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Retro Review: Leap Year

A romantic comedy that takes you to Ireland

By Rachel CarringtonPublished 2 years ago 3 min read
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Fair warning: I am a Matthew Goode fan and watch him in practically every movie/television series I can unless it's horror. I can't watch that for any actor. That warning aside, I somehow managed to miss this movie when it came out in 2010. I finally watched it last night, and it's one that is going on my to-be-watched-again list.

The movie wasn't perfect. Far from it. But it was funny, quirky, and romantic enough to keep my attention, and that's usually all I ask from a romantic comedy along with chemistry between the two main stars. And speaking of that...

As I mentioned, I've watched Matthew Goode in a lot of movies/television, and he's had some palpable chemistry with actresses like Teresa Palmer (A Discovery of Witches) and Michelle Dockery (Downton Abbey). I didn't feel quite the same chemistry between him and Amy Adams, although there was more as the movie went on. I did enjoy their bantering, and the physical comedy, but there was just that little spark missing that I've seen with Matthew and other actresses.

Matthew Goode and Amy Adams

After watching the movie, I read the critics' reviews from 2010, and I had to wonder if they had watched the same movie I had. There were complaints of Matthew Goode's accent, and honestly, I didn't hear anything wrong with it. I would have easily mistaken him for Irish if I didn't know better.

One review (which I won't link to) called it the worst film of 2010. I imagine they didn't see Furry Vengeance, but that's another review altogether.

No movie is without its faults, but the overall film is what I base my reviews on. If it's a romantic comedy, was it funny? Leap Year was. In fact, there were plenty of moments where I laughed out loud. Was it romantic? Who can watch a couple falling in love and not see romance?

Were the characters engaging? Yes. I could very well imagine Anna's frustration as she attempted to reach her boyfriend before February 29th so she could propose to him. And Matthew Goode was perfect as the man who needed money and didn't really want to invest much more in Anna's difficulties.

Was the plot realistic? Technically, yes. It's entirely feasible that a woman would head to a foreign country to chase after a boyfriend she wants to propose to, especially since he was taking his sweet time about it and she had heard this as part of her family lore. People have done stranger things for love.

Moving on to a different part of the movie, the scenery was astounding. It made me want to book a ticket to Ireland immediately, but my bank account protested. That countryside, though, is gorgeous, and it's on my must-see list.

Some of the issues I blame on the writers and the director. I think some scenes pushed the characters together before they had established better chemistry. The kiss scene, for instancdon't know many couples who would insist another couple kiss simply because they had.

And Anna's shoe hitting the bride didn't really serve a purpose. I wasn't really sure if it was meant to show she was screwing up someone's wedding or to highlight the fact that she wasn't having the happiest day of her life. And having her accidentally pour wine on the bride was overkill and didn't make me laugh at all. It did, however, make me cringe.

Taking those scenes and a couple of other ones into consideration, Leap Year was still a fun romp of a romantic comedy with plenty of laughs. If you're looking for a movie to lift your spirits, this one will do it. I give it an A-.

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About the Creator

Rachel Carrington

I'm an avid writer and reader. I've had over 53 novels published and over 2,000 articles. Here I review movies, TV series/episodes, books, and write about entertainment. www.rachelcarrington.com

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