The Proposal

• Released Internationally on 18/06/09
• Released in Malta by KRS on 05/08/09

In a nutshell

Margaret Tate is a single, powerful and rather unpleasant book editor. Andrew is her assistant – an abused and frustrated young man who’s far from home. Today, after ordering her usual morning coffee, she’s going to order him to marry her.

The devil publishes books

The film opens like a scene from The Devil Wears Prada, with the poor assistant racing through New York traffic to get their evil boss’ coffee on their desk just in time for their arrival at work. Romantic comedy regular Sandra Bullock walks primly into her high-rise office, giving Tate an aura of subtle menace and cold-heartedness. She doesn’t mind that the entire office hates her – it’s part of her job, and she’s good at it. Bending over to her every demand is the resilient Andrew (Ryan Reynolds – X-Men Origins: Wolverine, Van Wilder and most memorably TV‘s Two Guys and a Girl). He hates his job, and his family tells him to quit “every single day”. But having invested a couple of years in this nerve-racking job, he’s determined not to quit now, with a promotion and possible literary career within his grasp.

Marriage of inconvenience

Miss Tate’s march through the day is brought to an abrupt halt by the news that her work visa is about to expire, and that the company owners will have to fire her if she is deported back to her native Canada. With her slave-driving thinking cap on, she devises a cunning plan on the spur of the moment, and announces that Andrew and her are soon to wed. All he can do is look furtively around and nod in agreement.

Homeland security

With the authorities breathing down her neck and determined to prove that their engagement is a shambles, the unlikely couple head off to the far-flung town of Sitka, Alaska for a picturesque family weekend to celebrate the 90^th birthday of his grandmother. They have a weekend to learn everything about each other, and fool family and foes into believing they’re very much in love.

Great idea, average execution

The film starts off promisingly, but once the amusing concept has been set in motion, the two talented comedic actors find themselves struggling with a poor script which darts off in tangents and feels disjointed. Penned by newcomer Pete Chiarelli, the film seems unsure of where it’s heading, and is full of lengthy, awkward scenes which add nothing to the flow of the story. One would think that the premise of the couple pretending they’re in love would provide tonnes of comedic material, but much of that potential is wasted here. Director Anne Fletcher (27 Dresses, Step Up) has vast experience as a choreographer, but only three films to her name as director, so one hopes she’s still on a learning curve.

Amusing Alaskans

With most of the film set in Andrew’s hometown, the citizens of Sitka colour most of the film with their charming homeliness. Mary Steenburgen (Step Brothers, Back to the Future Part III) is Andrew’s mum, whilst Craig T. Nelson (The Incredibles, The Devil’s Advocate) is his sceptical dad. Betty White (Rose from The Golden Girls) is lovely and radiant as his doting grandma, but her role is brought down by an embarrassingly silly chanting scene, just as Oscar Nunez (The Italian Job, Oscar on TV’s The Office) is amusing as the multi-talented Ramone, but afflicted with a cringe-inducing dance sequence. The supporting cast is completed by Malin Akerman (Watchmen, The Heartbreak Kid) as Andrew’s childhood sweetheart and effective bad-guy Denis O’Hare (Charlie Wilson’s War, Milk) as the understandably suspicious immigration officer.

In the end

The film coughs and splutters, and very nearly stalls, but eventually arrives at its expected and natural conclusion. It’s a pity that it falls flat a few times on the way, because the silly and useless scenes are mixed up with a few marvellous comedy moments, and loads of possibility. Ultimately, it’s an average romantic comedy which allows its two stars to show their talents, but doesn’t manage to rise above the countless other similar films out there.

Trailer:

http://www.apple.com/trailers/touchstone/theproposal/ (High-res QuickTime)

Watchmen

• Released Internationally on 06/03/09
• Released in Malta by KRS on 06/03/09

 

In a nutshell

Showered with reverential praise in the comic book world, Watchmen was published as a 12-part graphic novel in the 80s. A multifaceted, dark tale of superheroes in a realistic, present-day world, it has finally made the ambitious jump to be big screen as a single film, albeit just shy of three hours long.

Smells like the 80s

Set in 1985, the film opens with the murder of a certain Edward Blake, later revealed to be the masked superhero ‘The Comedian’. As the back-story unfolds, we learn how masked vigilantes like him have been an essential part of American society for a number of decades, often playing an important role in key historic events. From WW2 to the cold war, superheroes are a daily part of the headlines. It turns out the Vietnam war was in fact won by the Americans, thanks to a healthy dose of heroics, thus helping Nixon get elected to his third term in office. But as these heroes fall out of favour, they become outlawed in 1977.

Mystery men

As the various masked crusaders fade into retirement, descend into madness, or meet an early demise, two continue to work for the government past the ‘77 ban – the now deceased ‘Comedian’, and a rather blue, serene guy of moderate build, Dr. Manhattan. The latter is shown to be the only hero with supernatural powers, as a result of a freak lab accident when younger. The most interesting of the heroes, a lithe, ferocious little guy with Rorschach blots on his mask (and hence known as, you guessed it, Rorschach) continues to operate in the shadows, running from the law and keeping his own agenda. The Comedian’s demise sets him thinking, and he seeks out the other ‘watchmen’ to seek their help with retribution.

By way of introductions

After starting off with the murder, the film has decades of back-story to go through before returning to the present and continuing with the plot. Whilst done by means of different chapters in the novel, this must have been one of the most daunting tasks facing the filmmakers, but they pull it off in style. Ironically, the complex, multi-thread first half of the film was the part I found most enjoyable. The cutting back and forth between the present and the past manages to remain clear, relevant, and most importantly entertaining, despite having to dish out background information on all the superheroes, including a lot of detail about The Comedian himself. Unfortunately, this excellent momentum and editing tapers off in the second half of the film, although the ending manages to be both satisfying and unpredictable.

Watch and listen

As in previous comic book adaptations, the director benefits from having excellent source material, from which, besides the story, he can lift the look of the characters and environment, as well as the action. In fact certain scenes are reproduced exactly from the novel, thus remaining faithful to the author’s vision, and probably pleasing comic book fans. But where this film excels, and stands out as a fresh artwork of its own, is in the sound arena. Boasting a collection of song classics that would make Tarantino proud, the film is punctuated with wonderfully orchestrated scenes that mix music and visuals to perfection. The comedian is brutally murdered to the mellow sounds of Nat King Cole’s ‘Unforgettable’, which is exactly what the scene is, his funeral starts off with Simon and Garfunkel’s ‘Sound of Silence’, and a later tender moment is scored with Leonard Cohen’s often covered ‘Hallelujah’. There’s even a nod to Apocalypse Now as Dr. Manhattan cleaves through the Vietnam battlefields to the sound of Wagner. But the most memorable sequence, and in my opinion the highpoint of the film, is the opening credits. Reworking Dylan’s ‘The Times They Are A-changing’ to cover six minutes of flashbacks, the sequence moves through American history, with key events set up as frozen tableaus, showing the impact of superheroes on the past. It is one of the best opening credit sequences I have ever seen. Sadly, the original score by composer Tyler Bates doesn’t rise to the same level as the songs and as in his previous weak efforts is serviceable, but forgettable.

Who’s in it?

The graphic novel was written by Alan Moore, who also wrote V for Vendetta, and illustrated by Dave Gibbons. Much of the film’s credit obviously goes to them. Zack Synder, who successfully adapted another graphic novel, 300, took on the huge task of directing this complex saga, and as mentioned above his efforts in the first act are very effective. Jackie Earle Haley (Little Children) provides narration as well as a vicious performance as Rorschach, and Patrick Wilson (Angels in America, Little Children) is Nite Owl II. Carla Gugino (Sin City) acts her age in flashbacks as Silk Spectre, and also appears in the present as the ageing mother of Silk Spectre II, played by Malin Akerman (The Heartbreak Kid). Billy Crudup (Big Fish, Almost Famous) is the past, face and voice of Dr. Manhattan, whilst the allegedly smartest guy on earth, Ozymandias is portrayed by Matthew Goode (Match Point, last year’s Brideshead Revisited).

In the end

This is definitely not a film for everyone. Comic-book adaptations tend to go down very well with certain viewers, and not so well with many others. Personally, I think they can vary in quality, just like any other genre. This ambitious, complex film benefits from having excellent source material, and therefore a great story, but ultimately suffers due to having so much ground to cover in the space of one film. Still, it starts impressively and manages to end on a high, despite sagging a bit in the middle. The graphic violence, sometimes stylized, but often not, might be hard to stomach, but it remains faithful to the novel, and adds to the dark nature of the world being portrayed. Despite its flaws, this is the first head-turning release of the year, and is a visual and aural feast you should see on the big screen.

 

 

Trailer:

http://www.apple.com/trailers/wb/watchmen/ (High-res Quicktime)