Hallmark Movies: Small Town Royalty Magically Celebrating Rekindled Love! - General Discussion

[doodlebug]

I thought the female lead was gorgeous and she had a nice chemistry with the male lead.  As usual. the movie was filled with the usual Hallmark clichés:

-woman who moved to the big city and became successful professionally but never found love

-woman unhappy with career despite success, wishes she could pursue her dream which, as usual, is something artsy/risky and she has no specific plan in mind or safety net figured out in case it doesn't succeed immediately.  Quitting one's high paying and semi-secure job in order to 'become a writer' is not a career plan.

-woman returns to her quaint hometown as part of her work which, it turns out, somehow connects her with her ex, usually as part of his upcoming wedding

As usual, someone ends up being left at the altar and, unlike real life, is perfectly fine with it despite the fact that literally tens of thousands of dollars have already been spent on the wedding and are now down the drain.  I think it is perfectly fine for the jilted bride to be just a touch peeved that her prospective groom gets all the way to the wedding day before expressing his doubts.

Everyone can write the story from there.

For once, I'd like to see a woman living in a major metropolitan area with a decent job that she likes, but isn't necessarily the center of her universe/the source of all fulfillment; who meets a guy in the usual way and they end up dating and falling in love without the charm of the small town, the realization of a lifelong dream to be an artiste, the ex boyfriend who suddenly pops us and love blooms.

That being said, this was one of the more charming efforts along those lines.

Edited June 16, 2019 by doodlebug

[Jenniferbug]

I'll admit, I have a DVR of Hallmark movies from this summer that I haven't watched yet and some left from spring too. I can't decide if I should just delete them all since I haven't gotten around to watching them yet. I feel like at Christmas, I love the formulaic feel good movies, because the holidays can be stressful and so these movies are kind of my happy place to get help get through that. Also by the time warm weather rolls around, I'm outside more and my kids have more activities so I'm less likely to be sitting around watching TV. I may need to burn though a few movies this week while working just to get through them so I can get some of them off my DVR. 

[Kohola3]

3 hours ago, Jenniferbug said:

I can't decide if I should just delete them all since I haven't gotten around to watching them yet.

Delete them.  They are all the same story anyway.

And a note to Hallmark:  get a thesaurus.  Stop using the world "amazing" 450 times in each movie.

[kirinan]

I forgot to ask a question about My Boyfriend's Back: Wedding March 5. This is the only one of the movies in this series I've watched. Since Jack Wagner proposed to Josie Bissett at the end, does that mean their characters are <GASP, CLUTCH PEARLS> living together at that inn without benefit of marriage? Or did I not pay enough attention and there was an explanation in this installment?

[doodlebug]

1 hour ago, kirinan said:

I forgot to ask a question about My Boyfriend's Back: Wedding March 5. This is the only one of the movies in this series I've watched. Since Jack Wagner proposed to Josie Bissett at the end, does that mean their characters are <GASP, CLUTCH PEARLS> living together at that inn without benefit of marriage? Or did I not pay enough attention and there was an explanation in this installment?

Well, we were told that they owned the place jointly despite the lack of a marriage license; of course, every single one of their scenes took place in the public areas of the inn, we never got a glimpse of their lives away from their guests and/or employee.

[DanaMB]

1 hour ago, kirinan said:

I forgot to ask a question about My Boyfriend's Back: Wedding March 5. This is the only one of the movies in this series I've watched. Since Jack Wagner proposed to Josie Bissett at the end, does that mean their characters are <GASP, CLUTCH PEARLS> living together at that inn without benefit of marriage? Or did I not pay enough attention and there was an explanation in this installment?

I have no doubt they have separate rooms <rme> like they did with the second Lacey Chabert/Brennan Elliot inn movie. Can't remember the title.

[Pickles]

44 minutes ago, DanaMB said:

I have no doubt they have separate rooms <rme> like they did with the second Lacey Chabert/Brennan Elliot inn movie. Can't remember the title.

I am sure they have separate rooms too, lol. The engaged couple who were to be married at the inn, in the Jack Wagner movie, were sure to mention how they each got a great sleep in their separate rooms. No shenanigans on Hallmark before the actual wedding!

[TVFan17]

I can no longer edit my original comment/post (on the previous page) with this scheduling info, so I had to copy and paste it here just so I can revise it to reflect the latest changes and current version of the line-up. 

So forgive me for re-posting it, but it was the best way to get the info updated (I first tried quoting my comment and editing the quote, but something got messed up with the format and it was ultimately easier to do it this way)! 

The most significant changes to note here are:

1) "Christmas Camp" is apparently now premiering on HMM on a Thursday night instead of on a Sunday;

2) "A Merry Christmas Match" (w/ Ashley Newbrough, Lindsey Gort & Kyle Dean Massey) has (???temporarily???) been removed from the Hallmark Channel line-up in July and is not scheduled at all, and

3) "Aurora Teagarden" has now moved to August to fill the void left by the Garage Sale Mysteries.  

(Credit goes to Net at It's a Wonderful Movie for ^^ these updates!!)

Right now, not counting any of the Christmas/holiday movies that have been announced for the holiday season, the current line-up of Hallmark Channel/Hallmark Movies & Mysteries Channel movies/specials coming our way is this (although Hallmark continues to switch premiere dates around and change titles, so nothing is set in stone and the schedule could look very different in one month).  All dates and titles are subject to change:

JUNE

Sun., June 16th -- "Picture Perfect Mysteries: Newlywed and Dead" (Alexa & Carlos PenaVega/Jon Cor) -- Hallmark Movies & Mysteries Channel

Sat., June 22nd -- "The Last Bridesmaid" (Rachel Boston/Paul Campbell) -- Hallmark Channel

Sun., June 23rd -- "Mystery 101: Playing Dead" (Jill Wagner/Kristoffer Polaha) -- Hallmark Movies & Mysteries Channel

Fri., June 28th -- Gold Crown Christmas event begins -- Hallmark Movies & Mysteries Channel

Sat., June 29th -- "Sister of the Bride" (Becca Tobin/Ryan Rottman/Tilky Jones/Michael Gross/Beth Broderick) -- This one was a last minute addition to June Weddings, so it was not included in Hallmark Channel's June Weddings preview special.   It is also one of Hallmark's very rare movies to be filmed entirely in California -- around the Palm Springs & Cathedral City areas.

*********************

JULY

Mon. Jul. 1st -- Jingle in July begins on the Hallmark Movies Now streaming service

Mon., Jul. 1st -- "In the Key of Love" (Laura Osnes/Scott Michael Foster/Andrew Brooks) -- Hallmark Channel

Sat., Jul. 6th -- "Love Unleashed" (a.k.a. "Puppy Party Romance") (Jen Lilley/Christopher Russell) -- Hallmark Channel

Thurs., Jul. 11th -- "Christmas Camp" (Lily Anne Harrison/Bobby Campo) -- Filmed entirely in New York -- Hallmark Movies & Mysteries Channel -- For some reason, the HMM website lists the first showtime date for this as July 11th, even though they claim that it is premiering on July 7th.

Fri., Jul. 12th -- Christmas Keepsake (or Keepsake Christmas, depending on where you look!) event begins -- Hallmark Channel

Sat., Jul. 13th -- ????? (The originally scheduled NEW Hallmark Christmas movie for this date has been removed -- it could be re-added again, though.)

Sat., Jul. 13th -- "2019 Christmas: A First Look Preview Special" hosted by Lacey Chabert - Hallmark Channel -- They did this same kind of show last year in July, and it should feature clips of maybe 6 or 7 Christmas movies coming up during the holiday season.

Sat., Jul. 20th -- ????? (I wonder if Hallmark Channel is in the process of acquiring another Christmas movie to add to this date at the last minute.)

Sat., Jul. 20th -- "2019 Summer Nights Preview Special" hosted by Erin Krakow & Ryan Paevey - Hallmark Channel

Sat., Jul. 27th -- "Rome in Love" (Italia Ricci/Peter Porte) -- Hallmark Channel -- Right now it appears that Hallmark is using this movie (shot in Italy) as the kickoff to their Summer Nights event. 

Sun., Jul. 28th -- "Good Witch" (latest/new season resumes after taking a break on July 14th and 21st) -- Hallmark Channel

*********************

AUGUST

Sat., Aug. 3rd -- "A Taste of Summer" (Roselyn Sanchez/Eric Winter) -- Hallmark Channel

Sun., Aug. 4th -- "An Aurora Teagarden Mystery: A Game of Cat and Mouse" (Candace Cameron Bure/Niall Matter) -- Hallmark Movies & Mysteries Channel

Sat., Aug. 10th -- "Sunshine" (Danica McKellar/Mark Deklin) -- Hallmark Channel -- I think this title will change.

Sun., Aug. 11th -- "An Aurora Teagarden Mystery: An Inheritance to Die For" (Candace Cameron Bure/Niall Matter) -- Hallmark Movies & Mysteries Channel

Sat., Aug. 17th -- "Dude Ranch" (Erin Krakow/Ryan Paevey/Sarah Strange/Kevin O'Grady) -- Hallmark Channel - I think this title could change as well.

Sun., Aug. 18th -- "An Aurora Teagarden Mystery: A Very Foul Play" (Candace Cameron Bure/Niall Matter) -- Hallmark Movies & Mysteries Channel

Sat., Aug. 24th -- "All Summer Long" (Autumn Reeser/Brennan Elliott) -- Hallmark Channel

Sat., Aug. 31st -- ????? (IF Hallmark Channel plans to keep up the "new movie every Saturday night, all year long" promise, then there should be one more Summer Nights movie thrown in -- but I don't know which one it will be.)

*********************

SEPTEMBER

The September movie schedule for both the Hallmark Channel and the Hallmark Movies & Mysteries Channel is currently unknown.

*********************

OCTOBER

The Fall Harvest (Saturday night) line-up for the Hallmark Channel is currently unknown -- nothing Fall-ish has been filmed yet.

Sun., Oct. 6th -- "Crossword Mysteries #2 - Proposing Murder" (Lacey Chabert/Brennan Elliott) -- Hallmark Movies & Mysteries Channel

Sun., Oct. 13th -- "Crossword Mysteries #3" (Lacey Chabert/Brennan Elliott) -- Hallmark Movies & Mysteries Channel

Sun., Oct. 20th -- "Crossword Mysteries #4" (Lacey Chabert/Brennan Elliott) -- Hallmark Movies & Mysteries Channel

Fri., Oct. 25th -- BOTH the Miracles of Christmas event on the Hallmark Movies & Mysteries Channel AND the Countdown to Christmas on the Hallmark Channel begin!!

*********************

MYSTERIES --UNKNOWN PREMIERE MONTHS

---A 4th Chronicle Mysteries movie (w/ Alison Sweeney & Benjamin Ayres) was already filmed;

---A J.L. Family Ranch sequel (w/ Jon Voight, James Caan, Bo Derek, Trevor Donovan & Teri Polo) was recently filmed; 

---A 4th Darrow & Darrow movie (w/ Kimberly Williams-Paisley, Tom Cavanagh & Wendie Malick) is wrapping up production soon, 

---The 3rd and 4th Mystery 101 movies (w/ Jill Wagner & Kristoffer Polaha) are shooting back-to-back; and

---Danica McKellar's Matchmaker Mysteries is finally going into production fairly soon as well.

Any 2 or 3 of these mysteries could feasibly be scheduled for September, since that month is currently empty.  If we don't see them on the Hallmark Movies & Mysteries Channel in September, then we probably won't see them until next year..

[Woopwoopkitty]

2 hours ago, Pickles said:

I am sure they have separate rooms too, lol. The engaged couple who were to be married at the inn, in the Jack Wagner movie, were sure to mention how they each got a great sleep in their separate rooms. No shenanigans on Hallmark before the actual wedding!

Let’s not forget Sun Sand Romance where Tricia Helfer goes to Cancun (?) with her boyfriend after a year of dating, expecting a proposal, and yes, they got separate rooms.  <eye rolling to the nth>

[kirinan]

I know this isn’t the holiday movie topic, but this may help get us out of our Hallmark funk (well, eventually). Nikki DeLoach and Michael Rady are in another movie together, this one for Christmas!

Edited June 16, 2019 by kirinan

[Scarlett45]

Anyone watch Love Take Two? So far it’s pretty cute. The female lead from All Things Valentine is the best friend. 

[EyewatchTV211]

11 hours ago, kirinan said:

ETA: On a slightly different topic, My Boyfriend's Back: Wedding March 5: meh. However, it was totally worth sitting through just for Tyler Hynes--and I watched it once more on DVR and just FF'd to his parts. I am coming to love him a ridiculous amount. He's even in danger of surpassing my Holy Hallmark Trinity of Antonio Cupo, Paul Greene, and Victor Webster in my affections. 

For you and others who are fans of Antonio Cupo, if you didn't already know, he has been on the new CBS show Blood & Treasure. 

[MissyPoo]

12 hours ago, kirinan said:

 Oh, and I have to say, @MissyPoo, when you said the lead actress was gorgeous you weren't kidding. She's absolutely stunning (and I'd kill to have legs like hers). The bride was also a beautiful woman, who reminded me a lot of Idina Menzel. They could play sisters.

Yesss! I was so eyeing her clothes (particularly the dinner date dress and the pink one at the end). I wanted to get some similar pieces but she definitely has the legs to pass it off! Me, not so much...

I was also trying to think of who the bride reminded me of. Maybe Idina with a little bit of someone else? Especially her voice. I remember another actress had a similar tone but my brain fails to connect it.

8 hours ago, Kohola3 said:

Delete them.  They are all the same story anyway.

And a note to Hallmark:  get a thesaurus.  Stop using the world "amazing" 450 times in each movie.

It's also time to retire "You've got this" and "You two know each other?" and "It's a small world" "No, small town" as well.

1 hour ago, VMepicgrl said:

For you and others who are fans of Antonio Cupo, if you didn't already know, he has been on the new CBS show Blood & Treasure. 

Huh. Thanks for this. I've been wondering where he's been hiding out. Last I saw he was making a few Lifetime movies but nice to see he's landed a stable gig and B&T looks pretty interesting!

[Irlandesa]

3 hours ago, kirinan said:

I know this isn’t the holiday movie topic, but this may help get us out of our Hallmark funk (well, eventually). Nikki DeLoach and Michael Rady are in another movie together, this one for Christmas!

It sounds like a Hallmark Movies & Mysteries Channel movie.  I hope it's not as sappy as it sounds but they were very good together in Love To The Rescue.

[Koalagirl]

My Boyfriend’s Back - Wedding March 5 I kept getting distracted by the unfortunate pink lipstick the makeup people used on Jack Wagner.

[LuvMyShows]

So I liked the Picture Perfect Mysteries: Newlywed and Dead.  I was not familiar with either PenaVega, and they both seem likable. 

There was one error in the show...while both of them were at the florist, the florist said something to him about the specific new house he had bought (the florist mentioned it by name, like "the Williams house").  And multiple times it's been mentioned that this is a small town, so she would certainly know the house once she heard the name, and she would know where it's located.  Then when she turns up at his house, he is surprised that she knows where he lives, and she mentions something about knowing people who work at [I forget what type of place it was] so she asked some questions.  But that whole conversation didn't make sense, because she already knew where he lived because of the florist conversation, and he knew that she knew. 

Nit-pick:  I don't know why it didn't occur to them during the wedding dance re-enactment, when he said that something wasn't right with who was lined up where, to think that maybe the bride was the intended victim. 

Two distractions:  The haircut on her brother Greg, was so 1980s that I was distracted the whole time!  And the lips on the girl who ended up being the murderer.  I don't know if they are natural, plumped, lipstick-ed that way, or some combination, but they were quite full and puckered.

[Irlandesa]

I usually can't tell how a mystery series will shake out until I've seen a few but I enjoyed Picture Perfect more than I thought I would.  (I didn't think I'd like iet at all so there's that.)

It looks like it's written by one of the writers who wrote many of the Garage Sale Mysteries. 

I liked the title sequence that had a 60s vibe. And how it opened with a freeze frame.  I kind of wish they would have kept that photograph trick throughout the movie.  I was also impressed that this had a distinct color palette with the teals and fuschia. 

Once again, I do not think Carlos and PenaVega work well together.  I prefer her and wish she had a different leading man in these.  She was visibly pregnant while filming this.

[TVFan17]

17 hours ago, Scarlett45 said:

Anyone watch Love Take Two? So far it’s pretty cute. The female lead from All Things Valentine is the best friend. 

Two different redheads!    The actress in Love, Take Two is Leanne Lapp.   Sarah Rafferty is the lead in All Things Valentine.

16 hours ago, VMepicgrl said:

For you and others who are fans of Antonio Cupo, if you didn't already know, he has been on the new CBS show Blood & Treasure. 

Antonio is still working with Hallmark too, but he seems to have shifted to the behind the scenes/production side of things instead of acting for them, for some reason.    He was heavily involved in producing the recent Arielle Kebbel movie A Brush with Love, and I think he is prepping for a new movie too. 

Last month, Antonio posted a photo of himself with Danica McKellar (on Instagram) -- this was right before she went off to shoot her new summer movie, so I think he must either be one of the producers on that movie (less likely), OR he is working on a new project with her to be filmed soon (more likely). 

Antonio was even on the set of Love in the Sun when it filmed in Florida, and he was on the set of the movie Cooking with Love when it filmed quite a while back.   I think he is learning, shadowing and observing as he and his production partners delve further into making made-for-TV movies.   Maybe his  goal is to eventually direct?

Edited June 17, 2019 by TVFan17

[EyewatchTV211]

9 hours ago, Irlandesa said:

Once again, I do not think Carlos and PenaVega work well together.  I prefer her and wish she had a different leading man in these.  She was visibly pregnant while filming this.

Agree with this.

[TVFan17]

9 hours ago, Irlandesa said:

Once again, I do not think Carlos and PenaVega work well together.  I prefer her and wish she had a different leading man in these.  She was visibly pregnant while filming this.

I saw Carlos and others commenting on Twitter about how you'd never know Alexa was pregnant in this movie if they hadn't said it or if they hadn't posted photos of her before the movie filmed, or some similar kind of comment.    I will admit that a few scenes were shot in such a way to where I couldn't quite tell she was very pregnant (even though I knew she was), but, to me, it was extremely obvious that she was when we got a side view of her in a bathrobe, walking past the camera, across a room.    I don't know how anyone would not know after that side shot of the bathrobe.

For a married couple, I don't think they have the best chemistry onscreen.   I'm sure they're great together in real life, but, in an acting situation in front of a camera, it doesn't translate for me.   I don't see it.  I think that Jill Wagner and Kristoffer Polaha -- who are not married and are not romantically involved in any way -- have more onscreen chemistry.

There are at least 2 more Picture Perfect Mysteries coming up (next year), but I would guess that they won't be filmed for quite a while.

Edited June 17, 2019 by TVFan17

[Scarlett45]

@TVFAN thanks for the heads up. 

[Happywatcher]

8 hours ago, TVFan17 said:

I saw Carlos and others commenting on Twitter about how you'd never know Alexa was pregnant in this movie if they hadn't said it or if they hadn't posted photos of her before the movie filmed, or some similar kind of comment.    I will admit that a few scenes were shot in such a way to where I couldn't quite tell she was very pregnant (even though I knew she was), but, to me, it was extremely obvious that she was when we got a side view of her in a bathrobe, walking past the camera, across a room.    I don't know how anyone would not know after that side shot of the bathrobe.

For a married couple, I don't think they have the best chemistry onscreen.   I'm sure they're great together in real life, but, in an acting situation in front of a camera, it doesn't translate for me.   I don't see it.  I think that Jill Wagner and Kristoffer Polaha -- who are not married and are not romantically involved in any way -- have more onscreen chemistry.

There are at least 2 more Picture Perfect Mysteries coming up (next year), but I would guess that they won't be filmed for quite a while.

Just watched off the DVR. They had a little more chemistry than in their romance movie, but not a lot. I think part of the issue is that the script had him be a little dickish for a lot of the film. Not just stick inserted, actual jerky. 

"Hey, here is some evidence someone else besides my brother should be a suspect, literally right here in my hand" "I refuse to look, because I am only the detective in charge of this murder investigation" WUT?

I knew the actress was pregnant from comments online and having seen her in other shows, but they did a good job dressing her and the character looked like she could have just been normal size.

George Taki is a flaming homosexual in real life, in fact he is making a living off of being funny and flaming. Even so, he was mad when in the new movie they made his character gay where Sulu had been a professional on duty/ladies man off. He explained he was an actor, playing a role. And he did it well.

For some reason the romance didn't get any traction on screen until the chinese dinner in the car stake out scene. Until then they weren't selling it.

Why did the lead's camera make a shutter sound on each picture? I turned that off on my phone, and I assume everyone else does, as well.

 

On 6/16/2019 at 3:37 PM, Woopwoopkitty said:

Let’s not forget Sun Sand Romance where Tricia Helfer goes to Cancun (?) with her boyfriend after a year of dating, expecting a proposal, and yes, they got separate rooms.  <eye rolling to the nth>

And more seriously, for me when I thought of it, her boyfriend got stuck working on vaca so she quickly starts running around with her old BF and falls out of love with the guy she expected to marry and back into the old boy friend. 

[kirinan]

On 6/16/2019 at 7:52 PM, VMepicgrl said:

For you and others who are fans of Antonio Cupo, if you didn't already know, he has been on the new CBS show Blood & Treasure. 

Thank you! I see that some of the episodes are on my On-Demand. Will definitely check this out!

[rainsmom]

Just watched Picture Perfect.

Eh.

I knew who the killer was in her very first scene. She was the only member of the bridle party questioned, had too many lines, and showed up way too often. Her first appearance was completely unnecessary except to draw attention to her, so, yeah, killer.

Yawn.

The leads did absolutely nothing for me -- neither of them. Neither one sold the part for me. They felt like they were reading lines in the school play.

I love the mysteries in general, but I'm not getting attached to their new crop.

[Happywatcher]

32 minutes ago, rainsmom said:

Just watched Picture Perfect.

Eh.

I knew who the killer was in her very first scene. She was the only member of the bridle party questioned, had too many lines, and showed up way too often. Her first appearance was completely unnecessary except to draw attention to her, so, yeah, killer.

I was suspicious of the actress being on so much, but then the movie fooled me with the frat brother red herring.

[twoods]

The lead in Love, Take Two was gorgeous. I was wondering why she looked familiar and realized she used to be on a cheerleading CW showed called Hellcats and was just as pretty in there. I enjoyed her acting and hope to see her in other movies. Her best friend was the antagonist in iZombie so I liked seeing her play a nice character in this movie.

[Jaded]

I remember a few years ago when Alexa popped up on Dancing With the Stars along with Carlos and how I had to look her up online to remind myself of her age. I'm not sure if it's due to her previous eating disorder issues or not but she looked older then and still does now at 30. I'm  guessing they have it in their contracts that they come as a combo deal in regards to projects they do. It's annoying to say the least. I did like the Picture Perfect Mystery Movie for the most part though.

Edited June 20, 2019 by Jaded

[TVFan17]

In this thread I was just talking about how Antonio Cupo seems to still be working with Hallmark in some capacity, even if it's behind the camera in a producer role instead of in front of the camera.  He also shows up on film sets and observes, even if he is not working on them.

Well, Antonio has shown up on a Hallmark film set once again -- this time it's the set of the Autumn Reeser--Brennan Elliott movie All Summer Long (which is supposed to air on August 24th, pending further changes to the schedule).  So IF Antonio is actually acting in this movie, we know that he is not the one Autumn is ending up with, because Brennan Elliott is her leading man.   But Antonio might also be producing it instead.  Or maybe he is just visiting?

Whatever the case, Antonio must have scared Brennan Elliott away, because Brennan is not in this photo with Autumn, Peter DeLuise, etc.  lol
 

[Happywatcher]

On 6/19/2019 at 9:34 PM, Jaded said:

I remember a few years ago when Alexa popped up on Dancing With the Stars along with Carlos and how I had to look her up online to remind myself of her age. I'm not sure if it's due to her previous eating disorder issues or not but she looked older then and still does now at 30. I'm  guessing they have it in their contracts that they come as a combo deal in regards to projects they do. It's annoying to say the least. I did like the Picture Perfect Mystery Movie for the most part though.

She was pregnant in this one, which is what I ascribed the eye area wrinkles to. 

The thing I don't love about hallmarks is 90% of the leads use botox, which I get from a career standpoint in an era of 60" 4k TVs, but it limits their facial expression range. That wasn't her issue, it was that her and her real life husbands attraction/spark chemistry was not present at all until 3/4 of the way into the film.

[Chippings]

Just a note - this evening Hallmark ran 'Snow Bride' again and I was reminded how much I liked it.  (In case the title doesn't ring a bell, the tabloid reporter smuggles herself into the snowbound retreat of political family, hits it off with older son.  Et cetera.)  Unusual story, none of the usual tropes (return to hometown, run into each other and spill coffee &c); new, attractive people whom we haven't seen fall in love with ten other people in other Hallmark movies, good and interesting small side-stories.  Haven't seen it in many months.  

Such a pleasure!  

Edited June 22, 2019 by Chippings

[GaT]

Finally got around to watching ""Picture Perfect", & I wasn't that impressed. I figured out who done it & why pretty much immediately, so no surprise denouncements for me. Other than that, I didn't see a lot of chemistry between the 2 leads, even though they're married IRL. I really miss Garage sale Mysteries.

[MissyPoo]

Some cool news that popped up in my email.

Another Hallmark Christmas movie has been cast and I'm pretty excited to see this one. It sounds cute and I'm loving the new-to-me couple.

The story:

Quote

well-loved music duo Averie and Jesse, famous for their duet "Wouldn’t be Christmas," haven't played together since they went their separate ways years ago. Averie gave up music and opened a beautiful lodge in a snowy Vermont town - while Jesse still tours, struggling to find the same kind of success they had as a duo. When fate brings them together over the holidays at Averie's lodge just in time for the annual Yuletide Festival, can the magic of Christmas help reunite them once again?

https://www.hallmarkchannel.com/christmas/the-latest-news?et_cid=126469&amp;et_rid=12708936&amp;linkid=https%3a%2f%2fwww.hallmarkchannel.com%2fchristmas%2fthe-latest-news

[Kohola3]

14 minutes ago, MissyPoo said:

When fate brings them together over the holidays at Averie's lodge just in time for the annual Yuletide Festival, can the magic of Christmas help reunite them once again?

Gee, whatever could the ending be?  Hmmm, let me think.

[dalek]

Hallmark Drama has finally taken Seventh Heaven off the air and replaced it with The Waltons.   I was surprised they were still showing it something like 10 hours a day.  They made such a big deal out of not showing anything with Lori Loughlin, but constantly airing a show with Stephen "accused child molester" Collins was totally on brand? 

[MissyPoo]

4 hours ago, Kohola3 said:

Gee, whatever could the ending be?  Hmmm, let me think.

I bet it's a complete twist we'll never see coming.

[Guest]

5 hours ago, dalek said:

Hallmark Drama has finally taken Seventh Heaven off the air and replaced it with The Waltons.   I was surprised they were still showing it something like 10 hours a day.  They made such a big deal out of not showing anything with Lori Loughlin, but constantly airing a show with Stephen "accused child molester" Collins was totally on brand? 

I don’t think they really care about actors being on brand. They care about the Hallmark name being linked to controversy. When the Stephen Collins thing came out it didn’t get a lot of coverage. Ever since the Lori Loughlin thing it regularly gets brought up on their Facebook which probably led to this decision. 

I don't think Loughlin was fired because she is accused of a crime but because the story was huge and every single article mentioned Hallmark. My feeling is that they still might have worked with her eventually if it hadn’t happened in the middle of When Calls the Heart and if she hadn’t been filming at the time she was arrested. The story broke at the worst possible time for Hallmark. 

Edited June 23, 2019 by Guest

[Kohola3]

5 hours ago, MissyPoo said:

I bet it's a complete twist we'll never see coming.

Heh.  First, their writers only produce formulaic scripts so have no clue on how to come up with twists.  Second, they live by the rule that All Hallmark Movies Must Have Treacly Endings.

[Irlandesa]

The Last Bridesmaid started enjoyably enough, largely based on the charm of its leads who I tend to like in general.  For better or worse, they at least bring personality to their roles even if the part is otherwise bland.

But somewhere at the half point, I started to like it less. I don't know if it was because of the ridiculous scene where he tried to manipulate the best man out of the photo even though the best man wasn't really anything to Rachel's character. Or once it took its hard turn into the inevitable (and ridiculous) pursing jewelry full time.  Everyone was so impressed with the fact that she used stones and beads like just about every other hobbyist jewelry maker out there.

And if Paul's character was so concerned about no one seeing his documentary, you'd think he'd have it protected more than he did.

Or maybe others liked it more and my displeasure was due to my being distracted by baking in the second half.

[treeofdreams]

Does Hallmark have any series other than When Calls the Heart and Good Witch?  I am so tired of the same-old/same-old movies repeated over and over and over, same actors, same plots, same checklist.

I don't like most of what is on other channels, it would be nice to have some Hallmark series as an alternative.  (I wish I could get the mysteries channel, but my cable company doesn't offer it.)

[Irlandesa]

5 minutes ago, treeofdreams said:

Does Hallmark have any series other than When Calls the Heart and Good Witch?

They have Chesapeake Shores which is coming back this summer for six episodes.  I think it's the final season and there will be a spinoff movie. I don't watch so I don't know what that will involve.

[Pickles]

The Last Bridesmaid. I thought it was so unbelievable how the daughter was going to take over the parents' insurance business, but decided to make jewelry full time. The parents were all set to retire and looking forward to it. So, when the daughter decided to tell the mom that she wasn't going to take the business over--it was suddenly like no big deal. We will just have to tell your dad. We can postpone our retirement. It was just so casual and well received. Completely unrealistic.

[TVFan17]

About the Chesapeake Shores movie that Irlandesa referenced above --

I don't watch the series either, but knowing that the movie was supposed to be set in Rome, I had been waiting for some sort of indication that it had started production or was going to film soon (so I could look at pretty photos of Rome scenery on social media).

Apparently, from the way things are looking, it seems that the Chesapeake Shores movie  is not scheduled to film, and no one knows when it will be filmed.   The next season of the show has already been filmed, however.

In typical Hallmark fashion, something must have happened to delay production on the movie, but I don't know if that means it will be filmed later this year (to air in 2020), or if it will just be filmed sometime next year, tacked on to the beginning or end of another season of the series (if it is renewed for summer 2020).    I don't even know if it will still be set in Rome by the time it finally shoots.   

I don't know what the status is, but it looks like the movie is not going to air in 2019 if it is not filmed sometime in the next couple of months.  (If it's not a Christmas movie, then it would have to be on the air by early/mid-October, which means it would probably have to go into production by late August/beginning of September.)

However, the upcoming season of CS should probably premiere in late August/early September and wrap up sometime by mid-October -- unless Hallmark decides to air it in 2020.

Edited June 23, 2019 by TVFan17

[ehall1052]

I liked “ The Last Bridesmaid “ because of the leads, too. They did have some chemistry. But I thought , for the formulaic conflict, that the Uncle filmmaker was going to “accidentally “ delete Paul Campbell’s movie off his tablet since they made it sound like that was the only copy.

[mikeb]

I saw a commercial for the new Aurora Teagarden movie premiering in August and got first look at wig Candice Cameron Bure mentioned in interview last year that she wore instead of dyeing her hair again.  I think it is as bad or worse than the one Jewel wore in her first Fixer Upper Mystery.

[Kemper]

Why would Candace Cameron Bure have to dye her hair? I have missed something so please fill me in.  Is it a different color now than it was when she was filming the previous season?  Who on earth would care?  

I actually liked the kind-of short bob she wore in the earlier movies. But yes, saw a preview of her upcoming movie and could not believe my eyes!  What is the deal with the actresses on this channel having terrible hair; at least a good many of them do.  I don't mind the color...it is the out-dated, impractical styles that they sport.  Why are the actresses hairstyles such a huge, distracting deal for the channel.  It is creepy and distracting.

[Happywatcher]

5 hours ago, Irlandesa said:

The Last Bridesmaid started enjoyably enough, largely based on the charm of its leads who I tend to like in general.  For better or worse, they at least bring personality to their roles even if the part is otherwise bland.

But somewhere at the half point, I started to like it less. I don't know if it was because of the ridiculous scene where he tried to manipulate the best man out of the photo even though the best man wasn't really anything to Rachel's character. Or once it took its hard turn into the inevitable (and ridiculous) pursing jewelry full time.  Everyone was so impressed with the fact that she used stones and beads like just about every other hobbyist jewelry maker out there.

And if Paul's character was so concerned about no one seeing his documentary, you'd think he'd have it protected more than he did.

Or maybe others liked it more and my displeasure was due to my being distracted by baking in the second half.

Just watched it off the DVR while getting caught up on some work. We were just at a friend's son's wedding at one of the cutsey fake barn wedding venues that are popping up 1/2 hour outside of metro area, including the nearby chain hotels off the freeway that turned into impromptu party areas the night before.

I agree with the critics. I couldn't tell if she was doing bridesmaid services for pay, plus the insurance business. 

The jewelry business didn't seem like it would take off like that for her, looked more like craft fair level stuff...but if we accept a woman is a chief of surgery or chief of staff at a teaching hospital, while also being a single parent to a teen girl, with no housekeeper or other personal staff, I can put aside my disbelief for this, too.

I also agree the lead changing her mind at  the last minute and messing up her parents retirement and source of retirement funds was a terrible thing to do. Pretty close to evil.

That being, the actors were great, and the couple really seemed like they were in a relationship, which hasn't 100% been the case in the movies this last year. I even smiled at the silly 'zomg, you have to skip work and go sample my menu right now, because the groom will be getting an IV for an hour and I can't leave or reschedule', because the support actresses (mom and bride) were so likable about it.

Edited June 24, 2019 by Happywatcher

[Pallida]

I wasn’t fully paying attention during The Last Bridesmaid. Was she going to buy out her parents’ business or simply inherit it? If she wasn’t going to buy them out, then selling the business is actually far better for their retirement. 

[Happywatcher]

13 minutes ago, Pallida said:

I wasn’t fully paying attention during The Last Bridesmaid. Was she going to buy out her parents’ business or simply inherit it? If she wasn’t going to buy them out, then selling the business is actually far better for their retirement. 

I assumed she was going to run it for them and then use the buy sell life policies to fund the inheritance taxes when they died.

[MissyPoo]

5 hours ago, Irlandesa said:

They have Chesapeake Shores which is coming back this summer for six episodes.  I think it's the final season and there will be a spinoff movie. I don't watch so I don't know what that will involve.

I hope they finally circle back to a plot for the show. They haven't had one since season 1. 

13 hours ago, Kohola3 said:

Heh.  First, their writers only produce formulaic scripts so have no clue on how to come up with twists.  Second, they live by the rule that All Hallmark Movies Must Have Treacly Endings.

Naturally. I imagine they use one story blueprint from the older movies that worked and just switch out the names and places. Probably the guidelines they give out to their screenwriters. Though there are a few that try to break from the mold from time to time. 

As for Aurora Teagarden's hair, I thought the side ponytail braid wig/style in the first movie was the book character's signature hairstyle. Maybe a reader can confirm. I'm still baffled why she had a new hair seemingly every movie.

18 minutes ago, Pallida said:

I wasn’t fully paying attention during The Last Bridesmaid. Was she going to buy out her parents’ business or simply inherit it? If she wasn’t going to buy them out, then selling the business is actually far better for their retirement. 

I only saw the beginning, but I believe she was set to take over the business as they were prepping to retire. I agree about selling. Since they kept hinting toward the whole jewelry hobby thing, I had a feeling she'd end up doing that. I think I checked out of the movie about halfway through. I like the leads enough, but it felt too generic. Though I like the way they met. I'd rather have more leads meeting at functions and stuff rather than charging head first into each other and spilling coffee everywhere.

Edited June 24, 2019 by MissyPoo

[twoods]

Honestly, how much money do people make when they sell crafty jewelry? I was in disbelief on Gilmore Girls that a married couple (annoying TJ and Liz) survived on the jewelry they sold at a Renaissance fair. Do people really make that much money? 

I had such high hopes with a Paul Campbell- Rachel Boston movie but wish they got a better movie to star in. Both characters were at times extremely unlikable.