Invictus + Duplicity + The Ugly Truth + The Proposal (2009)
INVICTUS (**) - Dir. Clint Eastwood
My first reaction upon seeing the trailer: “It’s a fucking sports movie?!” Clint Eastwood’s (“Flags of Our Fathers,” “Gran Torino”) latest is big-hearted but not exactly gripping. A movie with everything but a main character. “Invictus” has a confident, clean, and leisurely feel, with lots of good supporting actors. I just felt like I was waiting for the protagonist to appear and get things started. He never does. Instead, we get a movie about competence and professionalism, made with competence and professionalism, but not much else. President Nelson Mandela (Morgan Freeman, essentially just doing character actor stuff) tells his country to work harder, and then they do.
DUPLICITY (**1/2) - Dir. Tony Gilroy
Another near miss. I don’t get the appeal of Julia Roberts. She has two modes: self-righteously indignant and listening. She and Clive Owen (much better) play a pair of opposing corporate spies trying to scam both of their companies. Gilroy’s follow-up to “Michael Clayton” is perhaps a little jumbled and too clever for its own good.
THE UGLY TRUTH (**) - Dir. Robert Luketic
By the numbers “men-are-like-this, women-are-like-that” movie. He’s a pig, she’s a hardworking career woman. I like that, in the end, each basically accepts the other, instead of one having to change completely. Gerard Butler and Catherine Heigl (squandered on “Grey’s Anatomy”) can be charming.
THE PROPOSAL (**) - Dir. Anne Fletcher
Everyone knows his marching orders for a rom-com like “The Proposal.” It is what it is, and it does so pleasantly enough, with sunshine and charismatic leads. But that doesn’t mean it’s any good. I did something else at the same time as watching this. My wife paid closer attention. We both agreed we’d like to see Sandra Bullock and RyRy in real movies, but why would they, when they can make a mint doing this stuff?