Horst in Translation (filmreviews@web.de)
This is a 2-minute sketch that shows us famous actor Adam Sandler at a furniture store. The director is Paul Thomas Anderson and he made this one over 10 years ago right after the two collaborated on the pretty successful "Punch Drunk Love". Sandler's character gets sucked in a couch and, for whatever reason, makes weird martial arts moves afterward and then takes place in an armchair. Very carefully he does so in order to avoid what happened with the couch. Still no happy ending for his character here. this was a fairly strange watch. I cannot say I found this funny, even if I like Sandler and Anderson more than most people do I guess. In the end, it just felt like random screaming to me. One of the worst works for the duo I'm afraid. Not recommended.
notdempsey
The two minute "Couch" (2003) starring Adam Sandler is perfect in it's simplicity in the same way that the Lumiere Brother's twenty second "A Sprinkler Sprinkled" (1895) is. Basically, a man (Sandler) searches a furniture store for the perfect couch. The search ends with a presumably perfect couch, a Lay-Z-Boy, which the man seems very comfortable in...until the films punchline.You can see this pleasant little short at adamsandler.com, so I won't spoil the punchline. But it's short and sweet and free, so why wouldn't you check it out? Adam Sandler plays the part of "the man" very much like Chaplin's Tramp--with just a bit of Waterboy thrown in. And in a way, that's what this little film is: a throwback to those perfect little silent comedy shorts of the first twenty years of cinema.
mclayfield
Paul Thomas Anderson's "Couch" is a fairly good example of how a dolly and a film camera don't always make a good film. However, it is an interesting short to watch, just in terms of where it fits in his filmography, especially so soon after "Punch-Drunk Love".If people found it harder to pinpoint the sources of Anderson's inspiration in "Punch-Drunk Love", "Couch" provides an answer of sorts.It's funny, and I laughed, but only the first time.But you also have to remember that this film isn't meant to be reviewed, nor even taken seriously. It's a dumb short, and shame on me for treating it otherwise. See it, enjoy it, don't expect much more from it.Done and done.
Professor_Isak_Borg
P.T. Anderson's 'Couch' consists entirely of Adam Sandler, with a chaplin-esque smile on his face, walking into a furniture store and enjoying himself as he sits on two couches. It's not like this was taking seriously, it's fairly obvious that Anderson and Sandler had some time off from filming the brilliant 'Punch-Drunk Love' and wanted to have some fun. I can't help but love this two minute piece of gold. I hope these guys work together again in the future, whether it be a short such as this, or a full length feature.
