There she is again, Miss Congeniality.
But does anyone care?
Almost five years after Sandra Bullock paraded around in a skimpy swimsuit for Miss Congeniality, the sequel arrives with all the relevancy of the Miss American Pageant. No one demanded Bullock compete a second time for the Miss Congeniality crown. And Warner Bros. has curiously failed to spread the word that Bullock‘s back on the beat as the tomboyish FBI agent posing as a beauty queen wannabe.
Perhaps the thinking is that Miss Congeniality 2: Armed and Fabulous sells itself, especially as it stars Hollywood’s most bankable lady not named Julia Roberts.
OK, that’s good for a debut superior to Miss Congeniality‘s $10 million opening. But all eyes remained on Miss Congeniality when it slowly built an audience during the lucrative Christmas holiday in 2000.
 |
Bullock’s Box Office Highs | |
|
| 1. Speed $121.2M | |||
|
|||
| 2. A Time To Kill $108.7M |
|||
|
|||
| 3. Miss Congeniality $106.8M | |||
|
|||
| 4. Two Weeks Notice $93.3M | |||
|
|||
| 5. While You Were Sleeping $81M | |||
|
|
||
Easter won’t be as kind to Miss Congeniality 2. Witness what happened this time last year to Scooby-Doo 2: Monsters Unleashed. The cartoon canine dug up just $84.2 million, or half the $153.2 million Scooby-Doo earned in the summer 2002.
It also doesn’t bode well for Miss Congeniality 2 that a number of recent sequels to crime capers–Analyze That, Be Cool, Ocean’s Twelve and The Whole Ten Yards–failed to muster as many laughs or bucks as their predecessors.
Miss Congeniality 2 marks Bullock‘s first sequel since Speed 2: Cruise Control sank without a trace in 1997. Miss Congeniality 2 won’t suffer as catastrophic a fate: Speed 2 was destined for disaster, especially after Keanu Reeves abandoned ship. Still, whether Miss Congeniality proves to be worth Bullock‘s time and effort remains highly doubtful.
Maybe Bullock thought being out of sight also meant being out of mind. She’s not graced theaters since Hugh Grant charmed her out of her legal briefs in 2002’s agreeable Two Week’s Notice. So a potential crowd-pleaser like Miss Congeniality 2 possibly acts as an insurance policy by reminding audiences how they might have missed her cute and occasionally klutzy ways.
Not that Jesse James’ main squeeze sat at home for two years watching Monster Garage reruns. She lent her presence to two independent projects that represent a welcome change from mainstream comedies.
|
Bullock’s Box Office Lows | |
|
| 1. Gun Shy $1.6M | |||
|
|||
| 2. Two If By Sea $10.6M | |||
|
|||
| 3. In Love and War $14.4M | |||
|
|||
| 4. Murder by Numbers $31.9M | |||
|
|||
| 5. 28 Days $37.1M | |||
|
|
||
In Crash, arriving May 6, Bullock heads an ensemble cast that includes Don Cheadle, Matt Dillon, Brendan Fraser and Thandie Newton. Directed by Million Dollar Baby screenwriter Paul Haggis, the drama takes an unflinching look at race relations in Los Angeles.
Bullock also appears briefly in Lover Boy, a drama directed by Kevin Bacon that chronicles a teenager’s complicated relationship with his overly possessive mother.
She’s also about to portray To Kill a Mockingbird author Harper Lee in the formerly titled Every Word Is True, an account of Truman Capote’s investigation into the murders that formed the basis of his book In Cold Blood.
Bullock challenge herself, despite not having had much luck whenever she’s strayed from frothy romances or mother-daughter gabfests. Few bought her as a drug addict in 28 Days, a boozy cop in Murder By Numbers, or Ernest Hemingway’s object of desire in In Love and War.
Now that she’s in her 40s, Bullock must continue to stretch if she wants to land that Erin Brockovich-type role that turned pretty woman Julia Roberts into an Oscar winner. Otherwise, Bullock faces the same fate as Meg Ryan, who’s stuck in a rut now that her days of headlining romantic comedies appear to be over.
Funny enough, both Bullock and Ryan have been associated with The Women. This long-gestating remake of George Cukor‘s 1939 classic comedy, featuring a collection of bitchy, bickering gal pals, should prove fun if Bullock does indeed match wits with Ryan, Annette Bening and Ashley Judd and Uma Thurman.
At least Bullock‘s next romance sounds intriguing. She reunites with Keanu Reeves in Il Mare, which finds the Speed demons defying time to fall in love. How precious.
The Bottom Line
Up against Guess Who, and audience unawareness, Miss Congeniality 2 won’t pull off a surprise victory at the box office. But Bullock can still emerge triumphant if her newfound interest in powerful ensemble dramas results in performances we never knew she could give.
