In It to Win It

I wouldn’t call The Proposal a romantic comedy or a chick flick if I was you. That’d be too easy.

I’d call the Sandra Bullock-Ryan Reynolds vehicle an accurate (ish) description of the desperate and often hilarious measures an immigrant might take to stay put in the United States.

High jinks emerge from the most mundane of situations, even from one as glossy as the one in which Bullock’s high-powered and imperious New York City-based book editor finds herself.

Bullock’s crisply dressed and tightly pony-tailed Margaret Tate is a woman with many problems, none of which we get to see at first because she’s not only highly efficient but also mightily assisted by the man in her shadow, her younger executive assistant Andrew (Reynolds).

The one problem we’re let in on is Margaret has an expired visa (she’s Canadian, which is just a little ironic because they’re supposed to be so nice and she’s not), and she’s facing the big D: deportation.

A quick thinker, Margaret solves her predicament by forcing Andrew to marry her in a green-card wedding.

But Andrew, who’s put up with her for three years with a smile on his face, is happy to turn around the situation and make it work to his advantage, too, and gets a promotion out of it.

And, natch, they both get more than they bargained for after they’re forced to visit his family…in Alaska…after USCIS (f.k.a. INS) gets word of their intentions. The best part of this conceit is that we get to learn more about these two characters, see what makes them tick, and realize that these problems that they have (Andrew, for instance, doesn’t like to go back home all that much because of familial differences) could problems that you and I could have.

Of course, this happens with a healthy dose of humor, courtesy of Betty White, who as Reynolds’ blunt-spoken, 90th birthday-celebrating grandma, gives Margaret and Andrew the perfect opportunity to sell their “relationship.”

And that’s the jig up The Proposal – which obviously and unsurprisingly, eventually will be up. The fun, however, is in seeing it unfold. There may not be guffaws galore in this movie, but there’s a lot of…realism, relevance, and really tasteful-and-nice-to-look-at nudity (yep, both stars go there).

In a summer of blockbusters, The Proposal is a breath of fresh air.

Who’s playing who is not as important (or entertaining) as seeing these two get it: they are loath to admit that they love each other – but that’s the kinda thing they just can’t help.

But, attention filmmakers (I’m looking at you, Anne Fletcher): I never want to see any more scenes in which – Spoiler Alert! (ish) – a Betty White character is put in such a dire situation. It’s a good thing Bullock and Reynolds have a chemical rapport that should be bottled. It made not want to go get a refund after such a too-painful-to-consider sight.

My Rating ***

Photo: Walt Disney Pictures.