La maison sur la plage

There are deeper levels of family issues than your average Hallmark Saturday night premiere. Everyone has some history they need to address.

Some of the acting was better than others. Minka Kelly was OK and held her own. Andie McDowell had her moments also. Others, not quite as good, certainly not Donny Boaz.

The tone was a little more somber than I was looking for on Hallmark for Saturday night.

My mom and I had a really bad day, and we were looking forward to vegging out in front of a Hallmark movie with Andie MacDowell. We thought The Beach House would be just what we needed: Andie fixing up her family's beach house, looking at the coast with a mug of tea just like she did in Cedar Cove. However, this movie was not what we needed, so if you and your mom find yourself in the same situation, watch Cedar Cove instead.

The good news is Andie MacDowell gives arguably her best performance in The Beach House. She shows unexpected pain and thoughtfulness as she stars as a terminally-ill mother trying to fix up her house and her daughter's life before it's too late. I am glad I watched this movie, because I like Andie and she did an excellent job, but it would have been better to watch it on a different day. Minka Kelly plays Andie's daughter, and in the tradition of Hallmark, she comes from the big bad city, finding herself and love in the small town of her youth. Chad Michael Murray is Minka's love interest, so if you're not watching this movie for Andie-but why wouldn't you?-you'll be relatively entertained.

If you liked the book, or if you're in the mood for a good cry, go ahead and rent this Hallmark Hall of Fame. You'll see the beautiful shoreline of South Carolina, the fun and cute journey of baby turtles crawling from their eggs to the ocean, and Andie's great acting chops.

Saw 'The Beach House' primarily for that it was part of a Hallmark completest quest that was begun just over three years ago, beginning with just the Christmas output and then moving on to the other seasonal blockings. Really appreciate it too when Hallmark tackles serious family issues and relationships (and they have done this very well numerous times) and some Hallmark Hall of Fame films are well worth watching. Chad Michael Murray has come on a lot generally.

'The Beach House' impressed me a lot on the whole and is up there among the better 2018 Hallmark films, a strong contender for the best of the films aired between January and April of the 2018 output. It does fall short of being a great film, but it is not hard to see why it was chosen as a Hallmark Hall of Fame film and has the trademarks of them and the quality of the best of them. A lot of things are done really well and the issues and relationships that 'The Beach House' were tackled very well indeed in my view.

It isn't perfect. It does agreed end on an anti-climactic note.

Also thought that Murray was on the wooden side here in an underdeveloped role and his terrible accent is a distraction.

However, there are a lot of very good things here. Most of the acting is very good, with Andie MacDowell and Mackenzie Vega giving nuanced, moving performances and Minka Kelly to me did bring heart and charm to her role, despite the film being a case of the supporting characters being more interesting and fleshed out than the leads. Donny Boaz to me was fine. While the two lead characters are rather typical, a lot of effort was done developing the characters and allowing one to relate to them. MacDowell's is especially well realised.

For me, Kelly and Murray did have a nice low key chemistry that didn't feel forced but it's the family relationships that are more developed and investable, the mother and daughter one was relatable.

It is a good looking film, especially the scenery. Something that Hallmark often delivered on, even in their misfires. The music isn't over-scored or too constant. The script isn't awkward and has a few amusing moments amongst the many very sweet and touching dramatic ones while keeping sentimentality at bay. The story is not innovative but clearly knew exactly what it wanted to be and do, and has lightness, warmth and charm. As well as well meaning honesty and poignancy.

Overall, very nicely done. 8/10.

The plot is a bit more unusual for a Hallmark movie, though not completely original. Some scenes were frustratingly uncomfortable. Chad Michael Murray's attempt at a southern accent made me laugh at times. The beautiful scenery of the South Carolina island is the best highlight! I saw lots of advertisements for this movie leading up to the premiere, but I was not expecting the story to be so emotionally heavy. Have tissues ready!

I'm glad to see Hallmark finally getting back on track with a good Hallmark Hall of Fame movie rather than their usual Hallmark romantic junk.