SYNOPSIS:
When Anna learns of a strange Irish tradition that allows women to propose to their men on Leap Day (February 29th), she flies straight to Ireland to corner her high flying boyfriend and pop the question. All seems lost when her plane lands in the wrong city but a handsome inn-keeper Declan comes to her rescue and drives her across country in a crazy comedy of errors...but will Anna's heart stay true to her man or will Declan's Irish charm prove irresistible?
MOVIE REVIEW:
It’s easy to diss a romantic comedy like “Leap Year”- after all, we’ve all seen a similar movie like it before. You know, the one where the girl meets the guy and it’s hate-at-first-sight, then they are forced to take a journey together, and finally find out that hey they have actually fallen in love with each other in the process. Am I revealing a spoiler here? Well only if you haven’t ever seen a Hollywood rom-com.
So yes, a movie like “Leap Year” is always and will always be formulaic, and indeed, just a look at the writing credits of Deborah Kaplan and Harry Elfont- the people behind “Made of Honor”- will probably also reveal as much. Whereas the main conceit in “Made of Honor” was the gender-reversal of bridesmaids, here it is the ancient Irish folklore which allows for a woman to propose to her guy on Feb 29.
Anna (Amy Adams) is the uptight Boston woman who, after four years with her cardiologist of a boyfriend (Adam Scott), is itching for that ring on her finger and decides to fly to Dublin to propose to him on that date. Some turbulence and assorted forms of transportation woes later, she ends up in Dingle where she meets pub owner Declan (Matthew Goode). He agrees to drive her to Dublin if only to save his pub from foreclosure, but the two bicker from the get-go- though in a rom-com like this, that verbal sparring is supposed to be part of the fun.
It is- but not because Kaplan and Elfont’s dialogue sparkle with wit; rather it is still fun to watch because Amy Adams and Matthew Goode are genuinely appealing and share enough down-to-earth charm to make you care about their characters. And thanks to the two leads, the somewhat leaden comedy manages to stay afloat through largely clichéd physical comedy- forced to step on cow dung? Check. Forced to snog Declan? Check. Forced to share a room? Check. Getting drunk at a wedding and then falling in love? Check check.
About the only thing that is as refreshing as the leads Is the gorgeous Irish locations, which are filmed with sufficient enticement to make you want to visit the Irish countryside (and therefore probably worth the Irish tax dollars that went into this movie). That said, as Hollywood is often guilty of doing, the supporting characters here in the Irish countryside are cast as no more than comedic stereotypes- superstitious folks, loveable sots or outright buffoons- and less generous viewers may very well take offense.
Still, Adams and Goode have enough good-natured appeal to make you forgive the by-the-numbers script chock full of clichés. These days, where Hollywood seems deign to troop out one formulaic rom-com after another, you’d only ask that the leads are attractive, the romance is sweet and the happily-ever-ending delightful. “Leap Year” does right on all these three counts, and by that measure is good enough for those who need a little wish fulfilment.
SPECIAL FEATURES :
There are close of seven mins of “Deleted Scenes” here which offer little more than to show you Anna’s initial hesitation of visiting Dublin, some additional Hollywood-manafactured Irish countryside humour and John Lithgow (who plays Anna’s father).
AUDIO/VISUAL:
The Dolby Digital 5.1 audio does what it can when it can- especially with the use of ambient sounds in the countryside to deliver a surround experience- but mostly the audio in this dialogue-based movie comes front and centre. Visual transfer is sharp, with no visible flaws throughout the movie.
MOVIE RATING :
DVD
RATING :
Review
by Gabriel Chong
Posted
on 22 August 2010 |
