Good cast saves aimless ‘Proposal’

Threatened with deportation to Canada in “The Proposal,” Sandra Bullock resorts to a dodge that works only in movies and sit-coms: She arranges a quickie marriage to an American citizen.

Because this is a movie, the scheme is likely to work, although an immigration officer does dog our heroine on the bizarre conviction that America would be a more secure nation without Sandra Bullock. If she is planning “Miss Congeniality 3,” I’ll grudgingly admit he may have a case. But if the U.S. government wants to start sending people back to Canada, shouldn’t we start with Howie Mandel?

Bullock’s character, Margaret Tate, is a high-powered editor in a top New York publishing office. As the premise pretty much demands, Margaret has no life outside her work and everyone in the office hates and fears her.

That includes her executive assistant, Andrew Paxton (Ryan Reynolds), who becomes Margaret’s fiancé of convenience.

To give screenwriter Peter Chiarelli credit, the argument Margaret uses to coerce Andrew into marrying her makes sense within the context of everything we learn within the first 10 minutes about these two characters and the politics of their workplace.
The deal also implies that Andrew has no more scruples than his boss, but we’re meant to overlook that for the time being.

The hiccup Margaret doesn’t foresee in her plan is a weekend trip to Alaska. That is where Andrew’s family will gather to celebrate the 90th birthday of his Grandma Annie (Betty White), and that is where she and Andrew must now announce their engagement.

Shortly after they arrive at the Paxton family’s palatial island compound (“You didn’t tell me you were some kind of Alaskan Kennedy,” Margaret says), something unusual happens. Margaret and Andrew cease to be stereotypes and morph into characters with backgrounds and emotions. Director Anne Fletcher follows Chiarelli’s lead and avoids obvious jokes that involve slamming doors and comic misunderstandings.

The problem is, once you’ve set your story up as a bedroom farce, resisting the form seems futile. “The Proposal” meanders toward a tone without arriving at one. It isn’t sharp or fast enough to be a screwball comedy, but forays into lowbrow humor prevent it from developing into a comedy of manners. For an impromptu bachelorette party, Andrew’s mother (Mary Steenburgen) and grandmother drag Margaret to the island’s rustic version of Chippendale’s, where a chubby and hirsute stripper wiggles his stuff to Frankie Goes to Hollywood’s “Relax.” The entire song plays before the predictable sequence ends – and, believe me, the song is longer than you remember.

“The Proposal” is the third film from choreographer-turned-director Fletcher. Her last film, “27 Dresses,” was another romantic comedy muddled in its purposes. Fletcher’s aim, I suspect, is a genuine desire to rise above the clichés of the chick flick. Her footwork isn’t nimble enough, though. She sidesteps some clichés, but gets entangled in others.

Still, Fletcher has the good sense and good fortune to cast lead actors who can overcome limited material. Bullock is a pro at this, especially in frothy romantic comedies, and Reynolds is on his way.

Even during some of the most contrived moments, they convey a background of genuine emotion behind their comic exchanges. The supporting cast is strong, too. White is a hoot, and Steenburgen remains incapable of registering a false moment. Craig T. Nelson does what he can with the least developed role, that of Reynolds’ demanding father.

“The Proposal” is pleasant, but aimless, made watchable mostly by the talents of its cast. As one of Bullock’s supporters, though, I wish she would pick better scripts. She puts her fans on the defensive, forcing us to say she is the best thing in a so-so movie. I look forward to the day we can declare Bullock is a great part of a great film.

2-1/2 stars
Rated: PG-13 for sexual content, nudity and language
Running time: 1 hour, 47 minutes
Written by: Peter Chiarelli
Directed by: Anne Fletcher
Starring: Sandra Bullock, Ryan Reynolds, Betty White, Mary Steenburgen