Another fun frolic with Bullock

The Proposal

Certification: PG

Cast: Sandra Bullock, Ryan Reynolds, Mary Steenburgen, Malin Akerman, Craig T Nelson, Betty White, Oscar Nunez, Denise O'Hare

Director: Anne Fletcher

Genre: Romance, Comedy

IT IS not unfamiliar territory for Sandra Bullock in The Proposal. At times it even comes with the feeling of déja vu if you still remember While You Were Sleeping.

And it certainly has been a long while since we last saw Bullock in a romantic comedy - the last one was seven years ago with Two Weeks Notice. But to say that Bullock comes from the rom-com world would be a mistake.

Bullock has always been smart enough and versatile enough to move from genre to genre, avoiding the one trick pony label. Her career started off in Speed alongside Keanu Reeves but she then quickly moved on to comedies and thrillers, instead of going for another action flick.

Here, Bullock stars as Margaret Tate; a New York book editor and an extreme workaholic, but ultimately a tyrant of a boss to the extent that whenever she enters the office, her frantic staffs send instant messages to one another saying, "It's here!".

Catering to her every whim is her assistant Andrew Paxton (Ryan Reynolds), who joins in all the office rants but sucks up to Margaret in the hopes that one day he will be promoted to editor. But when Margaret faces deportation back to Canada, she suddenly cooks up the idea in front of her superiors that she and Andrew have been having a secret affair and are in fact engaged, much to Andrew's shock. Blackmailing Andrew with the security of his job, the suddenly-a-couple now has to convince an INS investigator, Mr Gilbertson (Denis O'Hare), that they are not cheating the system. So against her will, Margaret has to fly to Sitka, Alaska, with Andrew to celebrate the 90th birthday of Andrew's granny, Annie (Betty White); and bring the charade to its logical extreme. And it is there that she meets his family and gets to really know him.

Since this is a Hollywood studio production, there really is no need to expect any form of originality as a mandatory template has to be followed. So no points for guessing the couple falls in love in the second act, their relationship endangered in the third, and finally a big speech in the end to seal the deal. But even so, this generic story has a great cast to make it entertaining. The 87-year-old TV icon Betty White still has all that it takes to steal scenes from her younger and better looking cast-mates. She is the heart of the family in the story and one of the reasons why Margaret falls for Andrew.

But nothing would have mattered had it not been for the blindingly-bright chemistry between Reynolds and Bullock. Both are great comedians in their own right and both play off each other so well with impeccable comedic timing that it's as if the script by Pete Chiarelli is tailored for the pair. Let's face it, Bullock is no Meryl Streep (or at least not yet). But she manages to bring out her version of The Devil Wears Prada and nails the hard-shell veneer with a soft and emotional centre down to generic perfection.

Reynolds definitely is an up-and-coming lead actor. He's been in quite a few big roles already but none that has made him a household name yet. If The Proposal doesn't do it for him, he still will be come 2011 with his starring roles in two big budget comic book movies, Green Lantern and Deadpool.

But one big disappointment here is the romance. The direction by Anne Fletcher is never clear enough to show exactly when both leads fall for each other.

Fortunately, despite mediocre writing and a structured formula, the spark and flair of the Reynolds-Bullock combo sparkles just enough to steal your heart away.

Reviewer's Rating: 6 / 10

The Brunei Times