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

[Irlandesa]

33 minutes ago, WhyAmIHere said:

I saw Christmas in July is for the entire month of July.  Didn't this used to be a one or two week event?

It has been two weeks on Hallmark and two more weeks on Hallmark Moves and Mysteries for a while, I think.

[dubstepford wife]

14 hours ago, Kemper said:

I would think that Hallmark makes plenty of money from recycled writing in their movies, using the same locales, actors, etc.  I also don’t mind showing sitcoms during the day; I am tired of GG (love them, like that they are being aired...just not so much) and am not all that fond of some of the others. I wouldn’t mind some different shows being rerun. There must be other types of shows they could rerun during the day.  In a way it is insulting to the viewers to not even try to vary the programming. 

I wonder how much of this has to do with syndication rights.  Perhaps Golden Girls is the only thing they can afford and/or get exclusive rights to?

Going the oldies route isn't a bad idea.  Nick at Night when I was a kid would air stuff like The Munsters, I Love Lucy, The Rifleman, etc., 50s sitcoms and family shows.  They don't do that anymore and to my knowledge, no one does.  I bet that would make their over-60 demographic happy, and they're the majority of people watching during the day anyway.

[bankerchick]

Possibly.  I am over 60 (though I personally find that hard to believe!) and we have a local channel here that carries all the old stuff like Gilligans Island, the Flying Nun, the Brady Bunch and Partridge Family and honestly, I loved that stuff as a kid but I can't watch any of it today, not even ironically.  Not even to watch David Cassidy, who was my biggest crush for several years as a tween/teen.

I don't know if I'm more tolerant of the genre at Christmastime or whether those movies are actually (marginally) better, but the Winter Experience, Valentines Day, Spring Fling, Tulip Season movies were all horrible this year and I don't hold out much hope for the summer movies because none of my favourite actors appear to be cast, so maybe the Christmas in July will at least replay some of the good movies from last year or past seasons.

[Scarlett45]

I didnt mind Sweet Carolina- I liked the acting from the teens, and the focus on Lacey Chaubert's character's grief.

I am trying to remember the last Hallmark Movie I LOVED...I loved Fashionably Yours, Wedding Every Weekend from last year.

I do want to watch The Baker's Son- the premise of his bread going from bland to wonderful when he is in love is pretty cute, and if the leads have chemistry it will be a feel good movie.

[Cetacean]

49 minutes ago, bankerchick said:

I am over 60 (though I personally find that hard to believe!) and we have a local channel here that carries all the old stuff like Gilligans Island, the Flying Nun, the Brady Bunch and Partridge Family and honestly, I loved that stuff as a kid but I can't watch any of it today, not even ironically.

I am over 70 (a shock) but I cannot watch any of that older stuff.  The production values are so jarring now, they are really showing their age.  You couldn't pay me to watch the moldy oldies on Hallmark.

[bankerchick]

45 minutes ago, Scarlett45 said:

I am trying to remember the last Hallmark Movie I LOVED...I loved Fashionably Yours, Wedding Every Weekend from last year.

I love Wedding Every Weekend and watch it a lot on Demand, including this past week.  Paul Campbell and Kimberly Sustad for the win.  Which is probably why Christmas At Starlight was my favourite Christmas movie last season.

I notice Pascale Hutton and Kavan Smith are in this weekend's movie, You Had Me at Aloha (what a dumb title.)  I know they are a couple in When Calls The Heart and it has been a few years since they were in a Hallmark, but I like both of them so hopefully it will be good.

[Irlandesa]

3 hours ago, bankerchick said:

I notice Pascale Hutton and Kavan Smith are in this weekend's movie, You Had Me at Aloha (what a dumb title.)  I know they are a couple in When Calls The Heart and it has been a few years since they were in a Hallmark, but I like both of them so hopefully it will be good.

It'll have Hawaiian scenery but Pascale Hutton and Kavan Smith don't do much for me as a couple and they have done so many movies together. 

[twoods]

The Baker’s Son does look pretty good, along with one afterwards Her Pen Pal since it’s a Galavant reunion and I liked both of them and their chemistry on that show. Even the one with Chad Michael Murray looks decent but I always like the movie he’s in. 

[bankerchick]

I don't see anything on imdb about The Baker's Son but if it's new to Hallmark, it will be a while before it comes here to Canada. I too like Chad Michael Murray and look forward to his movie as one of the few summer movies that look interesting. 

I am currently watching Marrying Mr Darcy.  I dislike Cindy Busby (popular opinion around here) and the movie premise is stupid but I have always been a fan of Ryan Paevey (unpopular opinion around here.)  What is striking is that this movie is from 2018 but Paevey looks like a kid compared to his most recent movies.  Like, waaaay younger and not just because his hair is greying now.   Maybe the stress of being a Hallmark (wooden) leading man is getting to him.  😋

ETA:  He keeps calling her 'Darling.'  Does ANYONE under age 100 use that particular endearment?

Edited June 5, 2021 by bankerchick

[dubstepford wife]

3 hours ago, bankerchick said:

He keeps calling her 'Darling.'  Does ANYONE under age 100 use that particular endearment?

People in the South, and especially Texas, do, but it doesn't sound right without the Southern accent (Darlin').  It's like when Americans address Queen Elizabeth as "Your Majesty," it just sounds weird when you don't have a British accent.

My last "good" Hallmark movie (good being a relative term) was As Luck Would Have It.

[bankerchick]

1 hour ago, dubstepford wife said:

People in the South, and especially Texas, do, but it doesn't sound right without the Southern accent (Darlin'). 

I agree with the 'Darlin' but this is more like a New York or Connecticut man saying, 'Darling, I won't be able to make the cake tasting appointment that I promised you I would make the time for.'

[ECM1231]

5 hours ago, dubstepford wife said:

My last "good" Hallmark movie (good being a relative term) was As Luck Would Have It.

I didn't see this one when it first aired but they recently aired it again. It was delightful! I really, really enjoyed it!

[luvthepros]

On 6/3/2021 at 9:06 AM, dubstepford wife said:

I wonder how much of this has to do with syndication rights.  Perhaps Golden Girls is the only thing they can afford and/or get exclusive rights to?

Going the oldies route isn't a bad idea.  Nick at Night when I was a kid would air stuff like The Munsters, I Love Lucy, The Rifleman, etc., 50s sitcoms and family shows.  They don't do that anymore and to my knowledge, no one does.  I bet that would make their over-60 demographic happy, and they're the majority of people watching during the day anyway.

Funny you mentioned "The Rifleman". I happened to catch the last 10 minutes of one of the shows. Son was caught in quicksand with some screaming young blonde woman. Rifleman comes to the rescue. I said to hubby, "people really watched this stuff."

[WhyAmIHere]

Pascale Hutton & Kavan Smith are one of my favorite Hallmark pairings, but You Had Me At Aloha was a letdown.   Pascale's character was extremely unlikeable in the early part of the movie (which has been a common theme with the female leads in this year's movies), and that took me out of it.  The scenery was nice though.  But overall, I preferred the Perfect Bride movies over this one. 

A couple people mentioned above that they haven't loved a Hallmark movie since Wedding Every Weekend.  I agree.  I hope we get something with Paul & Kimberley this year, but I haven't heard of anything. 

[bankerchick]

3 minutes ago, WhyAmIHere said:

Pascale's character was extremely unlikeable in the early part of the movie (which has been a common theme with the female leads in this year's movies),

I tried watching My Favorite Wedding last night because it stars Paul Greene but honestly, the lead actress/character drove me away.  Starting from the first moment they met when she thought he was an Uber driver (seriously, who treats their drivers that badly?) and moving into her rude comments about his diet and bossing him around while running around for the bride, I couldn't stick with it, and you will never in a million years convince me that a man who looks like Paul Greene is going to be interested in that.  Not even for the challenge.  Pretty girls are a dime a dozen for handsome men, and some of them are even nice.

[Cetacean]

Does Hallmark think that changing the scenery will make us think this is somehow a different movie?  You had me at Aloha was just awful.  Bitchy, whiny female lead.  Smart mouth male lead.  Hate each other.  

Cue "misunderstanding" 8 minutes before the end.  Cue "see the light" 5 minutes before the end.  Declare love and kiss 2 minutes before the end.

How many ways can you say trite, boring, generic?  And quit using the same pairing of actors - at first I thought this was their honeymoon episode.

Finally they didn't even bother to show the truly stunning parts of Hawai'i, they just used the standard touristy schlock you can find in a cheap visitor brochure.

[Irlandesa]

Ha.  I normally don't like Pascale and Kavan together but I kind of liked the movie last night except that's not how TV shows work but whatever. 

Maybe the change of scenery was enough.

[Dr.OO7]

Hallmark's Christmas In July schedule. They're actually trying to be imaginative and group the movies by theme--music, military, soap stars:

 

https://www.yahoo.com/lifestyle/hallmark-christmas-july-movie-schedule-113233121.html

[bankerchick]

I wonder how that schedule will translate to W network in Canada.  A few of my favourites are scheduled like Christmas at Starlight and actually the Salute to Christmas night has The Christmas Doctor and USS Christmas.  I enjoyed all 3 of those movies this past year, plus Nine Lives of Christmas (which I love and I don't even care about cats!)

I don't like the actress in the new movie, Crashing Through The Snow so don't particularly care about that one.

Edited June 6, 2021 by bankerchick

[Daff]

On 6/2/2021 at 6:42 PM, WhyAmIHere said:

I really wish Hallmark would make a few Halloween or Thanksgiving movies instead of all Christmas from late October through New Year's. 

I believe THEY think they’ve got Halloween covered with “Good Witch”, so they don’t have to lift a finger (or spend any money). A few years ago, they did make a new Thanksgiving movie, a minor mystery with the actress from “Haven”. It was called The Thanksgiving House.  I don’t think it ended up being very popular, but it halfway kept my attention. Otherwise, they’ll drag out older Thanksgiving stuff (Jacqueline Bissett, or Waltons). 

[Scarlett45]

@WhyAmIHere I too would like it if Hallmark would do Fall/Halloween themed movies from late September-End of October, and then a Thanksgiving drama or two, and start Christmas movies after Thanksgiving. 

[dubstepford wife]

They definitely used to do "Autumn Harvest" or something like that which featured a movie or two, usually about a young-ish woman (named Autumn of course) from the city who comes back to the quaint small town where she grew up -- which looks like Balsam Hill's fall line threw up all over it -- to save her family's pumpkin patch from developers, one of whom happens to be a handsome guy with whom she has a meetcute and a series of misunderstandings, then falls in love with.  Sound familiar?  (yes this was an actual movie btw, it's not just me playing Hallmark Madlibs)

At least they usually had cute cozy clothes and pretty foliage.  I'm a sucker for all things fall so I'd always watch it, trite plot be damned.

[ShelleySue]

26 minutes ago, dubstepford wife said:

They definitely used to do "Autumn Harvest" or something like that which featured a movie or two, usually about a young-ish woman (named Autumn of course) from the city who comes back to the quaint small town where she grew up -- which looks like Balsam Hill's fall line threw up all over it -- to save her family's pumpkin patch from developers, one of whom happens to be a handsome guy with whom she has a meetcute and a series of misunderstandings, then falls in love with.  Sound familiar?  (yes this was an actual movie btw, it's not just me playing Hallmark Madlibs)

At least they usually had cute cozy clothes and pretty foliage.  I'm a sucker for all things fall so I'd always watch it, trite plot be damned.

Is this it, or so all of the coming home from the big city to the small town pumpkin patch plots sound alike?

[dubstepford wife]

1 hour ago, ShelleySue said:

Is this it, or so all of the coming home from the big city to the small town pumpkin patch plots sound alike?

Nah, I just looked it up and it was Love, Fall, and Order that I was thinking of, from 2019.  I had some details mixed up, it wasn't the farm itself that was in danger but her family's fall festival (taking place on her family's pumpkin patch, I think the pumpkins were also in danger?), and her name was Claire, not Autumn.  I swear there was a fall harvest movie featuring a character named Autumn but I can't find it.

Edited June 7, 2021 by dubstepford wife

[MollyMelrose]

7 hours ago, Scarlett45 said:

@WhyAmIHere I too would like it if Hallmark would do Fall/Halloween themed movies from late September-End of October, and then a Thanksgiving drama or two, and start Christmas movies after Thanksgiving. 

Dear Hallmark (Not That They Care):

 

[bankerchick]

Interesting.  W Network seems to play as many Harvestfest as Christmas movies, the plots of which can be summarized without exception as follows:

2 hours ago, dubstepford wife said:

usually about a young-ish woman (named Autumn of course) from the city who comes back to the quaint small town where she grew up -- which looks like Balsam Hill's fall line threw up all over it -- to save her family's pumpkin patch from developers, one of whom happens to be a handsome guy with whom she has a meetcute and a series of misunderstandings, then falls in love with. 

A Google search shows dozens of Hallmark Harvest movies and I'm sure W showed all of them last year, starting after (Canadian) Thanksgiving which is the second Monday in October. The orange was jarring and after a while had me looking forward to the Christmas movies.

[Scarlett45]

On 6/7/2021 at 2:20 PM, dubstepford wife said:

They definitely used to do "Autumn Harvest" or something like that which featured a movie or two, usually about a young-ish woman (named Autumn of course) from the city who comes back to the quaint small town where she grew up -- which looks like Balsam Hill's fall line threw up all over it -- to save her family's pumpkin patch from developers, one of whom happens to be a handsome guy with whom she has a meetcute and a series of misunderstandings, then falls in love with.  Sound familiar?  (yes this was an actual movie btw, it's not just me playing Hallmark Madlibs)

At least they usually had cute cozy clothes and pretty foliage.  I'm a sucker for all things fall so I'd always watch it, trite plot be damned.

I remember the "Fall Fest" movies that would run through October, up until the started the Christmas movies. But "fall/autumn" and Halloween are both so wonderful they deserve their own movies, AND I dont know why there are not more Thanksgiving films!

They would be cheap to shoot (you would just need a few sets for rooms of a house, maybe a grocery store, a backyard), tons of family drama, neighbors dropping in to borrow sugar etc.

[KLovestoShop]

The Baker’s Son was better than I thought, despite the fact that the basic premise was a bit off the wall. Either you can bake, or you can’t.  Some things that struck me include,  did they make Eloise Mumford look rather dumpy to contrast with the sexy blonde?  I always thought Eloise was a pretty woman, but that awful haircut did her no favors.  Did the mayor try too hard to look and act like Sean Hayes?  He certainly did on both counts. 

[Scarlett45]

14 minutes ago, KLovestoShop said:

The Baker’s Son was better than I thought, despite the fact that the basic premise was a bit off the wall. Either you can bake, or you can’t.  

The premise is too cute for words! I haven’t seen it yet, but is it magic? Or just “self confidence”. 

[Irlandesa]

1 hour ago, KLovestoShop said:

The Baker’s Son was better than I thought, despite the fact that the basic premise was a bit off the wall. Either you can bake, or you can’t.  

Lots of things impact baking. I once made the puffiest cookies (my fave) out of a basic chocolate chip cookie recipe in an old apartment oven that I found impossible to recreate anywhere else. 

But otherwise I agree, I don't think "love" is the reason.  I will say that it's not that he couldn't bake.  He always could.  There was just something about his baking when he was in love, or thought he was in love, that made it special.

For me, I had more hope for The Baker's Son than what we got.  It had all the ingredients (heh) for something better but the mix didn't quite come through. I like the friends to lovers trope but I don't like that they had to outright say that the baker must be subconsciously in love with the restaurant owner right at the beginning before the movie even started.  It's telling instead of showing.

One minute he's dating the dancer and she's dating the choreographer.  Then she realizes she's in love with the baker and miserable?  And the baker thinks he's in love with the dancer yet two weeks later he also realizes he's in love with his best friend?  How fickle is his love? 

I did think the "are you sure" stuff was cute by having her taste the bread but why did they act like leaving the island meant that would be the last chance he got?  Does he not have her phone number?  Can he not get on the next ferry?  Instead he has to be willing to almost drown going after her?

[bankerchick]

I found more negative than positive about this movie.  The actress's hair was awful (the same cut but maybe not as horrible as Erin Krakow's in that Tyler Hynes movie), the actor was not in any way attractive to me, I did not sense any chemistry between them and the whole premise was ridiculous.  They are friends for years yet never once had any sense of interest in one another, I assume this also includes when they each dated others before.  Now, not only does she decide she loves him, but she is so jealous of the dancer (who has gone back to her life) that she is going to sell the diner that has been in the family for years and move to Paris.  Suddenly, without warning or even discussing the move with anyone like her best friend.

I hate, hate, hate the movies where a half-overheard comment, or a misinterpreted look causes someone to totally uproot their lives, sell their home/business and move away without ever discussing or clarifying what happened or what was said.  Only to show up at the end to make some pithy comment so we can all live happily ever after.  Does she void the sale of the diner or start baking bread with him?

[Cetacean]

1 hour ago, bankerchick said:

I found more negative than positive about this movie.

Plus everything else you said.

So much was so idiotic.  In what universe does one human make a hundreds of loaves of bread by hand?  And how does good bread bring in hundreds of tourists who pay $20 for a ferry ride to pick it up?  I don't care how magical it was, bread alone cannot "save the island".

I saw no chemistry between the guy and either of his "loves".

12 hours ago, KLovestoShop said:

Did the mayor try too hard to look and act like Sean Hayes?  He certainly did on both counts. 

Totally agree.  His character was embarrassing. Plus the hair stylist needs to be shot.

The premise sounded interesting, possibly a departure from the usual Hallmark dreck but, well, no.

Hallmark actually went out and got a First Nations actor for the first time that i can remember.  But poor Nathanial Arcand, a truly wonderful actor, was cast as a bland, somewhat dimwitted law officer.  Disappointing.

[kirinan]

I didn't mind The Baker's Son, and yet I agree with all the comments here. It wasn't great, I don't know if I'd watch it again, but it was a pleasant enough way to pass a couple of hours while I did some work on my laptop.

What I did like was a factor I also liked in Pearl in Paradise, one of my favorite Hallmark movies (which I watched again last week): They kind of (sort of) switched stereotypes. The man was more uptight and needy and lacked confidence, while the woman was more take-charge and practical. Although in the movie tonight, that dissolved about two-thirds of the way through whereas in Pearl, Jill pretty much stuck that out until right before the end.

Oh, and I did love Rudy the dog.

Edited June 13, 2021 by kirinan

[Irlandesa]

One other stupid thing I didn't like about the movie, and it's small, but the final line was "And that's how French movies end."

As someone who has seen many French films, no. they. do. not.  A French film would have maybe ended after their fight with the guy making bread.  A "happy ending" would have ended with him tasting that the bread is good again.  But we'd still be left wondering if he figured it out and did something about it.

A Hollywood ending (which the French will do but it's considered Hollywood) wraps everything up.  A French ending will leave you wondering if they're really going to end a movie there.

Edited June 14, 2021 by Irlandesa

[Clawdette]

I like both Brant Daugherty and Eloise Mumford so, while the movie was nothing to write home about, I found it a pleasant diversion. It was the type of movie, I think, where if you like the leads you can tolerate the plot. But if the leads leave you cold, you’re out. 

[DanaMB]

On 4/26/2021 at 12:11 AM, Maelstrom said:

Hearts Down Under

• 1 highly unlikeable female lead
• 1 moderately entertaining male lead
• 1 remarkably terrible script 
• A dash of beautiful Australian scenery 

Combine and choke it down as best you can. Serve with a heavy dose of snark.

Seriously folks, this one was bad. I didn’t even make it to the halfway point before I had to start giving it the MST3K treatment.

On the positive side, I liked Beth the waitress’s purple sneakers.

I’m only 15 min in (catching up on my DVR) and already struggling with it. Trying to give it a bit more time, but itching to stop and delete. 

[Maelstrom]

DanaMB, you’ll probably save yourself a lot of mental frustration if you do just stop and ditch it. The scenery is really the only thing remotely worth watching for.

(and the purple sneakers 💜 )

[kirinan]

A new Tyler Hynes movie for Fall Harvest! I've never seen Lauren Alaina in anything so I have no idea if she's a good actress, appealing, or what. But hey, I've watched the Mistletoe movie several times, so clearly I have no pain threshold when it comes to Tyler and will watch this one, too. 

Edited June 14, 2021 by kirinan

[Kemper]

The Baker's Son was a typical Hallmark movie...predictable, a bit cloying and totally unbelievable.  But I didn't mind it so much.  I have never seen either actor before...but the guy looked like a young Matt Boehmer and the girl (while still having those "beachy waves") was not the typical Hallmark actress - hair not sausage curls hanging down to her shoulders - no prancing around in gorgeous clothes/coat/heels.  I found that refreshing.  

The entire town was full of unbelievable people; the mayor was, indeed, embarrassing.  The ballerina did, indeed, look painfully, believably thin for a ballerina.  In all, it was a pretty bland, eye-popping fantasyland.  But the Matt Boehmer like actor was kind of charming.  The actress made the "frumpy" look work.  So I didn't mind it all that much.  The biggest plus - neither actor has been over-used in movie after movie.  Then again, I don't watch all that many to really know.

  And after the dreadful hair on Tyler H and Erin Krakow, I welcome plain, not-very-styled hair on these actors/actresses.  I saw previews of the latest Aurora Teagarden movie and Candice Cameron Burie's hair looks pretty bad.  To me it is obviously a wig; but maybe that really is her own hair.  And Hallmark those long-flowing locks.

 

[bankerchick]

4 hours ago, kirinan said:

A new Tyler Hynes movie for Fall Harvest!

The picture conveniently cuts off the top of his head so we will spend the summer months wondering if he took the hint and re-thought those unfortunate hair choices over the last couple of movies.

[kirinan]

12 hours ago, bankerchick said:

The picture conveniently cuts off the top of his head so we will spend the summer months wondering if he took the hint and re-thought those unfortunate hair choices over the last couple of movies.

Not sure if these Instagram photos with his nieces answers that question, but at least we know he's the fun uncle. 

Edited June 15, 2021 by kirinan

[DanaMB]

23 hours ago, Maelstrom said:

DanaMB, you’ll probably save yourself a lot of mental frustration if you do just stop and ditch it. The scenery is really the only thing remotely worth watching for.

(and the purple sneakers 💜 )

I did stop. Just didn’t have the patience for it. 😬

[Cetacean]

4 hours ago, DanaMB said:

I did stop. Just didn’t have the patience for it. 😬

Wise move.  That's time in your life that you'd never get back.  It was awful.

[bankerchick]

Does every movie really need to have that stupid scene where, 'you've got something, right there' and (generally) the guy has to gently use his thumb to caress the spot on her face where she has cake batter or something splattered there.  Usually when they are at the detente stage - not hating each other anymore but not yet really friends.  I am watching Love on Harbor Island and she apparently has dust on her cheek from digging through boxes of antiques.  It was not visible to those of us watching the movie, but thank goodness he was there to prevent her embarrassment when a local might be horrified to see a smudge of dirt on her face.  Plus I guess in the Hallmark universe, this counts as PDA, right up there with the couple almost falling (on ice, in the snow, whatever) then almost kissing when they regain their balance.

[Scarlett45]

9 hours ago, bankerchick said:

Does every movie really need to have that stupid scene where, 'you've got something, right there' and (generally) the guy has to gently use his thumb to caress the spot on her face where she has cake batter or something splattered there.  Usually when they are at the detente stage - not hating each other anymore but not yet really friends.  I am watching Love on Harbor Island and she apparently has dust on her cheek from digging through boxes of antiques.  It was not visible to those of us watching the movie, but thank goodness he was there to prevent her embarrassment when a local might be horrified to see a smudge of dirt on her face.  Plus I guess in the Hallmark universe, this counts as PDA, right up there with the couple almost falling (on ice, in the snow, whatever) then almost kissing when they regain their balance.

I dunno. I kind of like that. It’s intimate and vulnerable without being risqué. 
 

I have heard many people say the Hallmark films are “too chaste”, and maybe this pandemic has had me inside too long but I haven’t noticed that there’s little PDA. 

 

It might be kind of fun if people really did have something on their face and the other person just let them walk around like that. 

[AAEBoiler]

19 hours ago, bankerchick said:

Does every movie really need to have that stupid scene where, 'you've got something, right there' and (generally) the guy has to gently use his thumb to caress the spot on her face where she has cake batter or something splattered there. 

I call that move the "Hallmark".

[Cetacean]

11 hours ago, Scarlett45 said:

...but I haven’t noticed that there’s little PDA. 

Zip, zilch, nada.  One closed mouth kiss at the end, otherwise no touching.  It's ridiculous.

[kirinan]

23 hours ago, bankerchick said:

Does every movie really need to have that stupid scene where, 'you've got something, right there' and (generally) the guy has to gently use his thumb to caress the spot on her face where she has cake batter or something splattered there.  Usually when they are at the detente stage - not hating each other anymore but not yet really friends.  I am watching Love on Harbor Island and she apparently has dust on her cheek from digging through boxes of antiques.  It was not visible to those of us watching the movie, but thank goodness he was there to prevent her embarrassment when a local might be horrified to see a smudge of dirt on her face.  Plus I guess in the Hallmark universe, this counts as PDA, right up there with the couple almost falling (on ice, in the snow, whatever) then almost kissing when they regain their balance.

I took a fiction writing class a couple of years ago that explained how to use the 12 stages of intimacy for writing romance novels. The instructor said that in chaste romances like Hallmark movies (she used them specifically as an example), they use the face-touching, the falling accidentally into the other person's arms, and all those other old-chestnut Hallmark "first-touch" moments because, of course, they can't go into the stages past that kiss at the end. She said the face-touching is considered the most intimate of the old chestnuts, which is why they rely on it.

Personally, I have no patience for the face-touch moment anymore, because Hallmark has beaten it into the ground. 

[bankerchick]

Interesting.  Hallmark 'givens'.  From your link:

7.  Mouth to Mouth: The first kiss in a romance story is often a milestone. It can ramp up the intimacy and romance quickly unless something interrupts the couple.

Hand to Head: At first, this might seem like a step backward in intimacy, but often the first kiss deepens with a spearing of hair or holding of the face. The position of this stage also explains why a villain caressing a victim’s face is so creepy.

The first kiss is almost always interrupted (except in the movies where the final kiss is the only kiss) and the final, real kiss always involves someone holding the other's face.  Don't know what 'spearing of hair' is.

Much as these movies drive me crazy, I have to be perfectly honest and say that over the last few weeks, a few channels here have been carrying Hallmark-ish movies.  They follow exactly the same storylines, the characters act in exactly the same manner (except for exaggerated awfulness) and from all appearances one might think they are Hallmarks, except the actors are much worse (yes, worse than Ryan Paevey!)  In the one I started last night and left after 15 minutes, the woman turned into a literal lunatic in the meet-cute when she came flying out of the coffee shop and ran into the future romantic interest.  I don't know if they are Lifetime movies or just some studio trying to sell copycat movies to networks at a lower price, but it made me appreciate the Hallmark brand.  At least a little.

 

[Chippings]

Okay, just finished watching the 'Pen Pal' movie and I have to say I liked it very much, especially since I largely viewed it as a reunion of the two actors from 'Galavant.'  But they were very personable and intelligent .. the scenery was beautiful, and that 'chateau' was quite a nice spot.  

Regrettably they did include the 'face touch' trope bit discussed above,, and the nearly inevitable Hero Misinterprets seeing Heroine With Another Man -- at 30 minutes from the end, a little early -- but Jeez.  

I was interested to see again the guy who played the prince of Angosia in "Royal Hearts' - slightly more sympathetic this time, but not much.

Anyway, would watch it again principally for Joshua Sasse and his French accent.

And to see him and the heroine in very different mode, pull up my favorite song from 'Galavant', "Maybe You're Not The Worst Thing Ever."  A classic.

Edited June 20, 2021 by Chippings