This Review Reveals Minor Details About the Plot.
May the Road Rise Up to Meet Thee.
Plot Overview
Family oriented, daddy's girl Anna
Brady (Amy Adams) meets her rogue dad Jack (John Lithgow) in a
neighborhood bar where she gets hit on (“Will you
marry me?”) by some guy while she's waiting. She's pretty and
approachable but not interested (“No, thank you.”) Her
father is wanting grandchildren, but Anna an arranger by
occupation (“I stage apartments”) is precise to a
fault. They will have to be spaced apart as each becomes
“verbal,” every three years, which working back means
she has to start … now. She's hopeful Jeremy Sloane (Adam
Scott) her boyfriend of four years (“That's a
long time”) is about to propose.
At a romantic dinner he fails
to—again—but being a cardiologist gets called
in on an emergency and must leave directly afterwards
(“my crazy schedule”) for a conference in Dublin. Duh!
Family planning would require the sperm reservoir do his part at a
precise time, not be called away suddenly or be at some foreign
conference. This is like something from a William Wharton novel:
It reminds me of the man who designed the opera house in Vienna. He forgot to put steps under it and in his disgrace killed himself—— Architects are a screwball bunch, half artists, half craftsmen, caught between the imaginary and the real. (239)Looks like Anna has forgotten some steps.
Anna succumbs to her father's family
fantasy purporting that a lass is allowed to propose to her lad on
Leap Year's Day. February 29 is three days away, so she flies
off to Dublin on the next plane. Inclement weather forces
diversions to Dingle on the opposite coast. She hires a driver
Declan O'Callaghan (Matthew Goode), the manly innkeeper,
(“Meet me around back in ten minutes”) and their
two-day road trip produces some forced intimacy (“KISS
HER!”) that puts them on a slippery slope to romance. Since
he lives above his inn he'd be available at home any time for a
good time. Goldilocks has an important decision to make.
Ideology
The switcheroo romance that blossoms between two leads is not so
compelling as to be anticipated were it not for the movie world
preparing us for it. Think along the lines of, (Prov. 30:18-19) “There be three
things which are too wonderful for me, yea, four which I know not:
The way of an eagle in the air; the way of a serpent upon a rock;
the way of a ship in the midst of the sea; and the way of a man
with a maid.” The writer of this Good Book's saying cannot
track an eagle drifting on the air, a slithering serpent on a rock,
or a ship tossed on the sea, much less “the way of a man with
a maid.”
Here instead of an eagle up in the
sky we have in the first instance the lassie's plane being diverted
to Cork because of turbulence, and in the second instance the
lass's flying shoe scoring a bull's-eye during a spirited dance at
a church wedding they've stumbled upon.
“The way of a serpent upon a
rock” corresponds to a chicken in the yard being caught for
the stew rather than one being got “from the freezer
section.” In the second instance it's a couple sliding down
a hill from the castle to catch a train.
“The way of a ship in the midst of the sea” corresponds to a chartered transport vessel being diverted from Dublin to Dingle due to the storm, and in the second instance the lassie after having been kissed at the B&B showing mercy on the lad, not making him sleep in the bathtub again.
Production Values
“” (2010) was directed by Anand Tucker. It was written by Deborah Kaplan and Harry Elfont. It stars Amy Adams, Matthew Goode and Adam Scott. Delightful Amy Adams carries the show, even rescuing it from a mediocre script. Adams is amusing and likable playing the straight man to the dumb cow.
MPA rated it PG for sensuality and language. The landscapes of Ireland were breathtaking. Runtime is 1 hour 40 minutes.
Review Conclusion w/a Christian's Recommendation
The Christian culture of Ireland plays in the background by word and deed. This is a pleasant picture with a perky innocence in an English speaking country across the sea. I found it touching. It's a sure bet for romance buffs.
Movie Ratings
Action factor: Decent action scenes. Suitability for children: Suitable for children with guidance. Special effects: Average special effects. Video Occasion: Good Date Movie. Suspense: A few suspenseful moments. Overall movie rating: Five stars out of five.
Works Cited
Scripture quoted from the King James Version. Pub. 1611, rev. 1769. Software.
Wharton, William. Last Lovers. Copyright © 1991 by William Wharton. New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, first edition, 1991. Print.
bibles.n7nz.org