(Let me get this straight - all I have to do is wait until Feb 29 to propose to either Uma Thurman, Chris Evans, Neve Campbell, or Russell Crowe, and I‘m in there? Seriously?)
CAST: Amy Adams, Matthew Goode, Adam Scott, John Lithgow, Maggie McCarthy,Pat Laffan.
DIRECTOR: Anand Tucker
WARNING: Some SPOILERS and rather nightmarish Irish road trips - straight ahead…
Italy is the most beautiful place on earth, with the most beautiful food and the most beautiful people. I’m not going to mince words here, folks: Italy is Paradise. I had the fortune of living there for over a total of 3.5 years. And having spent all that time there, I can say unequivocally that, despite all that perfection, there is still a downside. And that downside is… you can’t be bothered to go anywhere else. Which would normally be fine. Until someone invites you to go with them to another country on holiday - and you’re response is something along the lines of, “Succhiare mia sinistra dado, stronzos.” Which roughly translates to “Suck my left nut, assholes.”
I remember some fellow American friends planning to go from our homes in Italy to Ireland over the 4th of July weekend - and I told them that they could forget about me going. Why? Well, just two reasons: (1) Why the hell would you spend Independence Day in a country that’s part of a Kingdom that, you know, tried like hell to keep us from, you know, being able to have an Independence Day? …and (2) Why would you leave Bella Italia with all its sun, sea, and olive-skinned hotties for Ireland and all its rain, rutty roads, and pasty-assed limeys? Come on, bitches… argue with me on this one. I dare you.
Bottom line: Ireland is one of the few places I’ve never been to. Mainly because I couldn’t be bothered to leave behind the Stefanos, Paolos, Lucas, Giulianos, Marcos, and Enzos that ran the streets of Rome and Naples like wild animals in the World’s Sexiest Game Park - and I was their park ranger. Actually, more like a Petting Zoo. Ahem. Needless to say, I was thinking with the other head. Just keeping it real, folks. Anyone who’s been to Italy knows what the hell I’m talking about. And I didn’t regret my decision to stay behind in the Land of Sexy even just one bit.
Then I watched our latest review, the Ireland-set romantic comedy LEAP YEAR, and immediately wondered if I should have just suppressed my hormones long enough to leave Italy and have a short holiday in the Land of Elves. Or is that shamrocks? Or Jameson’s Whiskey? Whatever. Anyhow, if LEAP YEAR is anything to go by, Ireland is the second most beautiful place in the World after Italy. Not hard to surmise when you have hotties Amy Adams and Matthew Goode headlining the movie and doing the “bickering-couple-falls-in-love thing” amidst rolling green fields and sparkling lakes.
Our heroine is a Boston yank named Anna Brady (Amy Adams), who is one of those yuppie chicks who has her ear glued to her BlackBerry 70% of the time. The other 30% is spent dialing numbers. In other words, this chick seriously needs a vacation - fast. Otherwise, she just might die from BlackBerry overdose. Thankfully, an opportunity to get the hell out of Beantown soon presents itself.
The opportunity I speak of is a piece of folklore so utterly laughable it has to be true: apparently, the Irish have a tradition where women can propose to their men on Leap Day. This has a direct bearing on our dear Anna because of the following things: (1) her man Jeremy (Adam Scott), a renowned cardiovascular surgeon, has gone to Dublin on business; (2) she wants to marry him that same way some hopeless alcoholics need a shot of Tequila; and (3) this ridiculous Irish tradition will allow her to take matters into her own hands - and propose to Jeremy.
Before you can say “Bitch, what the fuck are you doing?” our dear Anna has booked a flight to Dublin to hatch her hare-brained scheme of nabbing Jeremy via one seriously questionable folkloric loophole. But who am I to judge anyone else. If I actually thought I had a fucking chance in hell of getting James Franco to do the Civil Union thing with me, you better believe I would pull an “Anna Brady” and circle the next Leap Day on all the calendars I own - and even some that I don’t.
Unfortunately, Anna’s plan to surprise Jeremy in Dublin goes the way of the Betamax and HD-DVD (read: down the crapper) when her plane is diverted by weather to Cardiff, Wales - which might as well be Outer Mongolia for the sheer odds Anna faces in finding transport to Dublin. Fortunately, being a hot redhead does have its international rewards. Not long after she parks her shapely ass in a local pub does a local hottie named Declan (Matthew Goode) offer to drive her to Dublin - for the very reasonable price of… 600 euros. Well, I guess our boy Declan senses he’s got desperate wannabe-bride on his hands, and is just milking her what she’s worth. You know you’d do the same.
At any rate, I don’t have to tell you that Declan and Anna must have watched ROMANCING THE STONE and THE SURE THING at least a dozen times, because they do an uncanny job of mimicking the relentless bickering of those movies’ stars. When did it become a requirement for would-be lovers to claw each other’s eyes out before fucking each other’s brains out. Inquiring minds (and libidos) would like to know. Needless to say, they argue and snipe at each other all the way from Cardiff to Dublin. To be fair, if I was traveling with a prissy diva who wrecked my car, tossed my sandwich out the window, and generally pirouetted with ice skates on my last goddamned nerve, I think it’s safe to say I wouldn’t be Mr. Sunshine with her either. More like Mr. Bitch Slap. And I’m a gentleman by nature, so that’s saying something.
But what happens when Declan and Anna start to, well, warm to each other? Will Declan realize that Anna is a sweet, vulnerable girl under that Whiny She-Devil exterior? Will Anna realize that Declan is a sweet, vulnerable guy under that Cocky He-Man façade? Will they realize they are kind of compatible? Or will Anna fight their attraction and go on with her crazy-ass plan to propose to Jeremy? Will Declan let her do this? Or will he do the Cocky He-Man thing and spank her over his knee then rock her world?
God, I hope Declan doesn’t take this lying down. Or, actually, maybe I do. Ahem…
BUT, SERIOUSLY: The first time I saw LEAP YEAR, I thought it was an okay film, but didn’t particularly think it to be anything special. While Amy Adams and Matthew Goode are well-matched and engaging, the story and its beats are ones that we’ve seen far too many times before. Indeed, the only thing novel about LEAP YEAR upon first viewing is its intriguing “woman-gets-to-propose-to-her-man” premise which is apparently based on a true Irish custom.
But, sometimes, certain films - like certain people - kind of grow on you. Upon watching LEAP YEAR again, its charms became more obvious. Much like GREEN CARD (review # 295), this movie follows a mismatched couple as they slowly evolve from bickering adversaries to companionable chums, and then to reluctant would-be lovers. And just like GREEN CARD, this film knows its not really delivering anything ground-breakingly new, and instead contents itself with trying to entertain you as much as possible.
Amy Adams is the film’s strong center, and she easily carries this movie on her shoulders. She perfectly captures Anna Brady’s interesting combo of no-nonsense pragmatism and girlish innocence in a way that is totally seamless. She also manages to invest a little melancholy in the character. Watch for the scene where she dresses down Declan for his facile platitudes by telling him about her sad family history. It’s an unexpectedly poignant scene that effectively gives the character of Anna Brady some very welcome dimension.
Matthew Goode is just as formidable as Declan, and he nails both the character’s early crustiness and eventual thawing with equal precision. It doesn’t hurt that he and Adams have a nice rapport that keeps us engaged in their actions. As with his co-star, Goode manages to rise above the script’s formulaic contrivances to actually make us care whether or not Declan will get the girl. Ultimately, it’s no-brainer that Declan and Anna will get together at the end - but give credit to Goode and Adams for making their characters rounded enough to make us wonder.
The only reason LEAP YEAR doesn’t rate any higher than above-average (***) is because it kind of suffers from the LLT Syndrome - or “Lopsided Love Triangle Syndrome”. We’ve talked about this in previous reviews. Essentially, it’s when the third point of a cinematic love triangle is clearly unappealing and therefore doesn’t pose much of a threat. LEAP YEAR would’ve rated ***½ or higher if the writers had fleshed out Jeremy to be more than just a callow careerist who's primarily concerned with status and success. Adam Scott doesn’t really do anything special with the character. He’s competent - but nothing more. Had Jeremy been made to be more of an appealing choice, we might have had the suspense we saw in the triangles for MY BEST FRIEND’S WEDDING and SWEET HOME ALABAMA.
In the end, though, LEAP YEAR is as warm and pleasant as a familiar, old blanket. Clearly, this is a formula romantic comedy. Fortunately, the talents of Amy Adams and Matthew Goode, the lovely Irish countryside, and that intriguing real-life tradition, all combine to elevate this film above the average mark. It could’ve been more surprising, but it also could’ve been far more pedestrian.
