It's frustrating when a review spoils a movie for you. You just want to know if Generic Summer Flick 5 is going to suck ass or not, and some jerk on the internet ruins a surprise cameo or gives away the ending. That's no good, but it's even more frustrating when a trailer spoils a movie for you.
The previews for Leap Year left me with the sneaking suspicion I was seeing the whole film in a condensed 90-second form, and it's true: If you've seen the trailer, you've seen Leap Year. Granted, this isn't the worst thing in the world. Unless you're startled every morning as the sun rises again, you know not to expect surprises from most romcoms. Leap Year plays it safe, following the fail-proof romantic comedy formula (uptight girl meets carefree guy with a five o'clock shadow, and the sparks fly) and you can see the conclusion coming from a mile away, but Leap Year does some things right.
More after the jump.
The previews for Leap Year left me with the sneaking suspicion I was seeing the whole film in a condensed 90-second form, and it's true: If you've seen the trailer, you've seen Leap Year. Granted, this isn't the worst thing in the world. Unless you're startled every morning as the sun rises again, you know not to expect surprises from most romcoms. Leap Year plays it safe, following the fail-proof romantic comedy formula (uptight girl meets carefree guy with a five o'clock shadow, and the sparks fly) and you can see the conclusion coming from a mile away, but Leap Year does some things right.
More after the jump.
Amy Adams (Julia & Julia) is likable enough as Anna, a character who is either a bit silly or downright detestable depending on how much of a feminist you are. Anna, a yuppie with her future mapped out perfectly, is disappointed Jeremy, her boyfriend of four years (Adam Scott of Step Brothers and the HBO series Tell Me You Love Me), hasn't proposed to her yet. Recalling an old Irish tradition that women may propose to men on the extra day in February during a leap year, Anna hops on a plane to lovingly ambush her boyfriend while he is in Dublin for work and desperately racing to get to him by February 29. When her flight sets down short of Dublin due to inclement weather, Anna hires a bartender/innkeeper/cabbie named Declan (Matthew Goode, Ozymandias from The Watchmen) to escort her to the city. And, wouldn't you know it, along the way she learns a little bit about what's really important in life — and it turns out it's not material possessions. Thanks for the lesson, Leap Year!
The first half of Leap Year is a dud. Some attempts at slapstick humor as Anna and Declan first meet could have been good for a mild chuckle had they not been revealed in the previews, and there are some stunning scenery shots of Ireland, but these are overshadowed by a couple of poorly done green screen scenes that would be considered sloppy by made-for-TV movie standards. Like the relationship between Anna and Declan, after a rocky start, things pick up later in the film as a romance between the unlikely pair begins to blossom. This all leads to the aforementioned predictable finale, which serves as a satisfactory conclusion to a mediocre romcom.
If romantic comedies really do it for you, you could certainly do worse than Leap Year. If not, you're better off abstaining. This story has been around the block a few too many times to fully recommend.
--Eric Pulsifer
The first half of Leap Year is a dud. Some attempts at slapstick humor as Anna and Declan first meet could have been good for a mild chuckle had they not been revealed in the previews, and there are some stunning scenery shots of Ireland, but these are overshadowed by a couple of poorly done green screen scenes that would be considered sloppy by made-for-TV movie standards. Like the relationship between Anna and Declan, after a rocky start, things pick up later in the film as a romance between the unlikely pair begins to blossom. This all leads to the aforementioned predictable finale, which serves as a satisfactory conclusion to a mediocre romcom.
If romantic comedies really do it for you, you could certainly do worse than Leap Year. If not, you're better off abstaining. This story has been around the block a few too many times to fully recommend.
--Eric Pulsifer
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