AMB Reviews

The Proposal: 8/10 Stars

Release Date: June 19, 2009

Content Advisory: Rated PG-13 for sexual content, nudity and language. A women's private parts remain just barely covered by her arms and a cloth. She then tumbles on top of a naked man, but their private areas are strategically covered up. Astripper wearing only underwear suggestively dances in front of the main character. A scattering of some mild swear words.

Review:

Sandra Bullock is my favorite actress.She's witty, funny, and very talented. Let's just say that I've been waiting to see this film for several months now...

In Short:

"The Proposal" is Sandra Bullock's comeback to the chick flick business in quite a while now. After taking a turn and starring in more serious films, she's back in this fluffy delight as Margaret Tate, a very mean-spirited and lonely woman. But when her Visa runs out and she's threatened to move back to Canada, she blackmails her assistant into marrying her so they will both be able to keep their job. It all leads up to one chaotic, comedic, and at times touching chick flick that actually kept me entertained throughout. It'sa charming film that is personally my favorite "Sandra Bullock chick flick."

In Full:

Margaret Tate is the manager of a particularly large editing industry. Her assistant, Andrew Paxton is obedient and dedicated, even though she's rather mean to him (think Meryl Streep to Anne Hathaway in The Devil Wears Prada). But, when Ms. Tate's faced with the threat to move back to Canada after her Visa expires, she hatches the perfect plan: marry Mr. Paxton, keep her job, and it will all be over just like that. They travel up to Andrew's family's house for the weekend, and though they start off hating each other... this is a chick flick. There's got to be some romance in there somewhere. Though the storyline was formulaic and predictable, it remained humorous and even touching, and can succesfully be considered a decent chick flick, a genre that I don't really care too much for.

Sandra Bullock is, as you already know, my favorite actress. From Miss Congeniality to 28 Days to Premonition,she always brings a sort of light to the big screen. Her performance in this was not her best, but still very good, as she played the cold and distant woman who slowly warmed up to life and all it has to offer. She was no Meryl Streep, but she was still pretty darn good. Newcomer, Ryan Reynolds joins the cast as her "fiancee" and, along with a decent performance, turns in great chemistry with Bullock as well. Betty White also plays the hilarious Grandma Annie, who had me laughing constantly.

Though I do not know where this film was shot, the movie was supposed to take place in Alaska, and the scenery ended up being gorgeous. The several boat trips taken during this trip showed off the marvelous lake (or was it the ocean) while the house that was used for most of the film was absolutely gorgeous. From spacious rooms with huge glass windows and slick wooden flooring... it had it all. What I'm trying to say is... you won't be disappointed if you are looking for marvelous scenery. The backdrop itself in this film is like a dream come true.

As I did mention above, however, I did find the film formulaic and predictable. Not that I expected anything different. This is a chick flick. A pure, fluffy chick flick. There's never much substance in any films of that genre. That's just what I'll have to accept. [Spoiler Warning]  It's probably easy to figure out by now that the two main characters, who hated each other at first, end up falling in love and getting married. After you think that everything's over, the guy chases after the woman to express his love for her, they kiss, and it's a happy ending... as always. While most will find that cute, I found it to be predictable and unoriginal as well, as pleasant and charming as the film was as a whole.

"The Proposal" is a recycled film.There's not much in here we haven't seen before. Sandra Bullock and Ryan Reynolds have great chemistry and turn up great performances, but I still couldn't help but think of all the other films I had seen that were so similar in style to this one. The ending isn't very hard to figure out. That being said, this movie was also very funny and warm spirited, with a good amount of scenes that would make you tear up before smacking your funny bone again. Its humor is persistent, its dialogue witty, its acting wonderful, yet its formula weak. It isn't the greatest movie I've ever seen, but it's still a very pleasant chick flick.