Ordinary Things

I think that this film is suitable for all ages and would be a good choice for a family movie-night. You can watch it with your kids, parents, grandparents, and everyone will find something relatable and entertaining in this story. The film opens up with a comforting narration that reveals some history and introduces us to the main characters. The camerawork is beautiful and the acting is warm and sincere.

The plot of this film is somewhat simple and yet quite intriguing. What happens if our prayers get suddenly answered? Well, sometimes it might startle us and leave us with more problems to solve then we expected.

In a world with so much negativity we all could use a story like Ordinary Things. This faith based, feel-good film shows that taking pleasure in the ordinary things shouldn't be taken for granted. Sometimes what we need most in life is right and front of us and in a world where there is so much obsession with being something else and so much competition with our neighbor, Ordinary Things is a reminder that the simple things in life are the ones that truly hold the potential for the most happiness.

This is a film for the whole family to enjoy together and one that will give you the feel good feeling that reminds us what true love is.

Ordinary Things takes a familiar rom-com setup-friends faking a relationship-and twists it into something heartfelt and unexpectedly layered. What starts as a sweet deception to comfort a dying mother turns into a tangled mess when she makes a miraculous recovery, forcing Dannie (Cristina Duchesne-Rivera) to face a truth she never saw coming: maybe the lie wasn't a lie at all.

What makes the film work is how effortlessly it balances humor and sincerity. The chemistry between Duchesne-Rivera and Julian Simoes (Tyler) is never forced, making their shift from childhood best friends to something more feel earned. The comedy lands without trying too hard, and the emotional beats hit just right, avoiding over-the-top melodrama.

Director Micah Caronna keeps the pacing tight, ensuring the film never overstays its welcome, while Jennifer Tobler's script infuses the characters with warmth and authenticity. Vanessa Rodriguez also deserves a mention as Dannie's mother, adding both heart and humor to the mix.

At its core, Ordinary Things is about love in all its messy, complicated forms-romantic, familial, and even self-love. It's not trying to reinvent the genre, but it doesn't have to. It's simply a well-executed feel-good film that reminds us that sometimes, the best things in life aren't planned.

Ordinary Things" is a delightful rom-com that captures the magic of unexpected love and the power of family. When Dannie, played by the charming Cristina Duchesne-Rivera, concocts a plan to fake a marriage with her childhood friend Tyler (Julian Simoes) to fulfill her dying mother's wish, the stage is set for a heartwarming and humorous journey.

As fate intervenes and her mother's cancer unexpectedly goes into remission, the duo finds themselves caught in a web of their own making, leading to a series of laugh-out-loud moments and heartfelt revelations. The chemistry between Duchesne-Rivera and Simoes is both genuine and infectious, making their characters' evolution a joy to watch.

Vanessa Rodriguez shines as the mother, delivering a performance filled with warmth and a touch of skepticism that perfectly balances the film's lighter moments. Under Micah Caronna's skillful direction, "Ordinary Things" effortlessly blends humor with uplifting themes, leaving viewers with a sense of hope and joy.

Ordinary Things is a perfectly effective and charming romcom with appealing performances and some good, solid laughs. The faith aspect is handled in such a way that unbelievers like myself won't feel too alienated, and the dynamics of the plot keep moving briskly along and ensure that the audience is never less than entertained.

Sweet and well-judged central performances keep everything on track even when the mechanics of the plot require some serious suspension of disbelief, and you'd have to be a particularly sour kind of viewer to take against the movie. It might be worth giving the trailer a skip and going in cold; knowing the details of the premise ahead of time might take some of the sparkle off the first act.

It's a warm cup of cocoa in movie form.