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

WendyCR72

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anniebird
anniebird
Kohola3
Kohola3

Sorry, couldn't help myself.  

Crs97
Crs97

You know what movie I want Hallmark to make? Girl gets engaged to seemingly nice guy at the beginning, then goes home to the small town that she grew up and left years ago. She runs into her high scho

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One4Sorrow2TooBad

One4Sorrow2TooBad

Watched Love and Sunshine(2019) , with Danica McKellar and Mark Deklin. It's a movie about a military service dog that was fostered by Danica for awhile and it's previous owner in the military coming back to claim him. What can I say,I'm a sucker for dog movies, this one was cute ,definitely worth checking out.

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jpgr

jpgr

14 hours ago, One4Sorrow2TooBad said:

Watched Love and Sunshine(2019) , with Danica McKellar and Mark Deklin. It's a movie about a military service dog that was fostered by Danica for awhile and it's previous owner in the military coming back to claim him. What can I say,I'm a sucker for dog movies, this one was cute ,definitely worth checking out.

This is one of my absolute favorites.

coffeebean

coffeebean

(edited)
On 2/26/2025 at 12:33 AM, One4Sorrow2TooBad said:

Watched Love and Sunshine(2019) , with Danica McKellar and Mark Deklin. It's a movie about a military service dog that was fostered by Danica for awhile and it's previous owner in the military coming back to claim him. What can I say,I'm a sucker for dog movies, this one was cute ,definitely worth checking out.

Love and Sunshine is one of those movies that remain on my DVR for several months and I put it on as back round in the house. The Birthday Wish is another. There are several movies that I know much of the dialog.

Edited by coffeebean
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kirinan

kirinan

(edited)

Did anyone watch The Royal We tonight? I normally don’t care for the royal movies, but I enjoyed this one. I figured I would, because Mallory Jansen was the star, but there wasn’t really anything I didn’t enjoy. I liked the actor who played the prince, too; he reminded me of a younger Antonio Cupo. The story was a little different, too, which was nice. Not a perfect movie, but a nice surprise. I can see this becoming a favorite.

Edited by kirinan
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MerBearHou

MerBearHou

I skip any of the royal themed movies (except the wonderful old Crown for Christmas), but because of Mallory Jansen, I decided to give The Royal We a try, and sure enough, I liked it so much.  Mallory just makes everything better and her co-lead was good too.  Only negative was her best friend from college / co-worker — the way she behaved was a total caricature and she looked and acted about 15 years younger than Mallory (even though IRL I think the actress is older).  The aide to the prince was a familiar face from so many things (memorably from a small part in Notting Hill) and he was just right.  

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Irlandesa

Irlandesa

45 minutes ago, kirinan said:

Did anyone watch The Royal We tonight? I normally don’t care for the royal movies, but I enjoyed this one. I figured I would, because Mallory Jansen was the star, but there wasn’t really anything I didn’t enjoy. I liked the actor who played the prince, too; he reminded me of a younger Antonio Cupo. The story was a little different, too, which was nice. Not a perfect movie, but a nice surprise. I can see this becoming a favorite.

I've been looking forward tot his movie because I like Mallory and I admit I enjoy a good old fashioned romance-book arranged relationship plot.  But then I completely forgot to record it.  I'll either catch the replay tomorrow or watch on Hallmark+ which I think I still have.

Chippings

Chippings

I enjoyed The Royal We also -- different enough, and it was fun to watch the relationship evolve.  She had worked hard on her accents, too, and I think stayed pretty true to the 'European' one when she needed to.

Actually I had watched Her Pen Pal immediately before, and that's one of my top ten -- she is excellent in it, but watching Joshua Sasse is great.  I always think back on seeing the two of them in Galavant a few years ago.

I don't think they often do show the same actress in two movies right in a row; this was interesting, for sure.  

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Orcinus orca

Orcinus orca

Have we gone back to 1850? In The Royal We, a seemingly independent, successful woman who teaches other women to control their own lives, returns to a previous century to "fulfill her duty".  This is a country that apparently speaks French but also English with an aristocratic accent (except for the plumber who has a Cockney accent) and has a childish feud with a neighboring enemy.  The "Kings" of these little enclaves trade insults like third graders on a playground.

The leads were fine and played well off of each other.  But the premise was beyond ridiculous.

PS US citizens do not curtsey to royalty from other countries.

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Ele

Ele

9 hours ago, MerBearHou said:

It does look fun and different — hope it’s a good one!  

The next two movies do look fun. Walker and de Ravin look like a good pairing.
 

Come Fly with Me is on right now and Hemmens and Matter have great chemistry. I want them to make another movie. 
 

Hallmark Family is showing Guiding Emily tonight. I remember it being pretty good. It’s also showing two movies I’ve never heard of!

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Irlandesa

Irlandesa

I pretty much loved The Royal We.  I thought the leads had great chemistry where you could feel an actual pull between them.  I found myself smiling when they kissed and it has been a long time since I've done that for a Hallmark movie couple. And maybe it's because I watched on Hallmark+ but it seemed to move at a pretty quick pace. 

The one thing I didn't like about it is that I now suspect I'm going to have to watch all of the royal movies this month, or at least the last one, since they hinted at a shared universe.  It makes me wonder if we're going to get to see their wedding happen in a different movie. 

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kirinan

kirinan

1 hour ago, Irlandesa said:

The one thing I didn't like about it is that I now suspect I'm going to have to watch all of the royal movies this month, or at least the last one, since they hinted at a shared universe.  It makes me wonder if we're going to get to see their wedding happen in a different movie. 

That really surprised me, Irlandesa. I already knew I was going to watch next week's royal movie, since I like Andrew Walker so much, but I didn't intend to watch the third one. But when they tied them all together (somewhat cleverly, I must say), I was like, oh, shoot, now I may have to watch all of them. So I'll set the DVR to give myself the option.

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Badsamaritan

Badsamaritan

1 hour ago, kirinan said:

That really surprised me, Irlandesa. I already knew I was going to watch next week's royal movie, since I like Andrew Walker so much, but I didn't intend to watch the third one. But when they tied them all together (somewhat cleverly, I must say), I was like, oh, shoot, now I may have to watch all of them. So I'll set the DVR to give myself the option.

That was actually really clever, props to whoever came up with the idea at HM. 

I too enjoyed it, enough that I'm watching the replay now. Yes, it's ridiculous they have to marry, a deal made between their grandfathers, but I enjoyed that her experience and skills ultimately brokered a deal so it didn't have to take place. Bea says she'll do it until they can find an alternative solution so I was willing to let it go. And they do have very nice chemistry. I also liked how they used the hashtags regarding their relationship journey. It was a believable and topical use of social media. 

I really do like The Royal We, it'll go in the rotation now. If you haven't watched it, be sure to catch Guiding Emily as well. It's a big departure in story and very well done. And Sara Drew and Antonio Cupo have great chemistry. 

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njbchlover

njbchlover

I really enjoyed "The Royal We" - I thought the two stars had great chemistry, and I thought the two "kings" played their parts of blustering older men holding silly grudges (with a hint of comedy) very well.  

The best friend/assistant was kind of one-note, but she was good for a little comedic relief.  

Looking forward to the next one, with Andrew Walker, but not so sure about the third installment.

This afternoon, I caught a repeat of "The Perfect Bride" (2017), with Pascale Hutton and Kavan Smith.  I enjoyed this one, too, which also had an interesting storyline.  I think that PH and KS have great chemistry, which is now being continued in "When Calls the Heart" for the last few years.  Seeing PH play someone more low-key than her over-the-top character, Rosemary, on When Calls the Heart is a nice change.  

Plus, Kavan Smith's smile really melts my heart!!  

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norcalgal

norcalgal

On 3/2/2025 at 6:34 AM, Orcinus orca said:

This is a country that apparently speaks French but also English with an aristocratic accent (except for the plumber who has a Cockney accent)

This was my only gripe, not just for The Royal We, but any “royal” movie.  First of all, royalty exists in non European countries so it’s a beyond tiresome that Hallmark only ever has (pseudo) European royalties. But since Hallmark insists on that, why not vary the accents? Why can’t royals have Scandinavian or German accents?  

On 3/2/2025 at 4:44 PM, Badsamaritan said:

I too enjoyed it, enough that I'm watching the replay now. Yes, it's ridiculous they have to marry, a deal made between their grandfathers, but I enjoyed that her experience and skills ultimately brokered a deal so it didn't have to take place. Bea says she'll do it until they can find an alternative solution so I was willing to let it go. And they do have very nice chemistry. I also liked how they used the hashtags regarding their relationship journey. It was a believable and topical use of social media. 

This post perfectly sums up my feelings watching The Royal We. The chemistry and organic evolution of the lead’s’ relationship really elevated this movie. 

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kirinan

kirinan

(edited)

I loved The Reluctant Royal. If there were flaws in it (and I'm sure there were, even if small; it's Hallmark in 2025, after all), I either didn't notice or didn't care. It was fun, it was funny, the cast was great, l loved the father-son story, I loved to hate the moustache-twirling villain and his mom...it just rang all my happy bells. I can't wait to watch it again. 

Edited by kirinan
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Badsamaritan

Badsamaritan

(edited)
2 hours ago, kirinan said:

I loved The Reluctant Royal. If there were flaws in it (and I'm sure there were, even if small; it's Hallmark in 2025, after all), I either didn't notice or didn't care. It was fun, it was funny, the cast was great, l loved the father-son story, I loved to hate the moustache-twirling villain and his mom...it just rang all my happy bells. I can't wait to watch it again. 

This is me. Andrew Walker is just a tall glass of charm, isn't he? At first, he seems a bit dim, but it's really just that he likes people, and despite his romantic  relationship issues, is a happy and decent guy. And he's not only a good mechanic, he's into organic farming and creating healthy juices.

He and Emilie have good chemistry, agreed on the father/son bonding story, and the secondary cast of villagers was delightful. I also secretly hoped we'd get a time jump to see Mom and Dad together, enjoying their second chance to the fullest. The Duke wore his sadness quite well, I thought. Enough that I did want to see him get his true love back and be happy. 🥹 

Shallow observation...Andrew looks damn fine in a suit. And Derek the Style Guy on twitter would be proud, his jacket collar is laying flat 🙌🏽😂

Edited by Badsamaritan
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MerBearHou

MerBearHou

5 minutes ago, Clawdette said:

It was interesting that Hallmark obliquely referenced Andrew Walker's juice company (along with his wife) as a sideline for the character.  On the nose, as folks would say.

I thought the same thing.  It’s such a passion of Andrew and his wife.  

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coffeebean

coffeebean

(edited)
On 3/8/2025 at 11:15 PM, MerBearHou said:

The Reluctant Royal was fun — I enjoyed it!  

Agree. Andrew Walker has some comedic chops! I have not seen him look sooooooo good since his guest appearance on Reba 20 years ago. His "high" hair was gorgeous! 

Andrew and his leading lady, however, was not a favorite pairing of mine. This actress, although two years younger than Walker, looked like she was his mother.

Even though this pairing was not my favorite, have to say that was a really nice kiss at the end.

Edited by coffeebean
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norcalgal

norcalgal

9 hours ago, andromeda331 said:

I was surprised Emilie de Ravin in a Hallmark movie. She was really great. I forgot how much I loved her. 

 

2 hours ago, One4Sorrow2TooBad said:

I remember her from  the Lost series. 

I know her from Lost, but also from Once Upon a Time.  I was always squicked that her “Belle” had a romance with Robert Carlyle.  He just looked waaaay to old and grubby for her.

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Ele

Ele

(edited)

I haven’t watched The Reluctant Royal, but I am looking forward to tomorrow’s movie, Royal-ish. 
 

It’s March and Hallmark is showing A Crown for Christmas tonight. It’s definitely one of the channel’s better Christmas movies. Hallmark Family has Trading Christmas on right now. I think it’s one of Hallmark’s top Christmas movies. I’m not watching it, but it’s worth watching if you haven’t. 

Edited by Ele
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andromeda331

andromeda331

18 hours ago, norcalgal said:

 

I know her from Lost, but also from Once Upon a Time.  I was always squicked that her “Belle” had a romance with Robert Carlyle.  He just looked waaaay to old and grubby for her.

I liked them in the beginning but it got old fast Rumple would continue to do terrible things and Belle would insist he was still good and had a good heart. Her character got completely destroyed as the series went on. 

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Badsamaritan

Badsamaritan

17 hours ago, Ele said:

It’s March and Hallmark is showing A Crown for Christmas tonight. It’s definitely one of the channel’s better Christmas movies.

"You had me at sewing kit"

Sorry, whenever this movie is mentioned, you gotta always add that line lol. 😁

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BuckeyeLou

BuckeyeLou

I just watched "Royal-ish"...I enjoyed it just because it seemed different from the average Hallmark story.  Mainly, it was because the young actress is very different from the average Hallmark actress, she has a different look & way of acting.  It was driving me crazy where I had seen her before,  she was in "Superstore" on NBC which was one of my favorite shows & this young actress played a ditzy, hippie Teen with a baby who worked in the store.  And yet in this movie, she played a very sweet, thoughtful young woman & I enjoyed the story between her & the young Princess.

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Ele

Ele

(edited)

I liked Royal-ish. Even though there were some usual tropes, it was also different from other royal-themed movies. I liked the leads a lot and wouldn’t mind them making another movie. I also thought the Master’s program Lacy was going to enter sounded interesting. It was overall a sweet, fluffy, feel-good movie. 
 

*Nichole Sakura, the actress who played Lacy, should make a Hallmark movie with Erin Karpluk. They look like they could be sisters. 

 

 

25 minutes ago, BuckeyeLou said:

I just watched "Royal-ish"...I enjoyed it just because it seemed different from the average Hallmark story.  Mainly, it was because the young actress is very different from the average Hallmark actress, she has a different look & way of acting.  It was driving me crazy where I had seen her before,  she was in "Superstore" on NBC which was one of my favorite shows & this young actress played a ditzy, hippie Teen with a baby who worked in the store.  And yet in this movie, she played a very sweet, thoughtful young woman & I enjoyed the story between her & the young Princess.

 

22 minutes ago, One4Sorrow2TooBad said:

Looking forward to watching later tonight. I saw about 5 minutes of it earlier  tonight, looked really cute. 

It’s the first of the new March movies I’ve watched. I enjoyed it. 

Edited by Ele
Irlandesa

Irlandesa

I liked it because I like the actress but I was a little mad by the ending to it.  The previous two movies in this series mentioned the big wedding from the first movie and other couples from these movies were mentioned as attending. 

That made me certain we'd be going back to watch the wedding of the main couple in the third movie and revisit these characters again.

But nope.  Nothing.  Just their own engagement.  I don't think the other movies were even referenced which is kind of deflating.  

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EyewatchTV211

EyewatchTV211

12 hours ago, Irlandesa said:

I liked it because I like the actress but I was a little mad by the ending to it.  The previous two movies in this series mentioned the big wedding from the first movie and other couples from these movies were mentioned as attending. 

That made me certain we'd be going back to watch the wedding of the main couple in the third movie and revisit these characters again.

But nope.  Nothing.  Just their own engagement.  I don't think the other movies were even referenced which is kind of deflating.  

There was a brief reference. The horse they gifted her was the horse referenced in the last movie. Triscuit, I think. And they quickly said who it was from. Very quick and not a super obvious reference like before.

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ProudMary

ProudMary

(edited)
On 3/2/2025 at 1:00 AM, MerBearHou said:

The aide to the prince was a familiar face from so many things (memorably from a small part in Notting Hill) and he was just right.  

^^^Martin from The Parent Trap! ❤️

I am not a Hallmark movie watcher, with the exception of Crown for Christmas. I see that one in the listings and I watch. Again and again. 🙂 

When it ran last week, I also noticed the listing for The Royal We and decided to watch it the following night. I'm so glad I did. I thought it was delightful. I recognized Mallory Jansen from her time on Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. and found her co-star attractive and a decent actor. They had good chemistry and the writing actually developed their characters a bit. I loved date night in Boston, also the scene where Bea brings Desmond his tea and they have a fairly deep conversation together and finally, the two of them watching the Perseid meteor shower together. Charming scenes. I will watch this one again.

I didn't realize that there was any sort of connection between the three films except that they were all 2025 releases, but I did also watch The Reluctant Royal and Royal-ish. I found them both disappointing, although having Lacy befriend the motherless Princess Rose, be flown to a small European principality, and bring her together romantically with the Princess' Royal father does have a lot in common with Crown for Christmas! (Although whoever played Crown Prince Henry couldn't jold a candle to Rupert Penry-Jones!)

Edited by ProudMary
Added the thought in parentheses.
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norcalgal

norcalgal

58 minutes ago, Ele said:

Love by Chance is on tomorrow morning and I think it’s one of Ben Ayers’ first Hallmark movies. I remember him looking handsome in it. Brenda Strong’s character was very meddlesome. 

I really liked this movie!  A mark of how much I like a Hallmark movie is remembering the plot without reading up on it either in this forum, or generally on the internet.  The plot sorta reminds me of Because I Said So, the movie with Diane Keaton and Mandy Moore. 

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