’s Aged the Worst?

Racquetball; communal bar snacks; E!True Hollywood Story; Stiller running

In the discussion (4)
Approx. transcript time · 00:41:36Read transcript
  • Racquetball is an aged-worst candidate potentially replaced by pickleball, though it is defended as fun when both players are good; others emphasize injury and fighting risks.
  • Communal bar snacks have given way to individually served trays at many bars.
  • E!True Hollywood Story is dated yet nostalgically valued, and the joke that Sandy hired the crew remains excellent. Stiller's running is another aged-worst candidate.
  • Hamburg reportedly recalled Hoffman being frustrated that strangers recognized the basketball/shart role after his more prestigious achievements; the discussion distinguishes enjoying broad comedy from disliking public attention.

Apex Mountain

Hippo monologues

In the discussion (4)
Approx. transcript time · 00:46:56Read transcript
  • IBS is tentatively proposed for Apex without a firm conclusion.
  • Apex rejects Stiller, Aniston, Hoffman and spanking; Meet the Parents is favored for Stiller, and Capote/Mission: Impossible III for Hoffman. Messing receives a probable yes during her Will & Grace era.
  • Apex rejects Komodo dragons, Stiller bathroom mishaps and White Chocolate in favor of Jason Williams; throw pillows are only a possibility.
  • IBS remains only possible Apex; salsa and ferrets are rejected, while hippo monologues receive a probable yes and direct agreement.

What’s Aged the Best?

Baldwin; New York; Aniston; child-star premise; Risk Master; comic details

In the discussion (12)
Approx. transcript time · 00:52:12Read transcript
  • Baldwin's accent and Indursky are aged-best choices; his character is imagined as an older Glengarry Glen Ross shark. The discussion's contemporaneous Rust remarks are distinguished from Craig's association of Baldwin with 30 Rock.
  • The film is praised as an underrated New York movie, especially recognizable downtown restaurants and galleries.
  • Aniston's career arc looks stronger in hindsight after later hit comedies; Hoffman is also an obvious aged-best choice.
  • A child actor permanently defined by a ten-year-old success is an aged-best concept, illustrated by school memories. Hamburg reportedly drew on wondering how life would have changed had he won an audition for The Champ.
  • The nature of Crocodile Tears remains uncertain: a family comedy, childhood tragedy or Bad News Bears-style film is debated, and the bagpipe scene's content is unknown.
  • Polly's graphic children's novel about losing an arm is praised as comedy that now resembles some real children's books.
  • St. Barts and vacation settings are aged-best choices, with pandemic family movie-watching used as virtual travel.
  • Risk Master and Reuben's constant calculations fit his profession; an actuary spouse supports the characterization, though the stated subway-grate and car-accident odds are questioned.
  • Bryan Brown's presence is celebrated through Cocktail references and a proposed repeat episode; a seven-minute bar-showcase compilation is imagined.
  • Jesus Christ Superstar rehearsals with Sandy claiming both Jesus and Judas are aged-best, as is Reuben's aversion to communal bar snacks; individual modern snack trays are a contrasting aged-worst observation. Impromptu base-jumping is praised as dependable movie excitement.
  • Reuben counting down to delay orgasm and shouting 50 is praised, as is Polly's later conversation about it. His broken Spanish confrontation with Javier fits Stiller's foolish persona.
  • Leland Van Lew's name is an aged-best addition, and his jump building is identified as the AT&T Tower at 611 West 6th Street, Los Angeles, qualifying the assumption that all filming was in New York.

The Stephen A. Smith Hottest Take Award

Mike Myers as lead; Messing’s appeal over Aniston

In the discussion (3)
Approx. transcript time · 01:11:53Read transcript
  • A hottest take prefers another lead: Rudd is considered too handsome or insufficiently anxious, Bateman more plausible, and Mike Myers the final preference in the vein of So I Married an Axe Murderer rather than his disguised characters.
  • A second hot take prefers Messing's appeal to Aniston's in this film, especially the wedding and return scenes; swapping their roles is considered but doubted.
  • No casting what-ifs were found by the host.

Is This Movie Better With…?

Evil Laughing Ramon Raymond as Javier

In the discussion (1)
Approx. transcript time · 01:37:08Read transcript
  • Evil Laughing Ramon Raymond is the hypothetical addition in Javier's salsa scene.

Just One Oscar

In the discussion (1)
Approx. transcript time · 01:37:28Read transcript
  • Hoffman is the clear single-Oscar choice; the actual supporting-actor nominees are revisited and space for him is argued, with incredulity at Foxx being classified supporting in Collateral.