Archive for May, 2010

Willow ruled. That is a statement that can not be questioned. Thus it was a huge thrill to chat with the man himself, Warwick Davis. Give a listen.

It’s tough being Anna Brady (Amy Adams). She’s dating an attractive cardiologist who buys her expensive jewelry and seems to genuinely love her. But, unfortunately, he hasn’t proposed marriage, and it’s tearing her apart. When he travels to Dublin on business, Anna decides to fly there and propose to him on Leap Day. This woman-popping-the-question-to-the-man business is apparently an Irish Leap Year tradition, so Anna is hoping her boyfriend—who obviously isn’t ready to get married—will enter into wedded bliss because of an archaic custom. Stupid idea.

Before she arrives at her destination, the plane is diverted and she’s dropped off in a jerkwater hamlet, where she meets a cynical bar owner named Declan (Matthew Goode, Watchmen), who agrees to drive her to Dublin. I wonder what’s going to happen next?

Ha, that last line is what we in the writing business call “sarcasm.” You see, because there is never any doubt as to what will happen next. Actually, the trailer for Leap Year gives you enough plot to surmise how this thing plays out, and guess what: you’ll be right!

Sure, I went into this review fully prepared for a disappointing performance, but that’s not particularly bad; my expectations were so low that anything above mediocre would qualify it as a success. Alas, even with a cellar-dwelling expectation level, Amy Adams and company couldn’t clear it. Leap Year manages to crater on all standards that a passable romantic comedy should be judged.