Almost Heaven

I like movies with original storyline and this movie does have that. The Movie is not a slapstick comedy but a light one based mostly on the typical Scottish refined satire. Like Irish satire, it is delivered with a tone that we expect from kind words and can be melodious at times, hence my choice for 'delightful'. The principal characters have flaws and problems that render them human and likable. Wise people know that it is the little imperfections that attract us to one another, the reason, and there is a good one, would be too long to explain. This movie exploits that very concept but in a gentle unassuming way. Those characters evolve as the story develops, a sign of good story writing; the outcome is somewhat predictable, not glaringly so, but then again all romantic comedies and romance stories are. Tragedies are the same, predictability wise; it should only be considered a fault if the type of movie was a suspense, a thriller or an adventure. By the end of the movie you feel acquainted with almost all the characters, not just the key ones. I was pleased with the movie as a whole, including the choice for the title; it's a perfect choice. For those who get immersed in the story, the title is like the final brush-stroke on a painting. I was smitten by Kirsty Mitchell. I feel it deserves a good rating because it did not leave me indifferent.

Mark (Donal Logue, from Just Like Heaven, among other films) is a television director who has seen better days. This is all his own doing, since the bottle is his best friend and he bends the elbow frequently. However, he is not without talent when sober. Therefore, he is sent to Scotland to direct a fishing show that has some issues. Once he lands, Mark tries very hard to stay out of the pubs. The shows' production crew also gives him plenty of advice, as does the host of the show, beautiful Taya (Joely Collins). Unfortunately, as Taya is his ex-wife, Mark has no intentions of falling for her manipulations. Before long, Mark is drinking again. But, he shows up for work on time and boasts to the crew that if they will just follow his direction, the program will be a smash success! Can Mark make good on his rash promise and is there any future for romance where the director is concerned, too? This is a beautiful film, capturing the best of Scottish scenery and locales. Logue, too, charms as only a rogue can while the rest of the cast is quite nice as well. Viewers will enjoy the lively script and direction, also. If you are perpetually fishing for movies that are far from that "Hollywood Scene", this one is a big catch so reel it in soon.

Donal Logue is a talented writer/actor. I especially liked him in "The Knights of Prosperity". Here, however, he plays a man who walks into a room and every woman wants to bed him. Even when the little girl meets him, she almost immediately sees him as her new perfect stepfather. It just doesn't work.

Drunken, self-centered, egomaniac he does very well. But even George Clooney would have a hard time making this character's almost instantaneous conquest appeal believable. The film makers use a few slow motion montages to try to make it work, but it doesn't.

This standard rom-com is all script and no substance. We are supposed to think these things happen because the story says so. I didn't buy it. Bill Forsyth at his peak might have been able to pull this off. Shel Piercy simply fails.