Dan DaranciangMy Date with Drew
By: Brian Herzlinger and the Drew Crew
Rating: 5 stars (out of 5)
The premise of this documentary is simple: one guy has 30 days and $1,100 to get one date with Drew Barrymore.
Brian Herzlinger, a poor, aspiring filmmaker, was a member of the Drew Barrymore fan club as a child and had a lifelong crush on the movie star ever since he saw her for the first time in “E.T.” And Brian had one dream: to get a date with Drew. He also had $1,100 that he won on a pilot game show by answering the final question with the correct response of (what else?) “Drew Barrymore.” So with a camera from Circuit City with a 30-day return policy (hence the 30-day time limit), a film was born.
The premise of the film may sound a bit hokey and simple, but truthfully, this is one of the funniest documentaries of all time and maybe even one of the funniest films of all time.
Well, that may be going a bit far – but Herzlinger, the show’s creator and star, through his quirky traits, car sing-alongs and emotional outpourings, makes this movie absolutely honest and completely hilarious. Whether Brian and his film school buddies (now known as the Drew Crew) are sneaking into the “Charlie’s Angels” premiere with fake passes or trying to wax Brian’s chest hair, this film makes the viewer feel like part of the team, and by the end, everyone is rooting for Brian to succeed (except for Andy Dick, who first agrees to help Brian on his quest but then backs out because he doesn’t want to hurt his credibility by appearing in too many movies.)
The only negative thing about the film is that it’s only available at Blockbuster. But since there are no late fees, you could always keep it and watch it twice.
From what I can tell, there are few documentaries that are actually laugh-out-loud funny, and this is definitely one of them. It is comical and inspiring, and watching Brian reminds us all to be “Kids and dreamers! Kids and dreamers!”