Best movie ever!

Absolutely Fantastic

I really wanted to like this movie. I feel terribly cynical trashing it, and that's why I'm giving it a middling 5. Actually, I'm giving it a 5 because there were some superb performances.

The film may be flawed, but its message is not.

I love me some Hallmark Sunday afternoon movies. However, I have put this movie on on probably 6 separate occasions (it reruns a lot) and every time i lose interest before the halfway mark -- because absolutely nothing happens in this movie. There is no conflict, no obstacle to overcome. Except that they just have to finally get around to saying that they still love each other. The acting is probably fine. The actors are quite pretty. But it's like having to listen to your best friend, every single time you see her, talk about how she's not sure if she should move in with her totally fine but not fantastic boyfriend boyfriend. You just don't care that much, and it just doesn't matter. Arghhh i want my two hours back!

Good characters and a fair plot line. Why do I feel empty after-wards? Well, mostly because I liked the romantic protagonists and a lot of the surrounding players, but I think a less meddlesome Barbara Eden would have done wonders for the movie. Had Barbara followed her movie husband's advice, the romance that was visible could have seemed so much less contrived. The same end could have been achieved in far less time, with fewer commercial breaks required, and I could have watched something else on Hallmark as well in my limited time for formula Hallmark. Seen in other reviews as a plus for the movie, I must loudly disagree with that section of the script which insisted that I should want to eliminate a lovely Barbara, whom I still adore, from the production in order to facilitate better storytelling.

It's Saturday evening of Memorial Day weekend, and there's "nothing" on TV, so I'm filling up on Hallmark movies. Most Hallmark movies, in my experience, fall into the 7-8 range (on a scale of 10), i.e., above average. This is the first one I recall ever having rated below average.The summary line I've supplied for this review is not my own; it's a line from the movie, and it could well have been the tag line, if there were one. Finally, the one previous review here summarizes the plot sufficiently that I can skip revisiting that.So much for background.My first problem with this film was seemingly incompatible casting. I like Rena Sofer, but I wouldn't say that she's in my top tier of favorites. And up to now, I've never been all that impressed with Dean McDermott; but then, this is the first time I've seen him in a lead role. Therefore, I had to try hard to wipe away everything I'd ever thought about him, and to see him through fresh eyes. Their pairing, therefore, as the lead romantic couple, seemed rather incongruous, as "Philip" appeared to be a much better match for "Grace" than did "Michael".Secondly, the whole execution seemed rather superficial, even for a "formula" film. The best thing about the script is its self-realization that some of the characters are behaving like teenagers, not adults. Unfortunately, this observation inadvertently applies to some of the actors as well.Supporting players worth seeing in their roles here include the ever-reliable Barbara Eden, Jonathan Chase and, particularly, Hillary Tuck. And by the end, I even warmed up a bit to the loving leads.

Entertaining albeit a highly predictable film dealing with a recurrence after a teenage romance of 20 years before.Ironically, both are brought together by their high school reunion and their discovery that they're working on the same project- the fixing up of a hotel.Barbara Eden displays some wonders in her mother role. She becomes a "genie" once again at the end of the film.Our loving couple both have been burned once in failed marriages during the interim 20 years. She has a boyfriend as well as a teenage son.Who played the father, the husband to Barbara Eden? He was incredibly dull and just spilled his lines out without any emotion whatsoever.We know where this is leading to. Enjoyable, but we've seen this so many times.