Single mom Jenna Thompson only five weeks to deliver her next teen novel to her publisher. So, this year's annual beach vacation with her kids will be a working vacation. Upon arrival, the family soon meets their new next-door neighbor, confident, devil-may-care surfer Lucas McKinnon.
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Reviews
Brilliant and touching
There is, somehow, an interesting story here, as well as some good acting. There are also some good scenes
Like the great film, it's made with a great deal of visible affection both in front of and behind the camera.
The movie's neither hopeful in contrived ways, nor hopeless in different contrived ways. Somehow it manages to be wonderful
This movie - typical Hallmark fare - was one of the worst I've ever seen. That it has a predictable plot is putting it mildly; it's a cacophony of cliches. Driven career woman/ single mom tries to relax and finish a book during a summer at the shore. The rented duplex just HAPPENS to have a handsome "tenant" who is her opposite; relaxed, a bit messy, seemingly unambitious. But wait for it.....they share a mutual attraction to each other which she fights and he gets around by schmoozing with her kids . And he of course, is not what he seems! Surprise, right? The character of Jenna is so controlling, such a helicopter mom and so pointlessly rude that it's not believable that this or any guy would fall for her. And the actress is so stiff, so one dimensional. Her face is frozen into one blank expression throughout the entire movie and she delivers her silly lines like a bored robot. The other characters and actors are okay but Jenna, the star, throws a wet blanket over the entire production. She MUST be related to someone in the production company to have landed this role; surely she didn't best others in auditions. Given that this is from Hallmark, the ending is supposed to be happy and heartwarming. And I guess it is...it gave me heartburn.
Why would anyone ever like this control freak woman? Not only that but she was rude, arrogant and demanding. How could he start falling for a family woman? This is contrary to his basic nature.Why would a mom of two, with controlling tendencies, ever give in to the charms of a stubborn, messy, surfer? This was contrary to her basic nature.The writers used one of the standard romance devices of busy man who let his business deal get ahead of the promise to a kid. Usually in romance movies, the business man doesn't fail to keep his promise. But what made me mad here was that the business deal was very important, not just to him, but for many kids. If they had made the deal something less philanthropic, I could have allowed it. True, it turns out his mistake was in making the promise more than staying to close the deal, but I didn't like the way the two issues, both worthy, were pitted against one another.Why didn't Amanda Righetti give that beautiful megawatt smile more often instead of waiting until the end?
The scenery on an island off the coast of Georgia is really beautiful. It's more prettily filmed than some Hallmark movies. The interiors are attractive and color co-ordinated. The beach is attractive.The story is fairly predictable. A divorced single mom of 2 kids moves into a summer rental so her kids can go to camp. Her neighbor is at first glance a bachelor who enjoys surfing and partying and has a cute dog - not the family type. But of course he turns out to have more substance than that. He turns out to be nice to the kids and is well off and does good things.I love Amanda Righetti since the O.C. and she is pretty here though her hair dark color is a bit severe for her. Peter Porte plays the guy and hd is fine but flashes his pearly whites a bit too often.One flaw of the story is she is so uptight about her kids I can't see why he would be interested in her.
Let's get one thing out of the way immediately. This movie is set and filmed on Tybee Island off the coast of Georgia and a short way from cultured, historical, and photogenic Savannah Georgia. In the South, it's called the beach, not the shore. We are farther away from New Jersey than just miles would indicate. Also, it's too bad the producers could not take advantage of the beauty that is Savannah to set some scenes there. Just clueless.This Hallmance just did not work for me. I thought Jenna, the female lead seemed more like his mother that his love interest. I also found the character unlikable and unreasonable. She is at the beach, during the summer, and living in a duplex and she expects everyone else on vacation in her vicinity to cater to her need for quiet. She should have gone to a cabin in the mountains. There was no chemistry between the two leads. She was a mature and settled mother of 2, and he was, she thought, a happy-go-lucky beach bum. She didn't consider him a possible match until she found out he was her very well off landlord and the owner of a soon to be franchised summer camp. He was so handsome and prone to hanging around without a shirt, he looked more like a boy-toy than a father to her children. I didn't like how she reacted when she found out this good smart guy was coaching her son, and didn't like how he promised her son to be there for the swim meet and then just blew him off. It seemed very out of character and just manufactured to create some conflict. This was a by the numbers lazy effort. The kids and the dog were the only bright spot.