A key element in Hitch’s game plan for men is that he tries to get them to pay attention to the details. Sometimes, men miss the vibes that women are giving out simply because we’re not always aware of what’s going on. 

In the opening scene he advises, “It's supposed to be clear tonight. So when you leave the club, walk a little. Ask her what she thought about the show, what was her favorite photograph, why that one? And when she answers, don't be looking at her mouth. Don't be wondering what she looks like naked. Listen to what she is saying and respond.” 

The art of paying attention is not just useful for the dating phase of relationships but especially when you have a partner for the long haul. In the clip below Hitch takes advantage of one poor guy's inability to pick up on details.

One of the best pieces of advice that Hitch gives is that it’s a good idea to impress your date’s friends. If her friends don’t like you, you might not have a chance in the world of developing something serious because their endorsement holds a lot of weight. Hitch offers this sage wisdom to Albert in preparing him for his first date with Allegra, “But when all is said and done… Tonight is not about Allegra.” Albert responds,  “It's not?” 

“No. Tonight is about Maggie. A woman's best friend has to sign off on all big relationship decisions. So you can't afford to mess this up.” Even Diddy understood this one when he said, “Tell your friends, to get with my friends, and we can be friends.” 

Winning over a woman’s friends by being genuine, not manipulative, goes a long way.

If the date is not going according to plan then your rebound has to be strong. Hitch and Sara’s first date was a disaster and the second one wasn’t much better--at first. Sara invites Hitch to a food rave with her boss and his wife. After some small talk about what Hitch does for a living she brings up his connection Albert and Allegra.

After some more awkward conversations, Hitch takes a bite of something that Sara gives him. Unknowingly, he begins coughing, the first sign of an allergic reaction. All of sudden, they rush to the nearest store for Benadryl and Hitch’s face swells up like Martin after he fought Tommy Hearns.

Sara takes Hitch back to her place so he could recover and they discover that they really dig each other. Sometimes you have to make the best of a bad situation. 

When it comes to dating, everything must be consensual between two adults. These conversations are extremely important and should be nuanced. Hitch is one of the rare rom-coms that attempted to address the notion of consent albeit in a hilarious way.

As Hitch is advising Albert about putting the moves on Allegra, he drops a jewel that often gets overlooked. He said, (Assuming permission has already been given)  “Lean in, place your hand on the small of her back, say it in her ear like a secret. But watching your hand placement; too high says, ”I just wanna be friends.” Too low says, “I just wanna grab some a**.”

In another scene, Hitch is schooling Albert about the importance of the first kiss. He tells him, “See, this is what most guys do. They rush in to take the kiss. But you're not most guys. See, the secret to a kiss is to go 90 percent of the way, and then hold." "For how long?" "As long as it takes for her to come the other 10." Even in a rom-com, consent is a topic that’s imperative on the dating scene.

Hitch’s entire ideology is built on principles and statistics about what makes a woman fall in love with a man who’s pursuing her. He knows those numbers like the back of his hand.

But after falling for Sara, and watching Albert pull Allegra by discarding all the jewels he dropped on him, he comes to the conclusion that you can never have real love down to a science. The unpredictability of love and relationships left an expert like Hitch dumbfounded. At the end of the film, Hitch says, “Basic principles…. There are none.”

Hitch gives a hilarious take on how men can woo a woman but it’s not without its issues. With all that Hitch got right, here’s what the film got wrong. 

When you score a first date with a lady, you want to pull out all the stops to impress her. As the old adage goes, “You only get one time to make a first impression.”

But Hitch took it to a whole new level on his first date with Sara. He was doing the absolute most! After convincing Sara to go out with him, he got her on a jet ski then kicked her into the water, then he researched her family history and that went all the way left. On date No. 1, the words of John Legend ring true, “Take it slow.”

In Hitch’s dating philosophy he believes that women are too guarded to recognize the good men that are around them all the time. Sounds good but really? The jig is up when Sara discovers that Hitch is the “date doctor.” Because of the experience her best friend Casey Sedgewick (Julia Ann Emery) had with a self-absorbed misogynist Vance Munson (Jeffery Donovan), who tips her off about Hitch’s consulting business, she breaks everything off with him.

When Hitch finally puts it all together in the speed dating scene, Hitch says, “I trick women into getting out of their own way so great guys like Albert Brennaman have a fighting chance. Because this, this right here, this is exactly why falling in love is so g-----n hard!” 

Expecting women to not protect themselves against a large number of men who are scumbags is not the fault of women. Blaming them for protecting themselves is not a good look.

Through Hitch’s coaching, Albert went from a fumbling accountant to a suave, smooth powerbroker. He looks the part, has all of Hitch’s lines memorized but it’s not until he has the courage to be himself that he really connects with Allegra.

Like most women, Allegra just wants to be with somebody who is comfortable with being who they are. Hitch gives his clients a brand new wardrobe, helps with corny lines to say at the right time, and stages events so they can be seen as heroes to women who need to be rescued. What Hitch calls, “getting women out of their own way” could also be called plain old lying.

Most guys mess up with women because they try to play it too cool on the dancefloor. Albert Brennaman wasn’t the best dancer but he sure loved to do it anyway. Hitch says, “Generally, I have a firm no-dancing policy. But if she asks, you cannot say no.” Albert says, “I'm not worried about dancing.” Hitch responds, “But if there are people there… I'm sorry, I hate to be a stickler, but I need to be thorough. Show me what you mean by you're not worried about it.” Then Albert begins to show Hitch his moves in one of the funniest scenes of the film.

Hitch wanted Albert to be cool with a two-step but that wasn’t Albert’s vibe. He wanted to go all-out. He wanted to dance like nobody was watching. But because Albert snuck and danced like he felt the music, against Hitch’s wishes, he showed Allegra that he could be comfortable being himself. Anytime you’re on a date and you get invited on the dancefloor, give it all you got, Albert Brennaman style.

“Three dates is all I need; three dates and I’ll get you to the high-stakes medal round, where eight out of 10 women will tell you they know all they need to know (about a relationship) from the first kiss,” Hitch tells clients. That’s mad pressure. Hitch is setting his agenda that in the game of love, his clients always win. Hitch sees love as a game to win instead of a journey to experience. 

After both of their relationships have soured, Albert goes back to Hitch’s crib. When the two began to argue, Hitch says, “Love is my life.” Albert responds, “No love is your job.” Albert sees through Hitch’s flawed concept of love as a game to win. Love is not a game. In fact, love is nothing to play with. Seriously.