Directed by Anne Fletcher
Where & When: Arclight Cinemas, Hollywood, CA. June 30, 2009, 10:00 PM
It's summer. That means that we are going to be bombarded by movies involving transforming robots, grumpy old men and their flying houses, drunken bachelors, and teenage wizards.
Now, you couldn't pay me to go see the latest "Transformers" movie. I admit I didn't see the first one in the theater but I tried watching it on cable and couldn't get through the first five minutes. Don't get me wrong. I do like and frequently see Hollywood summer films. I did love the "Star Trek" reboot and "The Hangover" (fun, clever and two of my favorites of the year) but I am still particular on what I spend my hard earned dollars on.
So I went to see "The Proposal" a workplace rom-com from director, Anne Fletcher that stars Sandra Bullock and Ryan Reynolds. Why, you might ask? Well, I did see the trailer and it looked like it could be fun. My rule is if I see a trailer and I am not sold, I don't go and see it. Which is why I avoid most standard, Hollywood summer movies. There are definitely exceptions to my little rule: word of mouth and a lot of good reviews might make me change my mind but I adhere to it for the most part.
Margaret Tate (Bullock) works in a New York publishing company and referred to behind her back in the office as "the boss from hell". Her assistant, Andrew (Reynolds), who is in a constant state of frenzied stress, might tend to agree with this assessment of her. Now, Margaret isn't exactly evil and nasty as everyone around her makes her out to be. She is certainly rude, self-centered and insensitive (not at all uncommon with supervisors, trust me) but not all bad. And since this is a romantic comedy, I guess she's got to be somewhat likable.
Margaret is informed by her bosses that her request for a U.S. visa has been denied and would have to return to her country of origin, Canada. Not wanting to see all the years of hard work at this company go up in smoke, she quickly informs them that she's engaged to her assistant. Margaret has to now convince an extremely reluctant Andrew to marry her for exactly three years, which should help with her visa, and in exchange for going along with this preposterous proposal, he will be compensated with a great promotion as an editor.
After agreeing to this insane plan, Andrew takes Margaret to his home town in Alaska for his Granny's (Betty White) 90th birthday to announce their upcoming nuptials. His parents (Craig T. Nelson and Mary Steenburgen) are a little surprised by this announcement, especially since he used to complain about her constantly, but they try to welcome her in to the family.
Margaret and Andrew struggle to play the loving couple in public but bicker and fight in private. She tries to stay focused on the job at hand but finds herself actually becoming attracted to Andrew and his warm family. Everyone is so nice and treat her with such kindness. And just like the Grinch, her heart opens up. This makes sticking to this crazy plan more difficult for her. Does she go through with the wedding or does she follow her new found heart?
"The Proposal" is very light and predictable yet it delivers all of the charming, funny moments you expect from a romantic-comedy. This solid film requires nothing more than to sit back, laugh, swoon and soak up the beauty of Alaska. Bullock is also an executive producer on this as well and wise enough to surround herself with some very talented and funny actors. What a great cast, especially Betty White who practically steals the movie from the much younger leads. No one changes into a robot and nothing blows up but "The Proposal" still is one of the perfect summer movies.
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