The Arrangement

Kyle West is an actor whose name can turn (almost) any film into a box office success. He meets a young wannabe actress, Megan Morrison, not long after he is left at the altar. She finds herself similarly at the end of a relationship.

They hookup rather quickly and before she knows it, he suggests marriage. But the offer comes through agents and appears to be sponsored by West's agent--played by Michael Vartan--who is also guru, puppeteer and fixer to the star. Lurking behind it all is the Institute of the Higher Mind, a cult-like organization with an image to protect.

If much of this sounds patterned after the life of Tom Cruise, it may be.

The show touches on issues like celebrity privacy, how the film industry treats women, and creating your own destiny. A great deal of its appeal depends upon how much the viewer enjoys the main characters and the actors who play them.

Three episodes in, the plot is somewhat predictable. Will it tell a story with emotional depth or will it be a soap opera piece, putting its caricatures through the usual moves?

I'm not usually one for incredibly dramatic soap opera shows but this one pulled me in. At first glance and in any advertisements, it looks like a stereotypical Hollywood soap opera of a 15 year old's imagination. To my surprise, it was not. There are definitely scenes that have that feeling, but they are few and far between.

The show follows a Hollywood star, with a past of his own, offering a struggling waitress a contract for fortune and fame and 10 million dollars if she will agree to date, marry, and have a future with him, among other stipulations. Obviously she agrees, or else there would be no show, and the story begins.

The show then begins on a complicated and twisted path that leaves the audience guessing and holding their breath for whatever comes next. The actors make the story believable and interesting and are enjoyable to watch on screen. While slightly predictable, the show offers an inside look at Hollywood and an exaggerated "true" story of the real pitfalls.

I found it incredibly interesting binged all twenty episodes in a few days. I'd say give it a chance if you're trying to figure out if you want to watch it or not, but give it a few episodes to develop.

I really liked the idea of exploring the "arranged marriage" thing in Hollywood. It could've actually been a great story line for a nice drama, but as soon as they let the whole "cult" path take over they ruined the show completely.

And the series finale, brr, one of the worst in television history.

Strong points: It's romantic, but not too cheesy, and it's interesting. Christine Evangelista is very beautiful, she is very sexy, sensitive and I for one think the role fits her. Josh Henderson is also pretty OK and well, Lexa Doig is the cherry on top for me (loved her ever since the Andromeda series). There are also virtually no stupid lines, no unimaginative and dumb discussions like you see in other shows.

Weak points: I tend to think the writer(s) rushed events a little bit. Not gonna say where since I don't wanna be a spoiler, but those who watch the movie will probably see where that happened. I'll watch more episodes though, in order to see if my impression is justified or not. The movie is also somewhat predictable, at least up to the point in which I've watched it. However, that's not entirely a problem since a little bit of predictability is healthy. I've seen many other shows with great potential being destroyed by the "unexpected events" and by "unlikely alliances", which in reality could never happen.

All-in-all, don't expect a Game of Thrones type of story-arc. But if you want to watch an easy-to-watch romantic show with OK lines and beautiful, talented actors, then this is a good show to do just that.

Normally, I'd give it an 8 or 9 tops, but given it's seriously underrate as of now, I decided to give it a 10. Christine Evangelista and Lexa Doig deserve it.

I also don't like to comment on other user's reviews, but 1-3-4 stars? C'mon... It means those people have really no clue what a 1- 3-4 stars movie actually looks like. Also, some seem to have a problem with (and I quote) "beautiful and perfectly proportioned women"...which in itself says enough about that person's character and his review.

To me it feels like it is based on Tom And Katie.... the cult like group controlling everything is similar to Scientology, the whole thing is very familiar to the tabloid stories.