Posted by Mike Pampinella | Posted in Amy Adams , Leap Year , Matthew Goode | Posted on 11:27 AM
Leap Year is typical post-Oscar craze fare. And the truly sad part is that Oscar sweetheart Amy Adams is in this uninspired selection. She will no doubt come out unscathed, because everyone is allowed at least one bomb. Right?
In actuality, Adams had little to with the poor quality of the film. She was on her game, as was Matthew Goode, previously seen in Watchmen and The Lookout. I was fairly impressed with the performances that came out of what has to be one of the most lackluster stories/scripts that I've seen in a long time.
The premise of the film is that Amy Adams' Anna heads off to Dublin, Ireland to propose to her completely unlikable, smarmy boyfriend of four years. While there she meets Declan, played by Goode, and begins to question whether she should be with her insipid boyfriend or the obnoxiously surly barkeep she just met. And if this sounds all too familiar it's because it is. It's a lot like 2008's Made of Honor, which was written by the same writing team. Of course the love triangles are a bit different, as one is more obtuse and the other more isosceles. Still, basically the same premise.
Things happen very quickly and then suddenly start to drag. Once in Ireland things start happening quickly, crescendo, and immediately slow down. The film's pacing is a major problem. The audience is told that Anna is on a tight timeframe, which seems to go out the window. At times it makes sense to see them slowing or stopping and then at other times it simply makes no sense at all. Plus, they seem to cover an awful lot of ground for two people that are transportation-challenged.
Leap Year has little, if any funny moments. There are some attempts at a more subtle type of humor, which in the end comes off as unfunny. The jokes are like leftovers that have been nuked in the microwave one too many times: shriveled and lacking flavor.
There are numerous continuity issues which tells me that the film was edited together poorly. The CGI countryside during the driving scenes looks completely discolored one moment and then lush the next. Issues such as these scream of a ramshackle rush job.
A truly disappointing installment from some very promising young actors. In the end I choose to look at it as a fluke and a learning experience. My guess is Adams and Goode will be far more cautious when selecting films in the future.
Comments (0)
Post a Comment