Better Than Expected

galinda

I have to say I went into this with low expectations. Watched more for the actors than anything else, but I was pleasantly surprised. This was a nicely done family film. Maybe because it was Hallmark I expected it to be extra sappy, but it really wasn't. Sure some of the plot points were cliché (The big bad developer wanting to wipe out Main Street), but the writing, direction and acting made up for it.

I thought the writers did a credible job creating a believable father/teen daughter relationship. They were close, but not unbelievably so. They weren't pouring out their feelings to each other in a ridiculous manner. The direction kept things moving. They stuffed a lot into the 1 hour and 40 minutes but it never felt slow or overstuffed.

Richard Thomas, Hallee Hirsh, Nancy McKeon, AJ Trauth, and Geoffrey Lewis also all did well with their respective parts. A lot of the vets could walk through this sort of thing in their sleep, but there didn't seem to be any phoned in performances. Hallee Hirsh did a great job as the sort of rebellious headstrong teen. Richard Thomas was as you'd expect--solid. Nancy, AJ and Geoffrey all charmed in their roles. On a completely shallow note, Nancy McKeon looks pretty amazing for having turned 40 this year.

My only complaint would be in the depiction of the beginning of Bob and Emily's relationship. While I liked that they kept it light, at the beginning it was obvious there was an attraction between the two. However, Bob then sort of acted rude and distant to Emily in the early scenes. Particularly at the 4th dance. No sooner does she come over, Bob cuts her off mid sentence and walks off. I was expecting there to be some sort of explanation for Bob's rude behavior--that after his wife's death he wasn't ready to date yet or something--but it was never explained.

score 10/10

galinda 9 July 2006

Reprint: https://www.imdb.com/review/rw1414807/