What '50 First Dates' Teaches Us About Life

We all have that one film that we can’t explain why, but we have watched it a dozen times and still fall more and more in love with it. My movie is 50 First Dates. How could I put it down once I discovered it included both Somewhere Over The Rainbow by Iz and Wouldn’t It Be Nice by the Beach Boys?

In this film, Drew Barrymore plays Lucy, a woman whose memory hits reset every night, swiping the past twenty four hours clean. Henry is a ladies man, or as we know him as Adam Sandler, who tries to woo Lucy and ends up falling for her. He accepts the challenge to be with someone who may not remember her feelings, but learns ways to help her instead of losing hope.

I love this film because it shows that one should never give up, no matter how difficult the task at hand may seem. Difficulty can be overcome and conquered if one really desires to obtain their goal. This has applied to me throughout school and relationships over the years. I know that if I want something bad enough and I put forth maximum effort, no matter if I succeed or fail, that I tried my best. I think that the end goal should not necessarily be a prize, but instead how much did one gain and discover in the process that caused a lesson to be learned and growth to occur.

The saying of "things are not always what they seem" and "to expect the unexpected" are present in the plot as well. Henry did not plan to fall in love with Lucy. Lucy did not expect to wake up one day and not recall yesterday’s events. It’s important to know that sometimes the path we intended is not always the one that is meant to be driven upon. I believe in fate; everything happens for a reason. The universe might have plans on the horizon, good or bad, that was not in your schedule. Adam Sandler and Drew Barrymore’s characters showed me that the amount of effort and time one puts into a goal is what one will get out, as well as it is better to give than to receive.

This film speaks to me in the fact that it turns the dismal mood of Lucy’s life and makes it lighthearted. No matter how bad and backwards life may seem, I always remind myself that it could be worse off and to be thankful for what I do have. Many of us have dealt with our own demons throughout our lifetime, but it is not the darkness that is holding us back, instead it is the reflection in the mirror. I believe that if one sports a good attitude, lifts their chin up, and fights for happiness, that they can overcome whatever string is tugging them into a hole. It is all about the perspective one looks at their life that can break or make a difference.