Fools Rush In is a 1997 American romantic comedy film directed by Andy Tennant and starring Matthew Perry and Salma Hayek.
Alex (Perry) and Isabel (Hayek) get more than they bargained for from a one-night stand. After Isabel finds Alex and lets him know she's pregnant, the two take the next logical step: getting married on the Las Vegas Strip that very night. But the romantic notion fades quickly, and they learn that being married to someone you barely know is much harder than they thought, especially with a baby involved.
Provides examples of:
- Abhorrent Admirer: Cathy to Alex, ever since childhood in fact. Subverted in that she's neither ugly or unpleasant; however, her relentless pursuit does puts him off. She gets over her crush towards the end, though.
- Amazingly Embarrassing Parents: Alex. Made better by the fact that it's Matthew Perry's real father."In case you haven't noticed... the white people are MELTING OUT HERE!"
- Armor-Piercing Response: Of the humorous kind. When Isabel's father Tomas and Alex's father get into an argument about their religion and culture, Alex's father screams, "The WHITE PEOPLE are MELTING OUT HERE!" The entire party is stunned to utter silence. Alex's mother shakes her head in horror and takes a deep drink of her margarita.
- Betty and Veronica: Subverted. Alex's parents have been trying to set him up with a friend of the family, but he finds her boring and irritating until Isabel wants a divorce so he agrees to go out with her. Not surprisingly, it doesn't last.
- Big Damn Kiss: Alex and Isabel have been struggling to get along and adjust after the accidental pregnancy, but then after Alex meets her family and spends time with them, he falls even more in love with her and rushes over to give her one of these after dinner.
- But We Used a Condom!: Alex's reaction to Isabel saying she's pregnant.Alex: But I used a condom... I used a lot of condoms.Isabel: Yeah, well, one of them didn't work.Alex: But that's its job, its job is to WORK! Its entire reason for being is to WORK!
- Complete-the-Quote Title: The title doesn't really make sense considering it's a romantic comedy, until you hear the Elvis Presley lyric "Wise men say / only fools rush in / but I can't help / falling in love with you" in the film. The song in turn refers to the famous Alexander Pope quotation "Fools rush in where angels fear to tread."
- Deadpan Snarker: Alex. Then again, it's Matthew Perry.
- Delayed Reaction: When Alex finally manages to confront Isabel in the film's climax, they argue briefly before he realizes...Alex: What the hell is this! You're still pregnant!
- Does This Remind You of Anything?: On their honeymoon, Alex is trying to uncork a champagne bottle. When Isabel shows up in her nightie, Ready for Lovemaking, the cork pops off, spilling the champagne everywhere.
- Fourth-Date Marriage: Actually their second date. Lampshaded by Isabel's friend while watching the married couple argue about where they're going to live, noting that it's the type of argument you'd see on a second date.
- Good Girls Avoid Abortion: Isabel tells Alex that she's made the only logical decision. Alex assumes she means abortion and is instantly relieved. Isabel is horrified and tells him that the only possible decision for her is to keep the baby.
- Instant Birth: Just Add Labor!: Isabel's water breaks from the shock of Alex walking out in front of her car. By the time the ambulance arrives, she's already delivered their daughter.
- Language Barrier: A rather funny and thankfully non-offensive subversion: once Alex decides to get Isabel back, he knows her grandmother lives in Tamazula and so he goes up to a local and tries to ask how to get there. He says "Tamazula" and the local replies "trambia!" Alex doesn't realize the local understood him and that trambia is how he gets there...until the local tells him in English what trambia means.
- Love Epiphany: Alex is at the airport about to board a plane to go on vacation with his parents and Cathy, the childhood friend that his parents want him to marry, and he sees a sweet little Latina girl who keeps staring and smiling at him. When he goes to leave, she runs after him, but her mother catches up to her and he finds out her name is Isabel. Through the whole movie, Alex has sneered at Isabel's belief in signs and destiny, and this one is a huge slap in the face. He's still in love with Isabel, so he apologizes to Cathy and goes to find Isabel's grandmother to see where she's gone to be with her.
- Marriage Before Romance: Isabel and Alex have a one-night stand in Las Vegas, which results in pregnancy. They decide to get married, move in together and then actually get to know each other.
- Meaningful Echo: "There are signs everywhere."
- My Sister Is Off-Limits: Isabel's brothers are very protective and Alex suspects they may be plotting to kill him.
- Nobody Poops: Defied. During a montage of Alex and Isabel learning to live together, Isabel walks in to use the bathroom while Alex is brushing his teeth and Alex flees the bathroom, clearly Squicked out. She drags him back in there to try to get him used to it and he tries, but still ends up bailing because he's too squeamish.
- One-Night-Stand Pregnancy: Alex and Isabel have a fling while he's in Las Vegas overseeing construction for a new club and don't see each other again until she shows up on his doorstep three months later and asks for some crackers (a helpful food to fight pregnancy nausea).
- Opposites Attract: An uptight WASP from New York City and a free-spirited creative Spicy Latina residing in the Southwest quickly fall for each other.
- Papa Wolf: Isabel's father drives his truck into freshly poured concrete and threatens Alex with a baseball bat when he finds out what has happened.
- Parental Marriage Veto: Alex and Isabel's fathers are vehemently against the marriage while their respective mothers aren't quite so sure it isn't meant to be.
- Race for Your Love: Alex trying to find Isabel before she has the baby.
- The Reveal: Isabel lies to Alex, saying she lost the baby so that he'll break up with her. We're led to believe the baby is gone until we see Isabel at her grandmother's hacienda with her giant belly still intact.
- Rich in Dollars, Poor in Sense: Alex's parents, and the girl they're trying to set him up with appears to be this as well.
- Screaming Birth: Lampshaded.Isabel: I hate you! I hate you! I hate you!Dam Policeman: They always say that.
- Second-Act Breakup: Isabel fakes losing the baby to close the second act so she can retreat to Mexico with her family as her marriage falls apart.
- Shipper on Deck: Isabel's grandmother, who sees the actual affection Isabel has for Alex despite her insistence to the contrary.
- Shout-Out:
- Isabel's childhood friend's name is Chuy (pronounced "Chewy"). Guess how Alex introduces himself? "Hi, I'm Luke Skywalker."
- After Isabel's brothers bully poor Alex, he falls into a patch of cactus and is in so much pain the brothers resolve to give him a boatload of tequila and so when she opens the door to see them carrying him, he drunkenly slurs at her, "Lucyyyyy! You got some 'splaining to do!"
- Spicy Latina: Isabel is a classic example; she's Latina, and flies into Gratuitous Spanish-laced rants when Alex irritates her.
- Surprise Pregnancy: What kicks off the plot of the whole movie.
- Tempting Fate: When Alex is talking to a OSHA inspector and says if anything else happens he will red tag the club's construction himself, a giant sign falls on the inspector's car.
- Token Black Friend: Inverted, somewhat. Isabel has a sassy, red-haired white friend named Lanie who is in favor of the couple living in Las Vegas and understands how Isabel's family and culture works.
- Tough Room: Alex makes a Star Wars joke when Isabel introduces him to her former flame, Chuy. No one laughs; Alex chalks it up to Never Heard That One Before.
- Twerp Sweating: Isabel's brothers have an awful go at Alex. How bad? They drag him out to a desert to go hunting and then he stumbles into a patch of rattlesnakes. The brother's solution? Shoot the snakes which are mere inches away from his feet. Then he falls into a cactus patch.
- Uptight Loves Wild
- Viva Las Vegas!: Alex and Isabel get married on the Strip after she tells him about the baby.
