As I am currently writing the new post, ready to bash in my least favorite films of the decade, I thought I would give you a head's up on one of the most recent entries.
Originally written October 31, 2009
“THE PROPOSAL” Directed by Anne Fletcher
* (one star)
For those of you who have taken the time out of your busy schedules to read my cinematic musings, you have no doubt come across my occasional laments over the current status of the romantic comedy film. I will not re-hash all of those criticisms here, and I know its motion picture cotton candy meant to simply be an escape. I get it. I like cotton candy too…I really do! But, why can’t this sort of cotton candy taste better than it usually does? Why can’t there be a level of excellence in the making of the cotton candy so it can be the best cotton candy there is? Continuing with the candy metaphor, there’s Snickers and then, there’s Zagnut and “The Proposal” is less than a Zagnut. It is yet another time-waster in the romantic comedy genre that equally wastes the talents of everyone involved and provides no romance and no comedy in any way, shape or form.
The story centers around the “romantic” pairing between Margaret Tate (Sandra Bullock), a stereotypically bitchy cold-fish high-ranking editor at a publishing company and her long suffering assistant Andrew Paxton (Ryan Reynolds). In order to keep her Visa status in the United States and avoid deportation to her original home of Canada (!), Margaret blackmails Andrew into a marriage proposal that will of course play out over an Alaskan weekend with Andrew’s family, which is also hosting Andrew’s Grandmother’s 90th birthday celebration. Margaret and Andrew will without fail hate each other, begin to like each other, have a series of awkward physical moments meant to draw out their latent sexual attraction, grow closer, draw away from each other and then, have their revelatory moment where true love steps in and saves the day, all set to corn pone and clichéd small town homilies. This also being somewhat of a screwball comedy of mistaken identities and intents, Margaret will also have to have the moment where she comes clean to the family and feels a sense of regret over her relentless malicious and duplicitous ways. Yawn!
Again, I realize very well that this is fantasy. However, I do feel that in order for the fantasy to work, the story, characters and emotions need to be grounded in some semblance of reality and knowledge of how real human beings behave. I keep returning to the recent films from Judd Apatow because no matter how outrageous the proceeding in “The 40 Year-Old Virgin”, “Forgetting Sarah Marshall” and especially “Knocked Up” became, all of those films were weighed down by their perceptions of human nature in relationships. There was real romance in those films, which in turn, accentuated the comedy. Another fine recent example would be the Will Smith comedy “Hitch.” While not perfect, it was a highly entertaining film that really paid attention to the emotional states of the characters and I especially ended up rooting heavily for Kevin James and Amber Valletta’s romance to end well. With “The Proposal,” none of that acute perception is on display.
Now all of the aforementioned plot details would be well and good if only, (Good Lord, if only) there was an actual screenplay that paid an ounce of attention to how real people behave. Every moment is prefabricated, none of it felt true and I just don’t believe that any of the film’s participants believed in this material above the cashing of their paychecks. Even the entire conceit of the film is ridiculous! Honestly, if you want me to believe that Margaret Tate is so ruthless, tenacious and unyielding in her highly successful career as a publishing maven, you would think she would be at least a tad more attentive to her Visa status. And then, there is this character of Margaret Tate herself and she is completely unappetizing, devoid of empathy and ferociously irredeemable and it seemed as if the filmmakers just wanted Sandra Bullock’s natural charm to carry the day. Well, it doesn’t. Even a manufactured past tragedy and a love of the hip-hop classic “It Takes Two” does not inform the character at all and it was falsely manipulative material to fake the audience into caring for her and realize that she’s not so bad. I’m sorry but Margaret Tate deserved to be alone and in an early scene, where Andrew actually defies Tate’s sadistic proposition with a curt, “I quit. You’re screwed,” and walks away, I wanted him to keep on walking…and then, the movie would’ve been mercifully over.
Additionally and worst of all, I do find it strange that in 2009, we have yet another depiction of a career woman that is so resoundingly sexist…and this film is even directed by a woman and executive produced by Bullock herself! Does every successful career woman have to be the standard bitch whose personal lives are in desolate shambles? Margaret Tate has enough clout in the publishing world to get a reclusive author an interview for Oprah but she is entirely friendless, without family and without love. I honestly do not know what the appeal was for Bullock to take this character on. I have to paraphrase a criticism that was reserved for Katherine Heigl and her recent films and it seems equally relevant here…If Sandra Bullock has an agent, she should fire that person. If she does not have an agent, she needs to desperately get one so that person can steer her in the direction of films that will serve her talent. Sandra Bullock is a very likable screen presence but she has been floundering for years in one bad film after another and if she doesn’t want to go the way of Meg Ryan, she had better start paying better and selective attention to the scripts she is receiving.
Look, I’m not trying to exude the air of a “film-snob.” I honestly just want to be entertained by a good story, no matter what it is. I try to go into each movie with the hope that I will just love it. I will admit that I am not terribly fond of movie love stories as few have really worked for me. Nevertheless, when they work…man, do they work! I want to be carried away just like anyone else but when something comes along that just didn’t care enough to try harder, to be funnier, to make me believe in the love the story is trying to cook up, I feel compelled to call them out. “The Proposal” made a fortune this summer at the box office so people did get what they wanted. Yet, sometimes, instead of just giving the people what they want, how about giving them what they need? How about giving them a story that treats the audience as intelligent people who can be rewarded for their hard labor and well-earned dollars with high quality entertainment.
We deserve better…even from cotton candy.
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