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Reviews
A Whitewater Romance (2024)
What were they thinking
I love Hallmark movies and get they are not realistic but this movie is ridiculous. No business event would invite you to a retreat with a day's notice. And if it's a team building event for a national company, there would be more than 4 individuals. Plus they have never worked with each other and don't appear they will be working side by side afterwards. The concept of expecting such an inexperienced person to participate in camping, whitewater rafting, and other outdoors events with no guidance is absurd. How did this show get approved and make it all the way to production? I couldn't handle it any more agter 40 minutes.
Paris, Wine & Romance (2019)
Still an interesting movie
I enjoyed this movie. I liked the Paris scenes and also the unique story line around a wine competition. I didn't pick up on the mis-pronunciations since I don't know the correct pronunciation of Willamette to begin with. But, I do believe Hallmark should definitely have been aware of it and made sure the actors pronounced things correctly. As far as the supposed "bump," I wasn't aware of it until reading reviews. I noticed a woman whose body looked realistic and wasn't in too tight or too short of clothing. I could relate to her. Stop expecting women to have tiny waists and flat stomachs! I appreciated her being an independent, strong woman who didn't change her life for a man. The ending was a big leap of faith for him and I struggled with that the most. Overall, though, I enjoyed this movie on a relaxing evening with my glass of wine.
Winter Castle (2019)
Missed Opportunity
I admit I'm a realist and a detail person but I can usually suspend enough of that to enjoy Hallmark movies. But this one made it difficult. The setting was so unique and beautiful enough to keep me interested but the story could have been much better with some tweaks. First off, I need to learn packing tips from the sisters considering they managed to pack sweaters, wedding clothing and cold weather clothing in a couple of duffel bags. Love the single dad / best friend of the groom storyline but how is this the first time he and the sister of the bride have met, especially if the bride thinks they'd make a good match? I felt bad for Lana, the plus one. There was no reason not to like her and the best man was stupid to not understand bringing her to an intimate destination wedding would imply more than a casual relationship. And if she was his +1 why did she not arrive with him to the rehearsal dinner? Where was the place setting for her? Not to mention, why did the groom not have any family of his own at the wedding? The other guests at the wedding looked so uncomfortable, they weren't even pretending to have conversations amongst themselves.
I loved this hotel and the winter activities. I love to watch stories with a single dad, weddings, and especially a really smart, independent woman. But none of these elements hooked me in enough to overlook the missing details to really make it work. It really messed up the last 30 minutes of this movie. I love Emilie Ullerup and her character did great acknowledging the presence of Lana. But the balcony scene at the rehearsal dinner completely blew it. Neither acknowledged the missing Lana and they almost kissed despite her reluctance to pursue a relationship because of Lana. Why didn't she ever just ask him straight out what his relationship with Lana was. And why is he so obtuse to think choosing Lana is what his daughter wants, especially after seeing how much she enjoyed her time with Emilie's character. Sorry Hallmark, this movie missed the mark for me.