Feel Good Film: Two Weeks Notice

Two Weeks Notice is one of those films that I always watch when I catch it on TV, even though I have it on DVD. It’s a great film to have on in the background and also one of those films you can enjoy at a really basic level when you need some good old fashioned escapism. I can quote it almost word for word because I’ve seen it at least ten times but I still enjoy it to the same degree with each subsequent viewing. And why, I hear you ask? I reckon it’s the winning combination of a hilarious Sandra Bullock and Hugh Grant.

(Image via)

Sandra Bullock plays Lucy, an idealistic lawyer who thinks that the best way to get Hugh Grant’s George Wade to stop ‘paving paradise’ is to start from the inside and takes a job on his legal team. But when she ends up working ridiculous hours and taking on projects that are beyond her job description, she decides to hand in her titular two weeks notice and look for a job elsewhere. Unfortunately for Lucy, she’s indispensable to George and he makes it difficult for her to move on, in more ways than one.

Until Bridget Jones’ Diary, Hugh Grant was best  known for playing bumbling British losers who were unlucky in love but still managed to get the girl. With Two Weeks Notice, he’s still a far cry from bad boy Daniel Cleaver, but he’s also a much more attractive and better written male lead.

The film is quite reminiscent of the classic battle of the sexes rom-coms, starring Katharine Hepburn and her great sparring partners, Spencer Tracey and Cary Grant. The only problem being that Sandy B gets most of the laughs. That’s not necessarily a bad thing as she’s a fantastic comedic actress but it can, at times, seem a bit one-sided. With a great rom-com, you need equal parts romance and comedy and for both leads to bring it.

“I bloody love that movie! “Yes, it’s for one” OHHH!”
Lauren Williams, aliljoy contributor

Another thing that’s great about this film is that it’s a rom-com featuring an independent woman who is career driven and doesn’t need a man to make her happy. Of course she wants someone to share her life with, most of us do, but that isn’t what completes her and isn’t what drives the narrative. How refreshing!

As always, please share your thoughts on Two Weeks Notice and let you me know your favourite rom-coms in the comments below. And if you’ve got any ideas for future feel-good film posts, do tell! For next week’s post, you lovely people have voted for my all-time favourite film: Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. Give it a watch over the next week and tweet me your thoughts @EmsLF. How do you feel about seeing Jim Carrey and Kate Winslet in such vastly different roles? Does it make you see relationships in a different way? What do you make of the in-camera effects?

As for the next vote, I’m going to offer you five films by Emily Blunt, one of my favourite actresses.

The Devil Wears Prada is the one you’ll all know for Emily’s supporting role as the bitchy editorial assistant at Runway magazine.

Sunshine Cleaning is the quirky indie in which she plays one half of a crime-scene clean-up duo, opposite Amy Adams.

The Young Victoria is my favourite and one of my all-time fave films, in which Emily plays a young Queen Victoria in an incredibly interesting and romantic drama.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ttdndRyoehM

She only has a small supporting role in The Muppets but it’s such a great addition to her filmography that it must be included.

The Five-Year Engagement sees her star opposite Jason Segel in a traditional leading lady rom-com role . She holds her own against Segel who is hilarious, as per usual.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kuDpU1vzekE

So which one gets your vote? 

I’ll see you next week, same Bat time, same Bat Channel

Tags: Emily Blunt feel good film Film Review Hugh Grant rom-coms Sandra Bullock Two Weeks Notice

Categories: a little piece of joy Feel Good Film of the Week