'Til immigration do us part

“The Proposal” attempts to answer whether or not two good-looking Hollywood characters can start out not liking each other and yet end up together by the end. It turns out they can.

So this idea has been used in one or two movies before. Does that make it a tired theme? Actually, it does. But like it or not, it’s a theme that’s here to stay. On the other hand, it can still be enjoyable when a story looks at fresh ways of bringing two characters ideals together. “The Proposal” chooses not to do this, sticking with the good ol’ reliable bicker-yet-show-attraction-until-moment-of-emotional-breakthrough” routine. It hasn’t failed to get a script approved yet.

Sandra Bullock plays Margaret Tate, a big-shot New York book editor who, in accordance with mandatory movie character stereotype law, is feared by her entire staff, who run in a panic and try to look busy when she approaches and breathe sighs of relief when she is around. She seems emotionless and is only concerned with the next business deal. Granted, I’ve never worked for a New York publisher, but I have had female bosses and I’ve never encountered this problem. Of course, in the movies, women bosses seem to have to be this unpleasant. Perhaps normalcy isn’t considered real enough.

Her tortured assistant Andrew (Ryan Reynolds) wants to be taken seriously in his job yet continues to bow to her every whim like the rest of the department lap dogs, even going as far as to always order the same coffee as her should she need a backup. This attitude opens the door for his boss to use him as a fake fiancé when she becomes faced with deportation to Canada and needs to get married in order to stay in the U.S. and keep her job.

It seems to me that anyone who works for her would line up to offer to help her pack Instead, Andrew goes along with it. To help fool the immigration officer, he even takes her to his family’s Alaska home for the weekend. The rest of the scheme involves fooling his own family into believing they’re a couple and even making it official through an impromptu wedding.

Aside from being a garden-variety comedy, “The Proposal” has a few other glitches to overcome, and they’re all about characters. It would be great to see how Andrew’s parents (Craig T. Nelson and Mary Steenburgen) affect his life. Dad is only there for a few shots to show there’s family tension and mom is around to dote to play the anchor between them. We don’t get into them, and later all conflict are seemingly resolved with a few simple words. I also don’t get how Andrew’s whole personality can change from manservant to gutsy the second he sees his chance.

The real disappointing factor in this love story is the love. There’s a moment when Paxton spots his old flame through a window and proceeds outside to deliver some news. We never hear what’s being said between them, yet that moment that he sees her shows more chemistry between these two characters than he and Tate ever graze. Exceptionally, the ex didn’t even need to be in that one shot to show this.

When Margaret eventually (and she must) breaks down and talks about her past difficulties that led her to be such an ice-queen now, we don’t care, and it doesn’t matter because Bullock is so unconvincing doing it. She may as well be reciting last night’s hockey scores for all the emotional investment she’s putting into spilling her guts.

The cast does have two notable shining stars. The first is the legendary Betty White as Andrew’s grandmother. You can’t get enough of her. She too follows the romantic comedy stereotype that every woman over 80 must be odd and spunky, but boy can Betty play it. The other is Oscar Nunez, who fans will recognize from TV’s “The Office.” He’s the town’s jack-of-all-trades. One of those trades is a minister, another is a stripper. And he always pops up in a new job when you’ve just settled on his last one.

So the movie doesn’t hit with romance or characters. Get ready for a shocker, I say see it anyway. It’s funny. Romantic or not, Reynolds’ and Bullocks rapport is spot-on. You’ll smile, probably even chuckle a few times. Wait until Grandma and Margaret turn an Indian chant into hip-hop. I hope my positive recommendation surprised you. Like I said, the movie doesn’t have any, so I thought you could use it. You’re welcome.