# Miss Congeniality (2000)

### reviewed by
Brandon Herring

Miss Congeniality * * * out of * * * * Starring: Sandra Bullock, Michael Caine, Candice Bergen, William Shatner, Benjamin Bratt, Ernie Hudson, Heather Burns. Directed by: Donald Petrie Running Time: 109 minutes Rated PG-13: sexual humor, language, violence.

Movies are made to entertain, some movies are made to give messages, Miss Congeniality goes into the entertain category, its a very funny, well made, well acted comedy that is quite predictable, but so enjoyable and so fun to watch that in the end you forgive all it's flaws. Sandra Bullock gives one of her best roles to date, possibly outdoing her role in "While You Were Sleeping".

Gracie Hart is a 30-ish FBI agent, she is single and doesn't have much of a love life, when the FBI is trying to figure out the riddles a serial killer is sending them, Gracie tries her best as well, they find out that it has to do with the Miss United States Pageant, and they want to get their best agent to go undercover, and save the girls from this killer. Of course the person they pick is Gracie Hart, at first she is doubtful about it, but after she is made up by stylist Victor Melling (Michael Caine), they don't think twice about it.

Now Gracie Hart must become a lady, and try to blend in with these girls the best she can, making friends, and making enemies. The shows two hosts Stan Fields and Kathy Morningside (William Shatner and Candice Bergen) are a bit skeptical at first, but soon find out Gracie may be able to pull it off. With a lot of misadventures and plenty of laughs in between, "Miss Congeniality" pulls itself off with its cleverly written dialogue and great performance by Sandra Bullock.

Of course "Miss Congeniality" has it's share of flaws, first it is very predictable, and the ending is awfully conventional. Aside from these major flaws, the movie presents for plusses than minuses. There was times where I laughed out loud, which is almost a rarity these days, and the last time I laughed even close to this hard was in last summers "Scary Movie".

The characters are well written out, and the supporting cast Benjamin Bratt as Gracie's love interest Eric Matthews, Michael Caine as the flamboyant Victor Melling, William Shatner in a great and funny role as Stan Fields, and Candice Bergen in full force as Kathy Morningside, along the great Sandra Bullock this is definitely a great cast. Donald Petrie's direction really shows especially in the end, with the climax of the pageant.

In the end "Miss Congeniality" is a rewarding romantic comedy, with a flair to it. There is never a dull moment in the film, and the jokes come fast and furious, and the dialogue very clever and funny. Just don't think too much of it, because "Miss Congeniality" is one of the best comedies of 2000.

Reviewed by Brandon Herring 1/8/01. (C)

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