(2000) Miss Congeniality

This movie was built around a ridiculous premise that, somehow, nobody finds Sandra Bullock attractive because she’s a bit of a tomboy.

She plays a badass FBI agent that doesn’t take shit from anyone. Unfortunately, being a smart, resourceful agent is not enough. Everyone keeps ignoring her because she’s a woman, and not into making herself look pretty. AS IF SHE HAS TO TRY. That’s a plot hole, if there ever was one. You can’t She’s All That Sandra Bullock! Come on Hollywood, you should know better.

Story

There is a serial killer slash terrorist on the loose! Known only as The Citizen, he wreaks havoc around the country, constantly switching his targets and styles, making himself highly unpredictable and hard to trace. He also likes to send disjointed letters full of puzzles which only start making sense after the attack. Too little, too late.

So, when the last letter arrives, it is a surprise that the FBI intelligence team manages to crack it. Grace (Sandra) also cracks it on her own, but that’s not a surprise because she’s super smart.

The target? The upcoming 75h annual Miss United States beauty pageant, led by captain James Tiberius Kirk and Murphy Brown, or whatever they are called in the movie.

The FBI, after a round of being complete dicks, decide to send Grace undercover as a contestant, replacing Miss New Jersey. This was her idea, but hijacked by her partner Eric because he got to lead the entire mission. Oh, and Gracie messed up the last action, so everyone was pissed at her. Especially her boss, Winston from Ghostbusters.

While Gracie recommended sending someone undercover, she didn’t expect that she will be the one to go! Plot twist, she’s actually gorgeous. DUH 🙄. They pair her up with a trainer that tries to teach her how to walk, be graceful, and behave. With hilarious consequences!

While all of this is going on, the FBI catches The Citizen and decides to pull out from this mission. Sandra, being the only smart agent in the whole movie, suspects that this last letter didn’t come from the actual terrorist and is a copycat letter sent by Murphy Brown. Nobody wants to hear about it, Winston gives her the option to stay on her own as a civilian, if she wants.

She decides to stay, of course. And saves the day. Murphy was angry for getting fired and put a bomb in the crown so that she can blow the winner’s head off.

Needless to say, Grace manages to take the crown in time, put away all the bad guys, and wins Miss Congeniality.

Oh yeah, and Eric actually comes back to help, but he’s a useless prick. And then he asks her out, which she accepts. Boooooo!

Final Verdict

This movie doesn’t take itself seriously, allowing for some really fun and playful moments. I was not a fan of some characters, especially the Eric guy. Luckily, he served only as a “romantic” interest and was mostly off-screen. The main portion of the movie - Sandra trying to behave like a woman while being professionally trained by Victor (Michael Caine) is, and there’s only one word for it, adorbs.

While there are some (previously mentioned) plot holes, the story allows Sandra to show her wide range and acting prowess. Is there anything she can’t do? Can’t wait to watch the sequel.

Category	Rating
Story	06 / 10
Characters	05 / 10
Sandra Bullock on-screen-time	10 / 10
Eric is an idiot	01 / 10
Eric is useless	01 / 10
FINAL RATING	10 / 10

It feels so great to continue working on this project!