Jun 19 2009

The Proposal

Margaret Tate (Sandra Bullock) is a hard driving and seemingly heartless editor for a major publishing company in New York. Andrew Paxton (Ryan Reynolds) is Margaret’s soft assistant with aspirations of becoming an editor himself. When Margaret is threatened with deportation to Canada on a green card technicality, she makes a last ditch effort to keep her job and residency by claiming she’s engaged to be married to Andrew. An unconvinced immigration officer then sets out to prove the engagement is a ruse; meanwhile Margaret and Andrew spend a weekend in Andrew’s home town of Sitka Alaska to learn everything there is to know about each other, convince Andrew’s family of the relationship, and celebrate the 90th birthday of Andrew’s grandma Annie (Betty White). The act seems to be going well but what happens when the two actually fall in love? The ProposalStandard romantic comedy rules apply to this semi clever spin on an old plot line. There’s really not a lot of new material covered in this tale; however, the chemistry between Bullock and Reynolds does seem to gel and Betty White succeeds with her type cast role as the cute eccentric old lady. A few clever gags and bits elicit some chuckles as well. As a date movie this just might work, although perhaps best as a matinee. The Proposal is rated PG-13.


Jun 12 2009

Away We Go

When Burt Farlander (John Krasinski) and his pregnant girlfriend Verona (Maya Rudolph) learn that Burt’s parents are about to pack up and move to Europe for two years, the couple realize they too can move. This moment of clarity sets the couple to tour across the country connecting with friends and family, new and old in search of a new place to call home. Away We GoWell written script by up and coming author Dave Eggers, and quality acting by all involved with quirky characters at each turn, sometimes a little too over the top, but still likeable enough;  this indie film has a feel that could crossover into a wider release. Bit parts from actors Catherine O’Hara, Jeff Daniels, Maggie Gyllenhaal, and Allison Janney also lend to the fun spin on this film. Worth seeing as a matinee. Away We Go is rated R.


Jun 5 2009

Movie for This Week

Land of The Lost
Dr. Rick Marshall (Will Ferrell), inventor of a crackpot time/dimension traveling device accidentally gets transported to a mysterious land where the past, present, and future all converge. Joining the doctor on his journey is slacker Will Stanton (Danny McBride) and the studious Holly Cantrell (Anna Friel). Once in this “land of the lost” the three must find their way back home, avoiding the evil Sleestack creatures, a cantankerous T-Rex, and oversized mosquitos. Sadly, this attempt at rebooting what was already a lousy television series proves to be nothing short of horrible. A weak script starts the pain and sparse laughs provided by Ferrell are few and often at the easy and predictable blue joke level. Mediocre production value lacks the shine to really impress. One thing is certain about Land of The Lost, the one thing you’ll lose will be roughly  90 minutes of your life. Land of The Lost is Rated PG-13.