Thoughts about the Leap Year —a movie from 2010

Before, movies for me were treats I'd like to enjoy —watch with my friends and family, alone, and while I do some other tasks in school. I enjoyed watching chick flick movies that have stories where you don't have to read between the lines, trying to uncover some hidden meaning. Just simple boy meets girl and they lived happily ever after, a somewhat real version of the the Cinderalla story I grew up in. Even now, I still enjoy watching this genre because it's easy to watch and light for the heart and mind.

One of my go-to chick flick movies is Leap Year, a movie from 2010 and directed by Anand Tucker. There's really nothing special with the love story of Anna (Amy Adams) and Declan (Matthew Goode) for me. Anna who was supposed to propose to her boyfriend Jeremy (Adam Scott) got into a series of unfortunate events on her way to Dublin, Ireland. Anna met Declan and asked for his help to go from Cork to Dublin. Their journey led them to get to know each other and eventually fall in love with each other. Most viewers didn't receive this movie well, for many reasons that are also obvious for me. But here are some good things I'd like to share about this decade-old movie. Maybe, you would want to watch something easy and light too.

My dream country is Ireland, my want to visit this beautiful country started when I watched this movie. The cliffs, stone walls, mountains and old castles are just some on my list of the things that I want to see in Ireland when I go there someday. I've seen a lot of movies and TV shows that showcase the beauty of Ireland's landscape but this movie is still such a gold mine!

These two met like the universe conspired. Anna was from Boston who wanted to propose to his boyfriend who attended a convention in Dublin. All of Anna's reroute led her to Cork, where Declan ran his pub that is about to close for good. Despite their obvious indifferences, the two agreed on a journey to Dublin, as it would benefit each other. Anna was a foreigner, who needed direction; and Declan, a local, who needed money to run his pub.

How can a year-long relationship be beaten by a few days of keeping company and trying not to kill each other because of indifferences? Is it really just in the movies? Or is it because Jeremy and Anna didn’t really know each other in the year(s) they were together. Love can be of different forms, sometimes, it can also be gone. You can love something for so long and you don't know what tomorrow holds, maybe that love could just disappear. What's great about real love for me is that it is beyond the measure of time, it chooses to stay to what is worth keeping.

Anna is an apartment stager, Jeremy is a cardiologist, and Declan is an innkeeper and a chef. The movie shows tailored jobs which are common in the western culture. Jobs in the society can be as specific as Anna's task of turning apartments into exhibits to help owners determine what would they like their apartment to look like. It suites her character —a woman who is very precise, keen to details, driven, and decisive.

During the time when Declan and Anna were on their way to Dublin, Anna might have been telling Declan that her boyfriend, Jeremy, is an excellent cardiologist. Maybe she was just proud of how excellent he is with his job, but the sound of the word cardiologist rings a grand job to everyone's ears. Is it a grand job? For me, yes. But is it a grander job than what Declan or what Anna does for a living? No. Declan had a setback in the start of the movie, but he strived to get back on his feet. He took responsibility of his misfortunes and went back to do his job again, excellently too.

And by the way, today is Labor Day. May this be a reminder for all of us to see each work as important as the other. The work we do is sometimes used by other people to judge our character, that shouldn't be the norm. Each person is much more than his/her job. Whatever work you do (that is not of any harm to other people), give yourself a pat on the shoulder, you're doing a great [grand] job!