By Mermaid (Guest Critic)
Everyone dreads that first date. What do you say, will the other person like you? Will there be a second date, if so then what? Where will it go from there? We've all been there. But, I'm sure there's not many of us who have ever gone through what Henry (Adam Sandler) endures each time he goes out with Lucy (Drew Barrymore).

Henry has always considered himself somewhat a ladies man. He works as a veterinarian in Hawaii at an ocean them park. He has quick affairs with female tourists he meets, because there's a good chance he'll never see them again. He's a love 'em' and leave 'em' sort of guy. He enjoys the one night stand, and is not looking for a serious relationship.

That is until that one day when he takes his boat the Sea Serpent out for a test run in anticipation of his long awaited journey to Alaska where he can do some walrus studying up close and personal. When the ship runs into trouble, he is forced to dock on a side of the island he's not familiar with. It's here in a local restaurant that he first encounters Lucy.

She's sitting alone constructing a teepee out of waffles. However she can't seem to get the door to work on her creation, and Henry offers a toothpick to help her out. They have a fun time enjoying light conversation, and they agree to meet the next day at the same place for breakfast.

Bam, what a shock he gets when he shows up and this beautiful blonde creature, acts as if she doesn't know him. She's even outraged that he has the nerve to sit down in the booth with her. Dazed and confused, Henry is quickly taken aside by Sue (Amy Hill), the waitress and brought up to speed on Lucy's condition. Seems that a year ago she was in the car with her father going to pick a pineapple for his birthday, when dad swerved to avoid hitting a cow and they both wound up in the hospital. Only one problem remains, Lucy has lost her short-term memory. So each night when she goes to sleep the slate is wiped clean. She forgets everything she did the day before and is taken back to the day of the accident.

Lucy's overprotective father (Blake Clark) and steroid effected brother (Sean Astin), go to extremes to make sure nothing ever interferes or hurts her in anyway. They even go to extremes and have had hundreds of newspapers printed up showing the exact date of the accident, and her dad endures having a birthday cake and the same present given to him everyday. The only person Henry has on his side is his pothead friend Ula (Rob Schneider), who tries to help him win the girl.

Each day he tries to win Lucy's heart by going to the restaurant, charming her and taking her out for a day at the aquarium, or a walk on the beach, and each day he falls more and more in love with her. So in order for Lucy to remember who he is, he makes a video tape of their outings so that each morning when she awakes her family has her pop the video in the VCR, and she sees what she did the day before with Henry.

This is really a good movie with a quirky idea. It pairs the team of Barrymore and Sandler together again. They were first seen in The Wedding Singer. They had good chemistry then, and it's just as good this time around. Barrymore is quite a beautiful actress, and I think this is probably the best film Sandler has ever done. The beautiful scenery of Hawaii helps as a backdrop for this romantic story.

I think everyone will enjoy the splendid ending of a romance that may not have happened if Henry hadn't been persistent. If you think this sounds a lot like Bill Murray's Groundhog Day, it does in some ways. For in Lucy's mind things remain the same day after day.

However I found this to be just a sweet story that will have you cheering for Henry from start to finish.

Take heed guys if you really want the girl be persistent. Sometimes it pays off in the end.

Mermaid