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World Peace: Miss Congeniality vs. The Proposal
168 Plays1 year ago
It’s Sandra Bullock week so Rock & Rob lose all gravity and speed off to a place that only has dial-up inter(the net) to see if Miss Congeniality (2000) or the Proposal (2009) can protect the blind side. Find out which movie uses practical magic to handle the heat and emerge victorious as they are put through seven rounds of bullet train like questions and cover a crash course of topics ranging from the infamous state of New Jersey, the unforgivable Ben & Jerry’s Bar etiquette and Canadian underwear. Bonus points for the demolition man (or woman) that can count how many Bullock movie titles are in this description. (Hint: it’s more than Oceans 8 but less than 28 Days.)
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Transcript
Introduction: The Movie Showdown Podcast
00:00:00
Speaker
Ladies and gentlemen, can I please have your attention? Brothers don't shake hands. Brothers gotta hug. Your voice is like a combination of Fergie and Jesus. I don't want your life. I award you no points and may God have mercy on your soul. Okay, a simple wrong would have done just fine.
00:00:26
Speaker
Hello and welcome to The Movie Showdown with Rock
Alex's Coaching Experiences
00:00:29
Speaker
and Rob. My name is Rob Mansfield and with me, the head coach of the Houston Unicorns, the best 6U softball team in Texas, it's Alex Rockline. Coaching tee ball is like 5% coaching tee ball and 95% listening to 5, 6 and 7 year olds tell you random things that have nothing to do with anything.
00:00:48
Speaker
It's just whatever pops in their head and it's like, coach, coach, I lost a tooth four weeks ago. I'm like, that's cool. I'm talking about hitting. We had practice the other day and we were practicing running through first base and the kids all of a sudden decided they wanted to hop through first base or fly. And we had to have a discussion about what the actual goal of baseball was. Yeah, we have a lot of why do we do this?
00:01:11
Speaker
Well, that's a start. We'll get there. It's fun. You know what? It's so much fun. And we go home and tell stories about it. Abby and I, because Abby coaches too. So we're in together. Oh, she coaches with you. Yeah, she's the assistant coach. The whole goal of youth sports is to make the kids want to play
Talents in a Miss America Contest Discussion
00:01:26
Speaker
the next year.
00:01:26
Speaker
So as long as they're having fun and learning, that's the key. Agreed. Well, the question of the week, what would your talent be if you were competing in a Miss America type contest? Okay, well, let's cross off a few and we'll go from there. So singing is out. Dancing is out. Magic is out. Man, could I quote like an entire movie? Like, I think I could go up there and quote like Tommy boy from start to finish. And that could be my talent.
00:01:50
Speaker
Oh, that would be actually unique. I like that. Kind of like Chris Pratt in Parks and Rec. I could act out. How long into the quotes do you think you would get before they were just like, okay, thank you. And next.
Rob's Golden Goose Competition Story
00:02:03
Speaker
Probably not very far. Three minutes.
00:02:06
Speaker
Yeah, probably about that. That's probably like when the initial shock would probably wear off and they'd be like, all right, we got to do something. I was thinking what mine would be and I have never been in a Miss America type contest, but I was in Golden Goose. That's right. Mr. Gordon competition. So for
00:02:21
Speaker
golden goose you had to make a video and then you had to do a stage act my video was I was a baseball player who wanted to be made into a dance team member my stage act was me doing a choreographed dance routine to different songs that if you're good enough on YouTube you can find so I would probably say something about dancing I wouldn't say I'm a good dancer but I just don't have shame with it so I think I would just embrace that yours was very good I you know I had the behind the scenes oh yeah
00:02:46
Speaker
I was like all access. I had a camera. I could have made a documentary about it, but it was fun. I remember that. And I still have my shirt that does not fit. And I will not try to put that on. That's my goal. I want to be able to fit into my shirt again. Yeah. If someone asks me like, yeah, why are you working out? Well, I get the shirt I wore.
00:03:03
Speaker
2008. Alex made these really, I mean, funny to us at least shirts and we handed them out to all of our friends and it said, Rob on the top. And then it had like an outlined picture of my face. And then it just said, Ert. It's great. Yeah, it was, it was a classic. I had my own little cheering section and everyone was wearing that shirt. And I remember when I got out on stage and saw it, it made me feel like a superstar,
Sandra Bullock Movie Matchup
00:03:27
Speaker
Alex. So thank you for that. That was our goal.
00:03:29
Speaker
Yeah, I found one at Abby's parents' house in Connecticut. I was like, oh my goodness, it still exists. I wore mine so much. It's worn down, but Krista still has hers and she, I think maybe wore it once and it was that time. Yeah. And hers is still in like pristine condition. So if anyone wants a Rob Ert pristine condition shirt, let me know what price. If things get tight, you can just sell that.
00:03:50
Speaker
Well, Alex, this week we have a fun matchup. We were talking about movies to do, and one actress came to mind as someone who has had a lasting legacy in Hollywood, has been a part of so many great movies, and we wanted to give her her due justice, and that is Sandra Bullock. What was your introduction to Sandra Bullock, and what are your thoughts on her as an actress?
00:04:12
Speaker
I think you nailed it. She has such a diverse library of movies she's been in. But like when I think about her, I think of obviously mega movie star, but not in the same way that you would think of other actresses. And I don't know what that might mean. She's always good in whatever she's in. She's usually really funny, but she also can like play a range of characters.
00:04:33
Speaker
Well, and she hasn't been passed up by Hollywood. She's one of those rare cases of a young actress who is big in the early 90s. And how often have we seen actresses like that? They're in a couple movies and then they're just gone. But she's lasted to the point where she is still starring in comedies, in dramas, in animated films.
Miss Congeniality vs. The Proposal
00:04:51
Speaker
I remember her early on from speed. I loved that movie growing up. She was so good in it. And then seeing her transition into a rom-com star and then being an Oscar winner, it's just been really cool to see. Do you think too, like she's famous, but a different kind of famous because you don't really hear much about her outside of her movies.
00:05:09
Speaker
She said a couple things here and there in terms of her personal life, but for the most part, she has stayed out of the tabloids. But I'm very excited to get into these two movies that we chose this week to match up. They're two of her most popular movies, and those would be Miss Congeniality and The Proposal. Alex, why don't you tell us about what movie you got this week?
00:05:29
Speaker
This week I will be taking on Miss Congeniality. Quick summary, a disheveled FBI agent gets a makeover and goes undercover as a Miss USA contestant in order to stop a terrorist type attack because the TV station refused to cancel it, which does seem like a poor judgment on their part.
00:05:46
Speaker
This movie was released on December 22nd, 2000. I'm going to tell you three other movies that came out on this exact day. Oh, okay. So you have Oh Brother, Where Art Thou? You have The Family Man, and then you have Castaway. Wow. Okay. Which was so huge when it came out. And the fact that this movie came out on the same exact day as Castaway is pretty incredible, I think.
00:06:10
Speaker
and did well in the box office. Very well. And so did Castaway. So great time to go see movies, you know, right before Christmas. Like I said, December 22nd, Miss Congeniality was directed by Donald Petrie. You may remember him from How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days, written by Mark Lawrence, Katie Ford and Karen Lucas.
00:06:26
Speaker
had a budget of $45 million. And as we mentioned, box office hit $212.7 million. Has a Rotten Tomato score of 41 and a Google audience score of 84. So this week I will be representing the proposal. A not very nice Canadian, rare, I know, convinces her assistant to risk jail time and commit a felony by marrying her so she won't get deported.
00:06:48
Speaker
released on June 19th, 2009, directed by Ann Fletcher. You may know her from Hocus Pocus 2 and the upcoming third Hocus Pocus movie, which we covered Hocus Pocus 1. Check out one of our earlier episodes for that. Go back and listen. She also directed Step Up, which I feel like we'll have to do on this pod at some point. I am down.
00:07:09
Speaker
Written by Peter Chiarelli with a budget of $40 million, it brought in $317.4 million and then almost another $100 million in DVD sales once it was released. Wow. Rotten Tomatoes score of 45% and a Google Audience score of 87%.
00:07:29
Speaker
So like we said earlier, Sandra Bullock has had such a wide range of movies. So I think we should do quick draft Sandra Bullock movies.
Favorite Sandra Bullock Movies Draft
00:07:37
Speaker
Alex, you will have Miss Congeniality. I will have the proposal. You want to go first? You want me to go first? I'll let you go first. Okay. So quick draft Sandra Bullock movies. Ready? Go. With my first pick, I am taking speed. Friend of the pod, Keanu and Bullock save a bus from blowing up. That might be one of the first rated R movies I saw. And I thought it was like the coolest thing ever.
00:07:56
Speaker
That movie is unbelievable. It is really good. I'm pretty sure it's a 95% on Rotten Tomatoes. Okay, so for my first pick, I'm going to take Gravity. I'm a sucker for space movies. I'm glad you took that movie because I didn't want to touch it. I hate space movies. You hate space movies. See, this is why we work, Rob. For my second pick, I'm going to take The Heat with Melissa McCarthy. That movie's hilarious.
00:08:17
Speaker
I had very low expectations when I saw it and I laughed almost the whole way through. I will take While You Were Sleeping, that is one of Krista's favorite movies. And you know, Lucy just wants to go to Florence and we all want her to get there. And then I will take Demolition Man. I still don't understand the seashells thing, but Stallone and Bullock in a movie, give it to me. I mean, that's the dynamic duo right there with my next pick. I'll take Crash, won the Oscar. Can't beat that. There's like a lot of hate towards Crash.
00:08:43
Speaker
And there's always been a lot of hate since it won. And I don't understand why. I remember seeing it in a film class in high school, and I thought it was good. Well, there you go. I'm taking it because of the controversy. I love controversy. And then let's finish it off with, let's go divine secrets of the Yaya sisterhood. This is one of Abby's favorites, and she has been pushing that we do this movie. We'll have to try to match it up with something. Oh, man. Are we really going to go through this whole thing without taking the blind side? That you won an Oscar for? I don't know if I want to take the blind side.
00:09:14
Speaker
It's on my list and I skipped it. With my last pick, I am going to take A Time to Kill, Friend of the Pod, Matty Mick, Samuel L. Jackson, Sandra Bullock, Trial Movie. What more could you want? We got a lot of friends of the pod. We do. I mean, I don't know if they know they're friends of the pod, but we know they're friends of the pod. Okay. Maybe if we just say it enough, it'll get back to them. That's what I'm hoping. Keanu, definitely.
00:09:34
Speaker
Man, Rob, we left some on the board. It's hard to pick. It's hard to narrow down.
Cast Comparisons and Performances
00:09:38
Speaker
Whenever I post these clips of our quick drafts, people always comment with other movies that we didn't take. It's all personal preference. I always say to them when they comment and they're like, how'd you not take this? I'm always like, yeah, it was on my list. It's a great movie. I just picked these other ones. Could have been picked easily. We liked the conversation. So if we missed one, post it. All right, Alex, you ready to battle these out? I'm ready to get wild. Round one, best cast.
00:10:02
Speaker
So as we know, it is Sandra Bullock week. She plays FBI special agent Gracie Hart in Miss Congeniality. I don't know about you, but I like how they developed her in this movie. For me, I love setting the scene with characters and getting a glimpse into their life. So their house, their apartment, whatever. Hers is just, it's out of control. It's messy. It's got stuff everywhere and all my works. I love the, she jams like the wooden spoon into the microwave to get it to work. Yeah. That's gotta be like a fire hazard. Can't be good.
00:10:29
Speaker
Yeah, she's got the boxing. She's got the punching bag, punching bag. I think the word she got the punching bag in the living room. Yeah. I love that. I love how she opens the freezer and there's just like 12 boxes of hungry man dinners just stacked on top of each other. The way she eats in this movie is great. I'm like, man.
00:10:46
Speaker
Which is funny, because you know that there's no way that anybody that looks like Sandra Bullock eats even remotely how she does. Exactly. Yeah, she starts kickboxing the punching bag. I don't know how good her boxing technique was. The kick was good. I did read that this scene was primarily ad-libbed. They were just like, Sandy, go cook. I like that. But yeah, anyway, you know, she's got her Starbucks order, crazy long thing that she's trying to memorize that she gets.
00:11:10
Speaker
I mean, I think that said the most about her. I can't even remember the sizes at Starbucks and she went in there with an order of like 20 plus drinks. I'm comfortable ordering like maybe one or two things. And if I have to deviate, like if Abby sends me in, can you order this for me? I'm like, I don't know if I can. Have you ever heard the Nate Bargazzi Starbucks stuff? Yes, I have.
00:11:27
Speaker
That is exactly how I feel. I can never remember the sizes. I was like, I'll take a small black coffee and they're like, okay, so you would like a venti? And I was like, I have no idea. Sure. I took five years of Latin and I still don't know what you're talking about. Just the one that is the smallest. This one does. Do you see how you have the smaller one? That's the one I want.
00:11:53
Speaker
Oh man. Yeah. We're seeing him in a couple of weeks. I'm very excited to see neighbor. God, he is great. Rob, you're from New Jersey. So I got a couple of New Jersey things for you. Yep. You're close to New York. How'd you feel about her accent? Because for me, when I watch a movie with Boston accents, it's very easy to tell. Okay. That person is not good at it or the, okay. Yeah. That person nailed it. How'd you feel about her New York accent?
00:12:12
Speaker
To me, it was a little much, and I don't know if it was supposed to be more Long Island-ish. It seemed like it went in and out at times. I don't want to critique her acting because she's a really good actor. I'm sure she had met certain people that talked like that, but to me, and maybe it's just because of the history we have with Sandra Bullock and I know how she's supposed to sound, hearing her talk that way really threw me. Yeah.
00:12:35
Speaker
Like I said, I feel like about three quarters of the way through the movie, she was having some scenes, especially more of like the romantic scenes. And she like dropped the New York accent. I mean, it was fine. Passable. It's passable. Yeah. So in the film, she has to go undercover. She's at the Miss USA pageant, not to be confused with the Miss America pageant. Her character becomes Miss New Jersey. Yes, because. Yeah. Why did she become Miss New Jersey?
00:12:58
Speaker
Well, glad you asked Alex and I know you're just setting me up so that I can say this, so I appreciate it. But apparently the original Miss New Jersey got caught in a little film called Armageddon on, which is maybe one of the best jokes ever written. And I don't know if it's because you and I just love Armageddon, but I forgot that that joke was in this movie. It got me.
00:13:21
Speaker
It got me to, and I love to, after she delivers it, she's got that snort laugh, which we see throughout the whole movie, but it's a nice little touch. Very endearing. All right. So besides Sandra Bullock in this film, we have Sir Michael Caine. He plays Victor Melling. He is a two-time Oscar winner.
00:13:36
Speaker
Yeah, he's legit. And you obviously know him for many things. One of the more notable roles is he is Alfred from the Batman movies by Christopher Nolan. He's also in a bunch of the other Christopher Nolan movies. Yeah, when I think about his filmography, I know he's in so many things, but it's also sometimes hard to play. He's in Goldmember. Yeah.
00:13:54
Speaker
Yeah, he is. I remember that. Isn't he Austin Powers' dad or something? I think he is. I love that. He's great. It's weird to think that like a movie like this, definitely a little more on the goofier sides in times, but like to land Michael Caine, like it's pretty great. It is interesting, you know, but maybe he needed a beach house or something. Maybe. I really like Michael Caine in this movie. He has some phenomenal lines. He's really funny. I love when he's talking to Gracie Hart.
00:14:19
Speaker
I need you. Not anymore. The cocoon is open. I've taken a woman without a discernible smidgen of estrogen and transformed her into a lady. No, Rick, come on. I've never been proud of myself. Or of any girl that I have ever coached. You are truly unique. If I ever had a daughter, I imagine that she would be something like you.
00:14:39
Speaker
Which is perhaps why I've never reproduced. This is just such a good setup for that punchline. He's really good. We also have Benjamin Bratt and he plays another FBI agent. FBI agent Eric Matthews. Not to be confused with Eric Matthews.
00:14:55
Speaker
So I had no idea, I did not realize his name was Eric Matthews. And when I heard it, and I was like, huh, good looking FBI agent named Eric Matthews, did they steal this from Boy Meets World? You remember that episode when Eric doesn't have a job, he's not in school, he's sitting on the couch and he decides he wants to be a crime fighter? He has that song that he sings. I do remember this. When a crime breaks out, a cute girl shout, get the good looking guy.
00:15:29
Speaker
And then he's like, he's eating cereal on the couch. He's like, these aren't bon bons. They're cool puffs. So good. Why do we remember that? I don't know man. I love it so much. It really sticks out to me.
00:15:41
Speaker
Ben Bratt was also in Demolition Man with Bullock. He plays another cop with her. He's one of those guys that's like, if he's in something, he's a cop. Yeah. Like he's in Law and Order and like this is just the same character. He is in Doctor Strange and he doesn't play a cop. He does not play a cop. Modern Family too. He's a Modern Family, I believe. He's Manny's father, right? Yeah. Modern Family is good.
00:16:02
Speaker
Great show. Matt Dillon actually was originally cast as Eric Matthews and Hugh Jackman read for the part but did not want it. His agent wanted it as a negotiating tool. He did not get the role and he said it was very humbling. I bet. That was like right as Hugh Jackman was starting to get big. Yeah. I think like X-Men was just about to come out. So he was about to blow up.
00:16:23
Speaker
You also have Candace Bergen. She is back. She is Kathy Morningside. I might remember her from Sweet Home, Alabama. A movie we covered. You have William Shatner, the original James Kirk. He plays Stanley Fields. Do you know how old William Shatner is right now? I feel like he's been like 60 forever. Yeah, he's 93. What? He's 93. He looks the same that he does in this movie as he does now. He's 93 years old.
00:16:49
Speaker
That is insane. I had to look it up cause I'm like, I know he's like older. I don't think I ever would have guessed that. I would have been over 10 years off. Wow. Okay. All right. We also have Ernie Hudson. He plays the FBI assistant director, Harry McDonald. You might know him from the Ghostbusters movies.
Trivia and Comedic Highlights
00:17:05
Speaker
Oh yeah. Another little fun fact here. Edward Herman from the Gilmore girls had a cameo role playing Gracie's father, but his scene was good. You should not ever cut anybody from Gilmore girls out of anything. I agreed. But we talk about Gilmore girls a decent amount on this.
00:17:18
Speaker
It's been coming up. So in the proposal, we have Sandra Bullock as Margaret Tate. Sandra looks great in this movie. We get introduced to her kind of similar scene setting as what Miss Congeniality did with the apartments, although couldn't be more different of apartments. She's riding the spin bike kind of before it became popular with Peloton. Mm hmm. Maybe she got that rolling. That is like a status symbol then. Yeah. You know, to have like that TV, even like pretend like you're riding through the woods or whatever.
00:17:46
Speaker
So Julia Roberts was the first choice to actually play Margaret, but refused to take a pay cut. So Sandra Bullock took over the role. This was actually the second movie in the same year in which Roberts was offered the leading role and turned it down with the role going to Bullock. The other movie, The Blind Side, which won Bullock a Best Actress Oscar. Wow, good for her.
00:18:06
Speaker
Yeah, absolutely. We have Ryan Reynolds as Andrew Paxton. Alex, I don't know if you know this about me, but Ryan Reynolds is a top five actor for me. I can see that. Van Wilder literally changed my life when I was growing up. I love Ryan Reynolds. His persona just really resonates with me in everything he does. He's kind of got that like smart Alec quick with retorts, but also sincere, caring. I like almost everything that he's done. Even the movies that are terrible, I like him in.
00:18:36
Speaker
He is very, very likable. Yeah, it's because he's Canadian. He has some great lines in this movie. I'm sure we'll touch on some of them, but one of them I really like is when he's talking to Margaret. Time out, OK? This bickering bicker something has got to stop. People need to think that we are in luck. That's no problem. I can do that. I can pretend to be the doting fiance. That's easy. But for you, it can require that you stop snacking on children while they dream.
00:19:00
Speaker
I feel like he had to button it up so much. And then once all this stuff happens, it's like the floodgates open and he could just talk how he wants to talk. And he's like been sitting on this for years. Exactly. You also have Malin Ackerman. She plays Gertrude, Andrews X. She's been in a lot of things. Really good in Watchmen, really good in Couples Retreat.
00:19:20
Speaker
Craig T. Nelson is Joe, Andrew's father. You probably know Craig T. Nelson from Parenthood, the TV show. I mean, he's just not a nice guy. They'd never really explain why he's not a nice guy. Right. When he first meets Margaret, he keeps calling her Maggie, which is just like so rude, even though she corrects him. Yeah, it's like almost like he had to be like that stereotype hardened father-in-law. Yeah.
00:19:43
Speaker
We have Mary Steenburgen as Grace, that's Andrew's mother. Mary Steenburgen in a ton of stuff. We've talked about her a little more at length in our Four Christmases episode. We also have Betty White as Grandma Annie, Andrew's grandmother. You know, Betty White almost turned down her role in the film because filming would require her to spend 10 weeks away from her Golden Retriever. That seems on brand for Betty White. I appreciate that. You know, she's a dog lover. This is our first Betty White appearance, right?
00:20:09
Speaker
Yes, you wanna expand on Betty White? I mean, she's kind of an American treasure, at least was. She was, yeah, she passed away a few years ago. At the age of 99, she almost made it. She was like a few weeks away from turning 100. Golden Girls, Mary Tyler Moore Show, one episode of SpongeBob.
00:20:26
Speaker
It's the important stuff. She got to a point where she was just like so famous when she was so old because she was so old, but she was never old. If that makes sense. Yeah, she was always this kind of like the same character. And if you look at her IMDB page, a lot of her roles, she says Betty White, you know, like she was in 30 Rock as Betty White. Yeah, yeah.
00:20:44
Speaker
Last but certainly not least, one of my favorite characters in this movie, we have Oscar Nunez as Ramon. I will just call him Oscar throughout the duration of this episode because to me, he will always be Oscar Nunez from The Office. Actually, it's really funny that his name is Oscar Nunez and that was his name in The Office. Yeah, there was a few people from The Office that just kept their name.
00:21:05
Speaker
but he's great. The running bit throughout the movie is that he just works everywhere. So you first see him carrying the, or do, phrase around at the welcome party. Then in a great scene, he plays the stripper dancing to the relax song. Then he's working in the general store and then he is the pastor marrying them at the end. Every scene he's in progressively gets funnier and funnier. His first scene when he's got, yeah, he's got the tray and then he gets the stuff all over him and he's like, it's wash and wear. So he delivers that.
00:21:34
Speaker
Yeah, like it's so funny, but it's so dumb. But then every time it just builds and builds and then you just want more of them. Watching it this time around, I forgot how much he was in it. So when you're first introduced to him at that party, just carrying the tray around, I was like, oh, that's a really small part. And then you see him and I'm like, oh, yeah, he was the stripper. Yeah.
00:21:53
Speaker
but he's so funny. What connections you got for us this week? Yeah, there's not many. So Candace Bergen was in an episode of Seinfeld, which we did touch upon with the Sweet Home Alabama episode. And then in the proposal, we only have two Seinfeld connections. We don't have any friends. It's kind of surprising, honestly, for these movies. Two very minor roles. We have Diana Ortelli and Susan Leslie, and that's it.
00:22:14
Speaker
Okay, what are we thinking for this round? This is really tough because you have some big, big names in both. Candace Bergen, William Shatner, Michael Caine. That's like, jeez. Sandra Bullock cancels herself out. Yeah, we'll take her out of the equation. Because she's good in both. Then you have Michael Caine who's just elite, but you also have Ryan Reynolds who potentially could be saving the MCU this year. That's true.
00:22:36
Speaker
Now, Ryan Reynolds at the time this movie was made is different than Ryan Reynolds today, but still, he's a pretty big star. To me, I think what pushes it over, though, has to be Betty White. You said it yourself. She's became so famous for being Betty White, and she really carries that kind of weight that when you see her in a movie, you're like, oh my gosh, there's Betty White.
Memorability and Impact of Scenes
00:22:58
Speaker
Yeah, exactly. And she's just so good in this. And you want her to be your grandmother, too. Yeah.
00:23:04
Speaker
She's so good, she's so fun. Also, you and I are huge Office fans, so Oscar Nunez and all of his parts. I think we gotta go proposal here. I feel like he kind of steals the show. He really does. With secondary characters, I feel like he's probably gonna push this one over. Okay, so the proposal takes round one. Heading into round two, best moments.
00:23:25
Speaker
makeover scene. I mean that one is like they're in like an airplane hangar and they're like bringing in people to do everything on her. Seems a little excessive to be in an airplane hangar. Michael Caine's like directing the show. He's like you get the dentist in here. It was pretty great. I know you love makeover scenes where they just pull the glasses off and the person is suddenly beautiful. They didn't do that in this one. They did a really good job though of making her
00:23:46
Speaker
Not that she was like ugly, like as a cop, she wasn't interested in her appearance. She didn't care. She was about her job and her job was to be a cop. And then they had the makeover. I feel like it's a really good one because it really is like this huge shift, but then she kind of trips. So it's like, okay, she's the same person. That scene, I remember very distinctly from the trailer when it first came out. Yes. I really liked that song she sings. She sings it here and she sings it at another part.
00:24:10
Speaker
You think I'm gorgeous. You want to kiss me. You want to. Yeah, I don't know why I just think that's a fun little like it seems a little off brand with her character, but it seems on brand with a Sandra Bullock character. Yeah, that makes sense. Yeah. And I like how she brings it back at the very end. Yeah. That's a nice little way to bookend it. Something I thought was really funny when that first talent scene in the quote, everyone in Texas has a gun.
00:24:48
Speaker
When she jumps off the stage at that guy, what a jump. That was like NFL Combine jump.
00:24:56
Speaker
It was pretty impressive. And she's in that get up
Plot Analysis and Critiques
00:24:59
Speaker
too. Not easy to do. Okay, here's another New Jersey thing. And this, you know, this got me laughing. That line, oh, why is New Jersey called the Garden State? And then she answers, well, you can't fit oil and petrochemical refinery state on a license plate. That's a good New Jersey joke. So I want to ask you, like, obviously New Jersey gets a lot of hate. I've been to New Jersey a lot. I know you, Austin, and other fellow cake-eater, Steve, are all from New Jersey. Yes. I have nothing but good things to say and good memories of New Jersey.
00:25:25
Speaker
Admittedly, I have not lived in New Jersey full time since 2006. There's so much more to New Jersey than I think what movies and TV really focus on. Their airport is in the Newark area in like kind of Northeast Jersey, which admittedly is not like a super nice part of the state. There is a lot of oil and petrochemical refineries.
00:25:48
Speaker
in that area. It makes sense. You land to the airport, it's kind of smelly around there because of all the chemicals, and then there's some marshlands or something, I don't know. But you go away from those areas, and it's just like any other state. You've got where Steve and Austin grew up, which is literally like the mountains. Then you've got where I grew up, which is the beach, the Jersey Shore, from there all the way down the coast. They're all just like beach towns, and then you have more
00:26:14
Speaker
the pine barren area, more just like woods and forest area. And then there's even like a little like farm part of New Jersey. So I'm here for it. People want to make the New Jersey jokes. Like that's fine. I get it. We don't do a whole lot to help ourselves out in certain ways. But you know, I live in Pennsylvania now and some of the older school Pennsylvania people love to make New Jersey jokes. Yet they're always first in line to come and hang out and spend weeks at our beaches. Yeah, there you go.
00:26:39
Speaker
Well, like Sandra Bullock, New Jersey has a lot of range, as we have found out. There you go. When I would visit, we have, we have really good friends who live there. So we'd go every year. And I'm like, I never understood. Like, I think it was just like the Jersey Turnpike. Like we would sit on that, but I'm like, well, please doesn't have one of those. But I digress. I'm here for Jersey. I got your back.
00:26:58
Speaker
Well, I appreciate it. Thank you. You're welcome. One of the things I really like about Miss Congeniality is all of the play on the pageant questions. They set up your expectations for what a pageant's going to be, and they ask these pretty typical pageant questions, and then the answers get twisted on themselves to make really good jokes.
00:27:18
Speaker
And there are some good ones. So Sandra Bullock, her character is trying to figure out how to be a pageant contestant. So when she gets the question, which, you know, they have the montage of everyone answering, what's something our society needs? World peace, world peace, world peace. It gets to her and she's like, that would be harsher punishment for parole violators, Stan. And then pause and world peace. It's like, yes, she gets it. And then you have Miss Rhode Island with, I'd say this is probably like one of the more famous lines and you definitely see it now more than ever. Like recently through social media.
00:27:47
Speaker
Describe your perfect date. That's a tough one. I'd have to say April 25th because it's not too hot, not too cold. All you need is a light jacket.
00:28:03
Speaker
You see that so often on April 25th when people will post like, grab your light jacket or something. I do kind of call BS on that though, because she's supposed to be from Rhode Island and you would never describe April 25th in New England as being not too hot, not too cold. No, you could get snow. May 25th? Yeah, maybe.
00:28:22
Speaker
And then she's got another falling scene, you know, where she's being awarded top 10. I think the best tripping scene is right after she gets the makeover. And then that one is funny, too, because she's already tripped a couple of times and you're like, all right, are we done with it? It's almost like the joke gets beaten in so much that it becomes unfunny. But then that last time it gets funny again. Exactly. I think so, too. And then her backup talent. Yeah.
00:28:44
Speaker
which is when she does her self-defense tutorial. And what's the acronym? Is it SING? Yes. Which is solar plexus instep nose groin. So that's when she brings Benjamin Bratt on stage and kind of gives a lesson on how to
Challenging Acting Debate for Bullock
00:28:57
Speaker
defend yourself from an unwanted intruder. I was somewhere recently where we were talking about someone sneaking up behind you.
00:29:03
Speaker
And I actually thought of this as like how you would get out of it. It was like, yeah, all you'd have to do is go like step here, elbow here. Yeah. And it was before I rewatched this movie and I was like, wow, all right, I learned something. It really sunk in. Yeah. Yeah. And then even the, um, that one question where it's, she kind of has like the longer speech. People consider the most United States passion to be outdated, anti-feminist. What would you say to them?
00:29:26
Speaker
Well, I would have to say, I used to be one of them. And then I came here and I realized that these women are smart, terrific people who are just trying to make a difference in the world. And we've become really good friends. And if anyone tries to hurt one of my new friends, I would take them out. I would make them suffer so much that they'd wish they were never born. And if they ran, I would hunt them down.
00:29:54
Speaker
I like the twist how it's like a nice answer and then she basically goes until a, if anyone tries to hurt one of my new friends and she's talking to Kathy Morningside. Yeah. That's the scene too where Michael Caine's like, gosh, she did it. Like she nailed it. Yeah. She won. And then she goes into that and you're just like, no, no, no. Yeah. Stop talking. Cause she does do that too at the end where she'll kind of turn something around on her when she gets arrested. And she's like, it's not a beauty pageant. It's a scholarship program, which is what she had called it. Yeah. She spins around the words that were thrown at her.
00:30:23
Speaker
And what do I get fired? They steal my life. They steal my beauty pageant. Hey! Hey! It is not a beauty pageant. It is a scholarship program. Yeah, yeah. Yes.
00:30:35
Speaker
The last 10 minutes is pretty good, because even when they're fighting on the stage for the crown, because she knows the crown is the bomb. Obviously, Miss Rhode Island doesn't want to give up the crown, and the girls think she's trying to do something, and she finally gets it, and then you just see Miss Rhode Island. She's just standing with such a goofy cry, and they throw it, and then Kathy Morningside gets arrested. The last 10 minutes is really good. Yeah, it is.
00:30:59
Speaker
In the proposal, I really like the scene in the beginning when Margaret first realizes she's gonna get deported and then tells her bosses that Andrew and her are getting married, unbeknownst to Andrew.
Conclusion: Final Thoughts and Ratings
00:31:10
Speaker
I think there's something that you should know. We're getting married. We are getting married. Who is getting married? You and I. You and I are getting married. Yes. We are. Getting married. Yes. Is it?
00:31:27
Speaker
He your secretary, assistant? Executive, uh, assistant secretary, titles. But it wouldn't be the first time one of us fell for our secretaries. Would it, Edwin? With Laquisha?
00:31:40
Speaker
I love the look he gives them. Like, yeah. Yeah. Yeah. She finds out that he's from Alaska. So they're on the plane. And I just, I like the dialogue. They're banter on the plane. It's good. You just kind of see how it's going to go the rest of the movie with them. And when she's trying to talk on the phone outside of the house and the dogs out there, and then the eagle comes and takes the dog. It's pretty funny. She's like trying to get the dog back. And then Andrew comes out. I mean, nice big hug. We don't think we're fighting.
00:32:08
Speaker
Come on. Hug time. Hug time. Oh, there we go. Isn't that nice? If you touch my ass one more time, I will cut your balls off in your sleep.
00:32:21
Speaker
Yeah, I like how they have a few of those where no one can hear what they're saying, but they're definitely acting. Probably the most famous scene in this movie when they're both naked. She's getting out of the shower. He's trying to get into the shower. They don't know they're there. They run into each other. Even when you know it's coming, it's still funny. Yeah. It's a good scene. Then she pulls the blanket that the grandma calls the baby maker, but she realizes the baby's like, no, not the baby maker. I love how she won't touch it, the whole movie. She's like, get that thing away from me. It's really good.
00:32:49
Speaker
I like the scene where they first start bonding, she's in the bed, he's on the floor and they're talking. That's the scene where he tricks her into singing, it takes two. Turning into the next morning, they get surprised by his mom and his grandma. So he jumps up and jumps into the bed. She's like, what is that? And he's like, I'm sorry, it's morning. It's really good. He's just like sitting there in such an awkward position, like patting her head. That's when Betty White says she wants to see him get married before I'm dead.
00:33:17
Speaker
And they're like, fine. It's a good Betty White line. Fake Heart Attack scene by Betty White is really good. Then the last scene when he goes back to the office and they basically have like their big confession scene where, oh, we still love each other. His kind of like monologue in it is great. Three days ago, I loathed you. I used to dream about you getting hit by a cab or poisoned.
00:33:38
Speaker
It's good. I do like in that scene how like she runs the office like that's her territory But he is just like you stop talking right now. I'm like he's got like the ever hand. Yeah Yeah, it's just interesting to see how that whole thing circles last scene. I kind of want to talk about it's not really relevant to the movie but
00:33:54
Speaker
movie ends and credit rolls, they're still being investigated by the immigration guy. But then they also start investigating and asking questions to everyone else. And so they're sitting down and they're talking to Oscar. And the immigration guy says, would you consider Margaret a good dancer? And he says, you could tell by the way she drinks her soda pop that she's a good dancer. He says, how how is the soda pop relevant to the dancing? And he just responds, I don't understand this.
00:34:24
Speaker
The questions that the guy asks are so weird, but they're so like, they mix for some good moments. I like how do you spell your name? I'm talking, he steals the movie. He really does. For me, I think Miss Congeniality has some really funny lines, especially the twist on the pageant questions. I think the proposal has some really good scenes. I don't think you'd go wrong with either one. It's probably more just like personal preference. Yeah.
00:34:50
Speaker
Eileen proposal, but I also enjoy Ryan Reynolds type of humor in that setting a little bit more. I also think I like Sandra Bullock's like more cutting in that. So that's the way Eileen, but what do you think? When you think back to the movies, like what stands out? Miss Congeniality like has some funny lines, some funny parts for sure. The proposal, like some of the speeches are memorable. I feel like the scenes like as a whole are more memorable, which
00:35:17
Speaker
I think might put it over the top for me. Not to say like one is necessarily better than the other in that case, but I just think like more memorable. I think Proposal has some like pretty classic scenes. Honestly, I feel like you could ask 10 people and you'd probably get five for one and five for the other. You probably would. You and I just aligned on this. And so we're going to go Proposal here. But if somebody listens to this and says like, Oh no, Miss Congeniality, like that's totally acceptable too.
00:35:41
Speaker
But for the purpose of this competition, we're going Proposal, which takes a two to nothing lead heading into round three. Better title or soundtrack. In Miss Congeniality, they don't really have, there's not really like a score. No, I wouldn't say either movie really has a score. I would say that they both have soundtracks, but they're not super deep soundtracks. There's a couple songs. Miss Congeniality has Dancing Queen and She's a Lady.
00:36:06
Speaker
a few other songs, but it didn't really stand out to me. Proposal has, relax, can't touch this, it takes two. I really like in the Proposal, and this is probably just because you and I grew up with this song, but when she's doing the chanting in the woods with Betty White, and she starts singing, get low.
00:36:24
Speaker
like every high school dance ever. I thought that was really funny. Oh, it's very funny. And I think the songs, there's not much music in either. I think the proposal has, I'm thinking to the scene specifically where they're about to reveal that they're engaged to the people at work with you guys. And you know, Ryan Reynolds comes in and he's like,
00:36:41
Speaker
Oh, so-and-so call. They told them you had a prior engagement. And that's when the plan like clicks in her head and they have some sort of like, you know, set up music. And I feel like they had a lot of that in the movie, which I mean, it's not a score and it's not a soundtrack, but it's just like accompanying tone music. Yeah, that did really well. I feel like the music that they did incorporate like the songs in the proposal played more to the plot. Yeah. So like relax with the dancing and then he sings it back to her at the store like.
00:37:08
Speaker
I feel like it had definitely more of a role in it for sure. Alright, so Proposal has better songs, but I think I gotta go Miss Congeniality with a better title. I think so too. It's a fun title. It's a real term. Then at the end she wins Miss Congeniality. Which I didn't know what Miss Congeniality was until this movie, so kudos for that for educating me. The Proposal, like, it's not a bad title. I don't know if I would necessarily say it's the most fitting title.
00:37:36
Speaker
Yeah. Because there was kind of a proposal, but it was such a minor part. I don't know, I think they could have gotten a little bit more creative with that title. So I think Miss Congeniality is definitely the better title. So we're kind of deadlocked here, which Alex, you know, when we are deadlocked, our tiebreaker is. We go to the poster showdown.
00:37:54
Speaker
As our in-house designer, which poster you've taken? Do you know what's weird is that both posters are very similar. Miss Congeniality is her in her gown and you can see her leg exposed, but she's got like the gun holster around it. Yeah. She's got the cuffs. She's got the bouquet. She's got the sash that says federal agent, FBI, whatever. And I love the boots too, but it's just her in a way background. And then the proposal, there's a few variations, but most of them are Ryan Reynolds and Sandra Bullock.
00:38:19
Speaker
Yeah. And she's kind of like leaning over him and he's kind of like pulling back. Pretty standard romcom poster for Proposal. Yeah, very standard. I like Miss Congeniality poster. I do too. That one's pretty solid. To me, this one stands out more too. Like I remember this one. Like when I went to the theaters during this time frame and seeing it, you know, they would put up posters of what's in it. And I just remember seeing that one. And for whatever reason, locked in. All right. We're going to go Miss Congeniality here. We have a two to one lead for Proposal heading into round four. Plot holes, cringiness, random questions.
00:38:51
Speaker
So for Miss Congeniality, my number one plot hole would be I feel like if there was a credible, terroristic bomb threat for a beauty pageant, they would definitely just cancel the beauty pageant. Yeah. And it wasn't just like, oh, someone fell in the sin like it was someone that had been acting on these threats.
00:39:11
Speaker
Yeah, I would think so too. I guess I don't know that for sure. I'm not in the beauty pageant world, but you would have to think they would have just canceled it. Or at least like bringing in the SWAT team to like sweep it. Along those same lines, they make it seem like Sandra Bullock has to become a contestant in the beauty pageant because she needs all access. But if there's a credible bomb threat, the FBI has all access. Benjamin Bratt had all access.
00:39:35
Speaker
Yeah, he was like next to her the whole time. So it doesn't take me away from the movie, but I don't know. Along those lines, so Kathy Morningside and her son end up being the bad guys. The FBI misses that because her son changed his name so they couldn't find his record. He had a police record and then he changed his name. However, changing your name doesn't hide your record from the FBI. It's all pulled from your social security number. So that wouldn't work.
00:40:04
Speaker
There is some cringiness in this movie and watching it, I realized how far we've come in movies just in the way certain things were portrayed. Primarily, I think the male FBI agents were very problematic. They were doing some fat shaming in the opening restaurant scene, trying to play it for laughs, which honestly just wasn't funny. No. Like, I don't even think it was funny in 2000.
00:40:26
Speaker
They were very mean to women. So they have that scene where they're having the party pulling the different female field agents and some male ones and throwing them in the one piece. It's just, you know, laughing at the expense of women. Probably not going to happen nowadays. Yeah. Even like when they had all those hidden cameras and they were like watching the scenes from like the dressing room and I was like,
00:40:46
Speaker
The FBI agents in general were pretty sexist, misogynistic, and homophobic. Yep. Check, check, check. There's the scene where Eric Matthews, he realizes Michael Caine's character is gay, or at least I'm fairly confident he's gay, right? I guess they never expressly say it. No, but I think it's heavily implied, yes. It's heavily implied that Michael Caine's character is gay. Benjamin Bratt's character freaks out about it and thinks he's like,
00:41:11
Speaker
coming on to him. And it's just like things being played for laughs that just wouldn't happen anymore. The funny parts of this movie are not the things that are tearing people down. The funny parts are the clever writing and the basically everything Sandra Bullock does. So I do feel like the FBI would have taken things a little bit more seriously. I mean, they call it Operation Thong. They're kind of like laughing about certain things. I just can't imagine the FBI operating the way that they were portrayed in this.
00:41:39
Speaker
Yeah, with a domestic terrorist threat at a major event. So there's also that one part and I don't know if you caught this. So when she's fighting with Benjamin Bratt in the training area and he takes her down and they're kind of like intertwined with each other. He does this weird thing where he's trying to like convince her to help out or whatever.
00:41:57
Speaker
And he runs his hands over her downstairs area, walks his fingers across it, and it's really weird. I think I missed that part. I rewound it, because at first, I was like, oh, did he just do that over her leg or her stomach? And it was like, nope. It was right over her crotch. Oh, yeah. And I was like,
00:42:13
Speaker
Oh, that's weird. That is weird. So my random questions, she's at a bar and she orders a pint and the bartender's like, you want a full pint or a half pint? She's like, no, give me the full pint. And then he brings out Ben and Jerry's ice cream. So two questions here. Why does a bar have Ben and Jerry's ice cream? Yep. Good question. And how would they serve a half pint of Ben and Jerry's ice cream?
00:42:33
Speaker
Is it because of her? Like, is she the reason why they have it? Like, they're stuck up on this for me. So in her first meeting with Michael Caine's character, they're out to lunch and she's kind of acting ridiculous. I don't think anybody would act that way. She was a credible FBI agent. Maybe she's disheveled. Maybe she doesn't care what she looks like, but she was just behaving very inappropriately for a lunch.
00:42:53
Speaker
It was weird to me because I was like this doesn't line up with her character. At one point Kathy Morningside intimidates her over something. I don't think her as an FBI agent would be intimidated by the pageant director. I don't think so either. Like she was pretty tough woman. Yeah.
00:43:08
Speaker
Last question, and this is actually a question for you, Alex. So she takes some of the other contestants out for a night on the town. They're eating a bunch of pizza. That pizza did not look very good to me, but is that what pizza looks like in Texas? There's a lot of chain places here. I mean, I'm sure there's places around. I have yet to find a place that's like a one-off, like authentic, whatever style pizza. Sure. Yeah, there's some good places around that for sure, but they're all chains. I just get really annoyed in movies when they are like eating pizza and I'm like, that just doesn't even look good.
00:43:37
Speaker
Yeah. I mean, don't get me wrong. Even the worst pizza is still pretty good. It's true. But it did look like chain pizza, which makes sense if there's a lot of chains in Texas. San Antonio is, I think more obviously, I think more Mexican. Yeah. San Antonio is a very cool city. I've been there and it's that opening scene where they're kind of like showing like the Alamo Dome and the Riverwalk. Yeah. It's a cool place to visit. Highly recommend. But the pizza, I would probably not get pizza there. Get some tacos. Or some barbecue.
00:44:04
Speaker
All right, what do you got? So the proposal, I don't really have many plot holes or cringiness. So I'm just gonna hit you with some questions. Why don't they eat in this movie? Like there's never a part where they eat, like no meals and they only have the cinnamon buns in bed. Which they don't eat. She just says, Oh, I need to learn how to cook. They have like the Oscar Ramon scene where they have the hors d'oeuvres. I don't think they eat any of those.
00:44:27
Speaker
All right, so the scene where another Starbucks scene, Ryan Reynolds goes and gets two coffees at Starbucks, spills one of them on himself, but then he goes up to his coworker and he says, I will trade you shirts. Like right now you have to trade me the shirt. And the guy's like, no, I'm not gonna do it. He's like, I will give you my Red Sox Yankee tickets for the shirt. Would you make that trade? A hundred percent. Me too. Even if he didn't offer to trade me, if he was just like, give me your shirt, I would go shirtless for Yankee Red Sox tickets. We're talking 2009 Yankees, which they did win the World Series that year. Yeah, definitely doing it.
00:44:55
Speaker
When she fires Bob that scene where she's like, oh, we're gonna go see Bob and then she just like fires him on the spot Like that stuff does not happen. You need to pull in HR especially in a company of that size You definitely do Ryan Reynolds parents. Why couldn't they come visit him in New York? They're like, oh, we only see him every three years and they seem like they're doing pretty well for themselves It's like they couldn't afford airline tickets, right that always bothers me in movies when family or whatever like
00:45:20
Speaker
We haven't seen you in so long. He was their only kid. Yeah. You couldn't go and visit him. Yeah. Just go to New York for a week to a street. All right. So the timing of the shower scene, that's like that big famous scene that we've mentioned. It's a little bit off. So we see her go upstairs and she's going to take a shower. And then Andrew, he's got a headphones in. He comes in like 20 seconds later and he goes upstairs because he wants to take a shower. Yeah. We see him walk up the stairs. Like you said, 20 seconds later, no cuts. It's a straight shot. So it's like 20 seconds.
00:45:50
Speaker
She's getting out of the shower. Yeah. But it was like we just saw her walk up to get into the shower. Yeah. So she's out of the shower. He goes outside, gets naked outside for some reason, obviously to set up what's about to happen. And then they both come in and that's when they run into each other. But that would literally have mean that she took like a two second shower, which doesn't seem pretty credible. And also like when she like thinks she hears someone, so she like opens the door and she's naked. She's like, hello, is anyone there? Like that was also a little weird. Yeah.
00:46:18
Speaker
During the course of the movie, we mentioned she goes from this hardened boss to very likable at the end. But like, what makes that personality shift happen over three days? I know she gets, you know, she's a little more vulnerable with him and they kind of like share some stuff and she kind of sees him outside of work and more with his family and this kind of stuff. But three days is very quick. It was like a drastic shift. He's like, well, but I'm in love with her.
00:46:40
Speaker
And like if we had seen like glimpses of that while he was working for her, maybe, but like it just seemed like they just didn't like each other. Well, they always say it's a very fine line between love and hate. It's true. And maybe that's what it is. Maybe that's all it comes down to. Okay. The immigration law. Are we sure that that's how this works? I didn't really care to look into it. So no idea. It seems like, yeah, you have 24 hours. Okay. And then you have to go back to Canada.
00:47:05
Speaker
I mean, aren't there like work visas and things like that? Oh, totally. Someone might be like, well, they explained it. That's why. Sure. Whatever. I don't know. Just something to bring up. OK, they have dial up Internet in Alaska. It's not a third world country. Yeah, they have the resources we have in the mainland. Right. In 2009, we were not utilizing dial up Internet anymore. I don't think we were. Yeah.
00:47:26
Speaker
They also got ready for that wedding really fast. Yeah, it was like the next day and that entire barn was set up. And then is there any reason that he lived in Alaska other than just for like one joke? No. As I was watching it, I kept thinking, like, how does Alaska play into this? And it's literally for the joke of her being like, yep, we're going to Sitka. Sitka. And he says, Alaska. And she just looks like shocked. Alaska.
00:47:50
Speaker
Why couldn't have just been Maine, New Hampshire? I mean, I guess also to try to make it reasonable that the parents didn't visit that much and that he didn't make it home that much. Right. It's far. Yeah. And I feel like that was a main point in the trailer to like, we're going to Alaska. And it's like all for that joke. Exactly. I don't know. Also, they're like, all right, we're going to have the wedding. But they didn't even consult her. Hey, do you have anyone you want to invite? Yeah. We find out that her parents have died. But like, they're just like, we're having a wedding. And she's like, OK.
00:48:18
Speaker
It's going to be all of our side. Yeah. And only you. No, she gets to invite the immigration agent.
00:48:26
Speaker
He comes as her guest. Yeah, what is he doing there? Also is weird. I don't know. He was like so excited to get her deported. It's interesting because they say like Andrew's dad and him have a conversation, but still like he hopped on a plane and went all the way to Alaska for this. Like doesn't he have other cases or? Come on, man. That was weird. I think there are more questions about the proposal, but I think the cringiness of Miss Congeniality, at least for me, makes me want to give this win to the proposal.
00:48:54
Speaker
Yeah, it doesn't really hold up and it's not that long ago either. No, it's very weird what was written as humor at that point. So three to one lead for the proposal heading into round five, our miscellaneous question of the week. So both of these movies have Sandra Bullock.
00:49:12
Speaker
acting in some capacity, not as the actress or character is acting. So in Miss Congeniality, she is acting like a Miss USA contestant in the proposal. She is acting like she is engaged to someone. So the miscellaneous question this week is, which would be more difficult to do to act like a Miss USA contestant or to act like you are engaged to someone?
00:49:35
Speaker
To act like you are engaged to someone, I feel like you could pull that off in a short period of time if you had to make it work. And like that was essentially their goal, what, three days or something? Especially if you worked with someone for three years. Even if you don't like them, you know enough about them to make some sort of connections. But then also at the same time, like you have someone in on it with you. So at the end of the day, they go back to the room and they can kind of like recap the day and be like, all right, we got to work on this part.
00:49:59
Speaker
But to pretend to be a Miss USA contestant when you have no training and then learn it in what, like two days or something, I feel like that's probably pretty impossible. The contestants are usually, this is what they've done. Like they've been in pageants probably since they were kids. The culture that comes along with it, they're in the correct shape that they need to be in. Yeah, you have to look like one.
00:50:18
Speaker
I mean, like Sandra Bullock's obviously like her character is, but not like any old person could just like, okay, I'm going to be in a pageant now. That's true. I would have to say that that is tougher. I agree. I think you could pull off pretending to be engaged to somebody, but you have to kind of have some pre-existing things to be able to pull off being a pageant contestant. Exactly. I don't think, I mean, not that there's like a, like a male version of it, but like just thinking if it was me.
00:50:44
Speaker
What about like the like bodybuilding competition? Right, exactly. I couldn't just go and be like, I'm a bodybuilder. People would look at me and be like, no, you're not. And you know, I know like the Miss USA or Miss America pageants, like they don't do the bikini stuff anymore. But at this time they did. But you also I mean, you need a talent. You're right. You need to understand how to talk, how to carry yourself. And that's really hard to learn to do in two days. Even like two months, I feel like that'd be really hard to do. So I would go Miss Congeniality for this.
00:51:13
Speaker
All right, Miss Congeniality taking round five. Heading into round six, Better Trivia. All right, well, I got some Texas trivia for you. Ooh, in the preliminary talent competition scene in front of the Alamo, which I have been to, great place to go, the guy playing bass guitar in the backup band is a famed Austin director named Robert Rodriguez, and the song playing over the closing credits is titled,
00:51:40
Speaker
Bullets by Austin based musician Bob Schneider and Bob Schneider and Sandra Bullock were a couple at the time of the movie's release Cool in the proposal despite most of the movie being set in Alaska It was primarily filmed on the North Shore of Massachusetts Alex where we both used to live
00:51:57
Speaker
So Rockport was heavily used for the downtown Sitka scenes. You can see the Rockport iconic building motif number one. That's the little red shack famous for being in paintings and photos. I've walked those streets that they're on many times in downtown Rockport. It's called Bearskin Neck. The airport scene, they used Beverly Airport for that, which was in the town that I lived in for a while. The home
00:52:21
Speaker
that the movie was filmed in was in Manchester by the sea and the snow-capped mountains, or any mountains for that matter, are nowhere to be found on the North Shore. They were added in digitally. It's always nice to watch a movie and get reminded of the North Shore. It is, and I love watching the movie again and being like, yeah, been there, was there last summer, going there this summer. It's just fun.
00:52:41
Speaker
Anybody listen to this, Rockport is a beautiful town. If you ever are looking for a place to check out, look into it. It really is. Great lobster rolls. It's the real New England summer experience for sure. All right. I got another one. The character Stan Fields. So this is William Shatner's character. It's actually a reference to his Canadian heritage. Did you know that Stan Fields are a very famous Canadian brand of underwear?
00:53:04
Speaker
What an interesting thing to write into a movie. I love it. So in the proposal, this is actually the second Sandra Bullock romantic comedy in which she interrupts her own wedding. The first was in While You Were Sleeping, which is a favorite of Krista. Very nice.
00:53:20
Speaker
You know, Alex, when I think through this trivia, obviously you and I are partial to the Massachusetts stuff because we lived there for so long. We've been there. I don't know if we can solely make a decision based off of that. I did like some of the Texas stuff, but I think for me, and maybe I just kind of like the inside joke aspect of it, but the Stan Fields Canadian William Shatner reference.
00:53:43
Speaker
To me, that kind of pushes Miss Congeniality over the edge here. Yeah, I had no idea about that. I've never heard of Stan Fields, but I like that when someone probably watched this movie for the first time and heard that name, they're probably like, I bet that's from the underwear. All right, Miss Congeniality ties it up. We are three to three heading into round seven. Better story, better script, or more fun.
00:54:05
Speaker
This is a tight one. This like really comes down to this category where you kind of take a step back and you think about the journey of the movie and how similar they are for sure. We talk about Sandra Bullock and her roles in them and what she's supposed to do in them, but just how they get there very different. I've seen these movies before many years ago. It's fun to rewatch them. There's certain parts where they really stand out to you on a rewatch. Again, you're like, I remember this part.
00:54:31
Speaker
I love when it's still funny or it's still emotional or whatever on the second time around. And I feel like to me, the proposal kind of had more of that. When I think of the script and more fun, it's very close. However, when I think of what Ryan Reynolds character brings to the proposal and how his banter and interactions with Sandra Bullock played out, I enjoyed watching
00:54:55
Speaker
that more than I enjoyed Sandra Bullock and Benjamin Bratt's romance. And in a romantic comedy, that relationship has to be a driving force. Now, it wasn't the primary force in Miss Congeniality, but it was still there. And the fact that it was still there means that we have to acknowledge it. I do think that the proposal holds up much better than Miss Congeniality.
00:55:17
Speaker
They're both really fun. I always base it this way. If both of those movies were on TV right now, I slip through channels. I'm probably watching the proposal. That's a good litmus test. And I think, too, like going back to the relationship part of it, I feel like obviously the proposal, the whole movie is about the relationship. And now it's a very short window. But like, you know, you kind of go with them through the ride. Miss Congeniality, you kind of almost feel like that if they didn't have the connection with her and Benjamin Bratt, it would have been just as fine.
00:55:43
Speaker
It almost seemed a little too forced, because you never had anything before that, that there was any indication that one had a crush or anything on the other. It wasn't really until the makeover that he was like, whoa, wow, you're good looking. But then he's just kind of like a playboy as it is. I do think that Miss Congeniality probably could have cut all the romantic subplot stuff out and just had her focus on growing as a person. I would have liked to have seen more interaction with her and the other contestants.
00:56:09
Speaker
Yeah. Whereas the proposal, it's about what it's about and they do it well. You wonder if they like showed a focus group and they were like, there needs to be a love story. And they're like, Oh, okay. I mean, honestly, that makes the most amount of sense. Yeah. So I think we're on the same page here. I think the proposal takes it. It's close, but I think there's less I would change about the proposal than Miss Congeniality. And to me, the rewatchability of the proposal is slightly higher than Miss Congeniality.
00:56:32
Speaker
I do like your test. I like your, if it was on TV, what, which would I watch test? I get judged for it. Sometimes people be like the cinematography, the direction, the acting, and it's like, yo, that's great. And I appreciate and respect all of that. And I could say movies good because of that. But what I care about is what do I want to watch again? I like that.
00:56:49
Speaker
So The Proposal wins the Sandra Bullock movie showdown matchup. That was fun. I like both of those movies. It's fun to deviate from some of our typical stuff and Sandra Bullock's awesome. She really is. Her movies are so enjoyable. They are and like her characters, I'm just like, she just seems like a cool person to hang out with. All right, what do you rank in these movies? I'm going to go Proposal 80 and I'm going to go Miss Congeniality 76. I am going The Proposal 83 and Miss Congeniality 74.
00:57:16
Speaker
Beautiful. This has been The Movie Showdown with Rock and Rob. Make sure to like, subscribe, rate, and review all that fun stuff. Please rate and review. It helps us immensely. It's really easy. It'll take you four seconds. Click five stars. Maybe if you leave a cool comment, we'll read it on the show. I would love that. I would love if someone left a comment and we talked about it. We'll start giving shout outs. Just leave a comment, rate review, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, wherever you're listening to this.
00:57:44
Speaker
and follow us on all the socials at Rock and Rob Show. Until next time, peace. I'm outta here. See ya.