This offering from Hallmark, which had little to do with Christmas except for the time of year it took place, was just so-so. I'm not sure which movie the effusive reviewers on IMDb who gave it high reviews were watching.
The performances from the main characters, particularly Laura Vandervoort as Megan and Harry Lennix as Frank, were solid. The relationship between Megan and Frank was both touching and a little creepy. What beautiful young girl has such a tight relationship with an older guy who's not related to her? I did like the relationship between Frank and his long-lost love Claire, though. It was very sweet.
The actors can't be faulted for anything, as they could only work with the lines and story they were given. The storyline was really lacking in a lot of areas. First off, I have a hard time dealing with stories where everything could be cleared up in 5 minutes if the characters in the story just said what they needed to say. In this case, why didn't Frank just tell Claire the whole story about wanting to propose to her as a young man, but being dissuaded by her dad, who didn't find him suitable for his daughter? Why, when she was walking away, didn't he tell her the whole story instead of the silly, abortive line, "Please, let me explain ..."? Why, instead of just telling her, does he take the wimp's way out and send her an explanatory card and then high-tail it out of town? Oh, and then, when he and Megan briefly return and he sees Claire, why does he suddenly get a backbone and tell her what he should have told her in the first place? It all just seems too stupid.
And then there's the supposed relationship between Megan and Steve, the inn owner. That relationship was extremely underdeveloped. So, he's actually expecting her to quit her job and uproot her life to move to that small town that's 7 hours from her home, and based on what, exactly? She won't even agree to go out to dinner with him, for some unknown reason (too fresh off the heartbreak of her broken engagement, perhaps? They never say). But in the end, she comes back, not to be with him, or confess her feelings or anything, but to return his dog that stowed away in her car! Really? And then they have the obligatory Hallmark kiss at the end of the movie, and everything's cool. Not much chemistry between that supposedly happy couple, I'm afraid, and I don't fault the actors at all. "Chemistry" in a romantic movie is as much a product of a good script as some intangible connection between actors, and in this case, the script provided little opportunity for chemistry.
So, a valiant effort by all here. The film certainly had potential and there were aspects of the story that I liked. But in the end, the screenwriters just didn't get it done.
The performances from the main characters, particularly Laura Vandervoort as Megan and Harry Lennix as Frank, were solid. The relationship between Megan and Frank was both touching and a little creepy. What beautiful young girl has such a tight relationship with an older guy who's not related to her? I did like the relationship between Frank and his long-lost love Claire, though. It was very sweet.
The actors can't be faulted for anything, as they could only work with the lines and story they were given. The storyline was really lacking in a lot of areas. First off, I have a hard time dealing with stories where everything could be cleared up in 5 minutes if the characters in the story just said what they needed to say. In this case, why didn't Frank just tell Claire the whole story about wanting to propose to her as a young man, but being dissuaded by her dad, who didn't find him suitable for his daughter? Why, when she was walking away, didn't he tell her the whole story instead of the silly, abortive line, "Please, let me explain ..."? Why, instead of just telling her, does he take the wimp's way out and send her an explanatory card and then high-tail it out of town? Oh, and then, when he and Megan briefly return and he sees Claire, why does he suddenly get a backbone and tell her what he should have told her in the first place? It all just seems too stupid.
And then there's the supposed relationship between Megan and Steve, the inn owner. That relationship was extremely underdeveloped. So, he's actually expecting her to quit her job and uproot her life to move to that small town that's 7 hours from her home, and based on what, exactly? She won't even agree to go out to dinner with him, for some unknown reason (too fresh off the heartbreak of her broken engagement, perhaps? They never say). But in the end, she comes back, not to be with him, or confess her feelings or anything, but to return his dog that stowed away in her car! Really? And then they have the obligatory Hallmark kiss at the end of the movie, and everything's cool. Not much chemistry between that supposedly happy couple, I'm afraid, and I don't fault the actors at all. "Chemistry" in a romantic movie is as much a product of a good script as some intangible connection between actors, and in this case, the script provided little opportunity for chemistry.
So, a valiant effort by all here. The film certainly had potential and there were aspects of the story that I liked. But in the end, the screenwriters just didn't get it done.