Customer Reviews

The Proposal (+ Digital Copy) [Blu-ray]

5 star:		(149)
4 star:		(90)
3 star:		(33)
2 star:		(21)
1 star:		(19)

 

 

For some reason Amazon is not listing in Product Details what is actually included in the 2 disc DVD other than a movie description. So for those like me who like to know what Xtras (+ Digital Copy) you're getting here it is:

Alternate Ending
Deleted Scenes
Audio Commentary
Featurette
"Set Antics": Outtakes And Other Absurdities
Subtitles: French, Spanish
Disc Two: Digital Copy of Feature Film

I saw this at the theatre 3 times. It is so funny. I was laughing out loud all through the movie. This is not a chick flick. Lots of men were in the theatre with me and they were laughing louder than me and my girlfriends. The acting doesn't get much better than this. The director has to be pleased with this one because these actors showed up knowing just what to do. Sandra Bullock and Ryan Reynolds were so good together. Ryan was great even when he wasn't speaking. Just his facial expressions were hysterically funny. He also gave singing a try which was even funnier. Betty White played his grandmother and was as good as ever. Sandra and Ryan try hard not to like each other but it just didn't work. Sandra Bullock looks great. Girl can't help it, she is just too pretty. I don't write much about the story because it is described on the Amazon listing and I don't want to spoil anything. Go watch this movie. It is the comedy of the year. I like spontaneous type comedy and not fake made up comedy and The Proposal is just that. You will watch this movie over and over.

If you have just survived another tough week at the office and are looking for a weekend pick me up, "The Proposal" is your sure bet. Yes, I laughed outloud often, and so did most of the audience. The comment frequently heard as the credits rolled was: "Ooohhh, that was sooo goooood!".

The story: a tough lady-boss (Bullock) is being deported to Canada for willful non-compliance with the US immigration department. To save herself, she directs her doormat of an assistant (Reynolds) to marry her. He reluctantly agrees to play along, after she "helps" him understand the virtues of being employed. If you think you know where this story is going... well, you are right. The "happily ever after" cannot be avoided. 'Tis a comedy after all...What is fresh is how skillfully the writers and the director allow the story to veer away from the "happily ever after" course, keeping us on the edge of our seats until the satisfying end, which we have known all along was bound to arrive.

The chemistry between the two leads is another pleasant surprise. I am not a particular fan of either Bullock or Reynolds. Though each smoking hot and talented, neither has made many inspired project choices. However, the roles here suit the pair's natural acting styles reasonably well, which in turn further enhances the believability of their characters. The look of constipated doom on Reynold's face, as he's being informed he's engaged, is side-splitting! I do regret Bullock does not play "mean" better; the intended juxtaposition of her supposedly tough as nails character against her overly compliant secretary is lost at times. We are TOLD she is a witchy boss, and yet she comes accross nothing more then efficient (Sandra: call me! I'll give you some pointers. In return you can teach me how to find a secretary as hot as Reynolds ;0) ).

Another gem in this comedy is Ms Betty White (of "The Golden Girls" fame), an octogenarian in real life as well as playing one in "The Proposal". She has made an art of delivering "campy" with emotional intelligence. She does not dissapoint here either.

Final verdict? Will this film change the course of modern cinematography?

Not a fat chance!

Did it chase my blah's away until Monday morning?

AFFIRMATIVE!!! ...Till Wednesday... at least!

Things have changed a fair bit for Sandra Bullock since the release of "While You Were Sleeping," and "The Proposal" reflects those changes. In the earlier film, she was a newcomer with a "girl next door" image who had a brightness of spirit and innocence about her that made the viewer buy into the whimsy (which looks pretty thin, in retrospect) of that film. This time around, fourteen years later, Bullock has several romantic comedies under her belt and she has developed her screen persona gradually over time. The comparison is warranted, however--the two films have plenty of similarities. Both are about her pretending to be engaged, both have her meet her faux fiancee's families, and both touch on the old moral that honesty is the best policy. Keeping that in mind, thankfully, "The Proposal" doesn't ask too much; it doesn't require that we bend suspension of disbelief too much to enjoy it. It plays off of the viewer's dual desires to see her in the genre where she excels and also see something new, and it delivers on both counts.

In "The Proposal," Bullock plays an overbearing book editor who runs her office like Miranda Priestley of "The Devil Wears Prada." She's a hard-edged businesswoman who seems like love is the farthest thing from her mind. Ryan Reynolds plays the assistant who dutifully caters to her every whim, sacrificing his own personal life for the sake of his career. She knows this and takes full advantage of it on a daily basis. She even blackmails him to marry her so that she can get a visa (she's a Canadian citizen) and remain in the United States. He reluctantly agrees, and the two of them embark on a trip to Alaska to meet his family to show a suspicious immigration officer that their relationship is no sham.

This is where the film attempts to develop Bullock's character into flesh and blood. As expected, her experiences with his family are designed to humanize her. Despite the transparency of the effort, it ultimately works. This is thanks in no small part to the chemistry between her and Reynolds. The progression of their relationship is believable, and the two play off of each other well. Reynolds proves to be witty and charming, and Bullock strikes the right balance between cynicism and vulnerability.

The family figures themselves are more of a mixed bag. The tension between father and son is palpable between Craig T. Nelson and Reynolds, respectively. Betty White assumes the role of the nutty grandmother (a role that is far too similar to the one played by Glynis Johns in "While You Were Sleeping.") Mary Steenburgen goes through the motions as the mother figure of the film, leaving very little impression as she essentially plays a cardboard cut-out character.

The predictability of the story works as much for it as against it: the viewer takes comfort in the fact that they're likely to get a happy ending, but there aren't many surprises. It grounds itself in reality more than "While You Were Sleeping," making it more plausible, yet no less enjoyable. Those seeking rapturous romantic magic might want to look elsewhere, but those seeking an above-average date movie could certainly do worse.

There are two deleted scenes with optional commentary by director Anne Fletcher and writer Peter Chiarelli. There is a nice scene with Andrew's parents (Nelson and Steenburgen). We also see Margaret and Andrew getting a little more comfortable with each other. They are nice enough scenes but not essential and one can see why they were cut.

There is an alternate ending with optional commentary. Fletcher and Chiarelli talk about why they didn't use this ending and another one that they didn't use as well. The humour in this scene is much broader than the rest of the film and seems out of place.

"Set Antics: Outtakes and Other Absurdities from The Proposal" is a montage of the cast goofing around on set. It looks like they had a lot of fun making this film.

Finally, there is an audio commentary by Fletcher and Chiarelli. They start off explaining the dichotomy between the two main characters. Fletcher says that Bullock loved the screenplay and gave Chiarelli all kinds of notes to make her character nastier. He talks about the mechanics of the story while she talks about the challenge of working on location. This is a fairly decent track by two people clearly proud of their film.

I am in no way a big fan of romantic comedies, but I found myself buying this film anyway. I had heard plenty of good things about the film (that I was very skeptic about)and these are two actors who I've got quite a bit of respect for. Most movies don't really get me to laugh. We're lucky if you even get a smirk out of me. Yet I found myself sitting on my living room floor laughing harder than I have in a long time. Now as for why I like this film:

There's something to be said for acting without speaking and Ryan Reynolds has this down. His facial expressions can tell some real stories.

I'm a fan of "The Office" and seeing Oscar in this role was a real treat despite how awkward it was at times. But awkward in a funny/good way.

Betty White is her usual adorable self. I can't think of anyone else to replace her.

Sandra bullock did an interesting job of making an evil boss lovable.

The location was interesting. How many of these movies are set in New York or the Bahamas? Not this one.

No sex scenes. As odd as it is for an 18 year old to say, "I hate sex scenes," I do. I want to watch a movie with my mom and not feel extremely awkward. Plus I find it really annoying when two people who hardly know each other are jumping into bed the first chance they get. I wouldn't really call that "Romantic". It just comes off as a cheap way to sell a movie. This movie had NONE of that.

And it isn't extremely predictable. I like to predict endings just from previews and I thought I had this one nailed, but 30 minutes in, I began to wonder if I bet on the right horse.

Now this isn't the kind of movie that's going to win awards for special effects or best musical number, but there's something about the simplicity that makes it all the more enjoyable. It really manages to stand on it's own.

Even my dad, "Hater of anything not made in the 70's," was laughing with us.

You'll see what I mean if you decide to see it, and I hope you do.

I have to say that with movie prices nowadays, I went to see this movie with high expectations. And in my opinion it didnt disappoint. I paid to see this movie 5 times. The chemistry between Ryan and Sandra is so thick that you can cut it with a knife. Even though movies in this genre have that one issue of everyone knowing how it is going to end... The proposal kept me on my toes. So now I have to buy it when it comes out on dvd.

Sometimes you watch a movie just for the fun of it. This is one of those movies. It will never rank alongside "Gone with the Wind" or "A Streetcar Named Desire" as a great movie, but damn, it's fun. Sandra Bullock and Ryan Reynolds are completely hilarious (not to mention very easy on the eyes) and have absolutely great chemistry. Both are at the top of their game and turn in exceptional comedic performances. Toss in an award-winning performance by the amazing Betty White, a solid cast of outstanding actors and you're guaranteed a good time. Sure, the plot is predictable, but who cares? When you have all that talent on the screen in one movies, and are too busy laughing to analyze it, it doesn't matter. I rented the movie, but now I intend to buy it. It was that good!
If I were just rating the actors, it would be a five-star movie in my book.

I had a fun time watching this movie, and the film has the kind of recognition that EVERY single customer that saw it screening knew they wanted to watch it (again for most of them). The Blu is definitely a mixed bag though. I believe everyone knows of the story by now, and watching these two popular eye-candy actors do their thing keeps the masses entertained as they fall from hate to love of one another.

The Blu clarity has the high budget feel throughout, but in this case to a fault. The green screen coloration is prevalent in any outdoor scene, at times almost appearing deliberately fake (the boat scene after she falls in the water was so apparent you just end up looking past it and focus on the heartfelt moment as was intended). On the second viewing I listened to the writer/director commentary to find out why they shot in Massachusetts instead of Alaska, and as usual it boiled down to money. They did get a few mountain panoramas but the 1080 only gets to show the real ones for a minute or two total. The 5.1 DTS sounds great and gets utilized the best during the strip/bar scene (hilarious sequence). The supplements are bittersweet and include:
* The alternate ending. A way different style of ending that had some hilarious actor(s) completely deleted from the film. It is without the effects so you immediately notice how much green screen was being used - we are talking walls and cranes worth.
* 6 minutes of deleted scenes. Understandable.
* Set Antics as hosted by Aasif Mandvi. 6 minutes worth, you might get a couple chuckles out of it.
* Digital copy of the film on disc 2.
* Commentary by Fletcher and Chiarelli. They get some (sporadic) decent material on there, and by their own admission they admit theirs is how not to do a commentary, but I had to hear all the whys on filming location and volumes of effects for a romcom.
The menu is a corny animated style, but all of the selections have an on/off for commentaries.

I laughed and enjoyed the film, but the solid clarity shows all of the fine line failings throughout as each window background and exterior shot involving mountains becomes glaringly fake at the seams. Not a 5-star benchmark Blu (what should have been had it actually been filmed in Alaska) so four for the film and supplements.

'The Proposal' was a genuinely sweet, funny, and charming movie. Ryan Reynolds and Sandra Bullock, the film's two main stars, had some great chemistry that made all of their scenes together quite interesting. I must say, all of the actors turned into great contributions. Keep an eye for Malin Akerman (of Watchmen fame) and Oscar Nunez (part of The Office's stellar cast). Of course, this was a romantic comedy through and through- you could see the ending coming from just about the film's start. But that's really part of the fun, isn't it? 'The Proposal' was a laugh-out-loud hilarious movie with just the right amounts of charm and even a dash of drama. I have no doubts that the Blu-ray, with its included digital copy, won't disappoint.