The Presence of Love

Here we go again, the woman staying with a man she only met recently... however... let's start at the beginning

Joss is working hard on a paper in order to get tenure at a university. Her mother, who has passed away, left her for her birthday a trip to the farm she grew up in England. There she meets Daniel, his daughter and his mom who own and live in said farm.

I like that it tackled serious issues like anxiety, dyslexia, abandonment, a failed marriage, struggles with money and not your typical "I don't have a boyfriend for my ex's wedding so let's pretend you are it (I do love a pretend relationship but you understand my point). Hallmark movies and mysteries tend to go the extra mile and this was no exception.

The scenery was beautiful, the cast was great specially the actress playing little Tegan, she was adorable. They all had great chemistry. I also liked that they kind of left the ending hanging for you to figure out what will happen. We all knew what was going to happen though, right?

Which leads to me to the point of Joss leaving behind her life to be with a guy she barely knew. I understand why she gave up tenure and I really hope she spent the following months travelling through Europe and then chose to come back to Daniel and his family.

Yep, that's definitely what happened.

There are some real high points in this movie that are not typical of this genre. The scenery was gorgeous, the characters were well drawn out with actual problems in their lives, and the overly saccharine plot points were still somewhat palatable. I thought the ending strained credulity, but that didn't ruin the movie at all. I could have used a second part to this -- or even a miniseries.

This was an absolutely beautiful movie and the best I have seen in some time. The acting was superb and the sweet little girl stole the show. The story of love, loss, and struggle is one that we can all identify with and the true emotions expressed came through so well. The attraction and connection between the two leads was real and not forced or silly as in many of the Hallmark movies. And the scenery of Cornwall was not only stunning, but also provided the metaphor of standing on a cliff trying to summon the courage to move away and move on. Having also lost a mother much too soon, the scene of Joss finally letting go near the end was just so very touching. I wish this movie had been longer. I did not want it to end. Let's have more movies like this with a wonderful story and strong characters that move us to tears and allow us to smile.

For me, it was a beautiful surprise. Because it is one of films having the courage to be more than a Hallmark.

I love the themes and the manner to explore them.

Loving books, having the experiences of teaching and the work for Phd, I discovered so familiar slices from my life, just fair reflected.

I loved the acting and the landscapes. The courage to use, in wise manner, the subjects as dislexia, ruined marriage, motherhood and dyslexia. I loved the intro, using the verses of Wentsworth and the box with the old volume by Coleridge.

The problem ? Obvious, the too conventional ( but predictable ) end.

But, honestly, it is more than Hallmark. And this just matters.

I like the cast. They do a good job.

Eloise Mumford is not your average "peppy - happy", fake, blonde lead, which is great. What I like about her is that she is "real" and she has this fragility about her - in this case - perfect for the anxious Joss.

Male lead, supporting mum and daughter are good. There is chemistry between all of them.

The storyline, although predictable, is more original than most romance films.

The scenery of course, is gorgeous.

My only, big, problem is with the sound. I struggled to understand what they were saying, most of the time. You have lead actors who are soft spoken, a lot of outdoor scenes and, instead of making sure the dialogue is audible, you add music. This had a huge impact on my enjoyment of this film.