Starring Amy Adams and Matthew Goode as enemies-to-lovers, this very American portrait of Ireland happens to be charming.
In 2010 the Guardian gave the romcom Leap Year a one-star review. The script was "horrendous", according to the reviewer: "Afterwards, the only 'leap' I felt like making was off a motorway gantry into the fast lane of the M25."
He wasn't alone. Leap Year has an approval rating of 23% on Rotten Tomatoes; the New York Times called it "so witless, charmless and unimaginative that it can be described as a movie only in the strictly technical sense".
It's been 16 years. And here is why Leap Year is good, actually.
The premise is this: Anna, an American woman (Amy Adams), decides she'll make use of an alleged Irish rule that says women - shock horror - can propose to men on 29 February. She follows her cardiologist boyfriend (Adam Scott, who looks like a lesbian mouse who wished to be human - complimentary) to Dublin with the intention of getting down on one knee. The wet Irish weather conspires against her and for whatever reason - don't question it - a tall, beautiful, cranky publican (Matthew Goode) is her only hope of transport.
They are very rude to each other, in a way that is very hot. She ruins her heels in the mud; he laughs when her suitcase is stolen. At one point they need accommodation - and guess what? There's only - say it with me - one room at the inn. And the owners are religious, so Amy and Matthew have to pretend to be a married couple. Oh, and the shower curtain is semi-transparent.
The appeal of a romcom is that we know what is going to happen; therein lies the comfort and joy. Previous reviewers have mistaken well-loved tropes for a lack of imagination. Done properly, a romcom takes our hand through a series of events that are both audaciously unrealistic and deeply familiar. Everything, every character, every line of dialogue, every Irish cow that blocks the bickering pair's journey - is there in service of the love story.
Leap Year is designed to be enjoyed with a willingness to have very few thoughts for one hour and 40 minutes. It is escapism, and in this case we escape to a very American portrait of Ireland: dark, cosy pubs filled with living, breathing stereotypes, dramatic cliffs and lots of drinking. It's enchanting.
There's also a magic that makes you care about Leap Year's characters. Put that down to Adams and Goode, who move through the enemies-to-lovers journey so endearingly that it seems entirely plausible they fall in love over two days on a road trip. You root for them to smooch, even though mere hours ago Anna wanted to spend her life with another guy who was perfectly fine, if a little materialistic.
Of course there's a happy ending, and I cry every time. This is the correct emotional response, because using the right criteria (handsomeness, yearning, misty landscape), Leap Year is a good film. Just don't contact me to discuss the accuracy of Matthew Goode's Irish accent.