Love, Romance & Chocolate

Lacey Chabert and Will Kemp are two of my favourite Hallmark regulars, so it was lovely to see them teamed here.

I thought this was a great Hallmark, with a lovely story being told, and two good performances from the leads. Chabert is always warm and charming, with I enjoy Kemp's dry delivery.

I was a bit sceptical about the premise initially, but it won me over, proving very enjoyable.

Emma Colvin (Lacey Chabert) breaks up with her boyfriend who is moving away for his job. She goes to Bruges by herself for a chocolatier vacation. She finds new inspiration and new love in Luc Simon (Will Kemp). Luc's chocolate shop is in financial trouble but he has great hopes for his chances at the Belgium's Royal Chocolatier. He reluctantly accepts help from the American who has different ideas about chocolate.

The meet-cute is paramount in a romance. This one has some good potential but one needs to know the language. That's where funny subtitles would be really effective. The location is basically stuck in a shop with no customers. As for the exterior shots, the Belgium locations should be better. The camera work doesn't do the place justice. It's not just about the locations. It needs an imaginative vision to bring out the exotic Europe. It does have a boat ride montage but that's really the pinnacle. It helps to be a nighttime ride. This Hallmark romance relies heavily on the bubbly Chabert and she is exactly that. I like the triangle although the opposition should be more villainous throughout the movie. This is a fine standard Hallmark romance.

An on location shoot in Europe helps to elevate this Hallmark romance above the average. Bruges is overpriced and beautiful and this movie captures it. A silly chocolate theme is the plot.

Will Kemp and Lace Chabert are well paired.

Anyone who watches Hallmark romance movies knows that Lacey Chabert is usually perfect in every role. This one is no exception! She is charming as Emma and the male actor does a decent job as Luc, as well. Sometimes he is a bit stiff and reserved, but it was part of the character's personality. If you're not naturally a certain way, it's probably hard to pretend to be. He was definitely believable as a by the books, take no chances kind of guy. And while Luc worked with Emma to create the perfect chocolate, he loosened up and became open to new ideas.

The romance of it was more natural than other movies and they had pretty good chemistry, especially during the last third. There were a couple misunderstandings, just like other tv romances. And there was a lack of communication or being brave enough to just say what they felt. Again, Just like almost every tv romance. But I do like how Emma and Luc resolved them problems without much incident. This is definitely one of my new favorites and I'm sure I'll watch it again.

I gave the movie 8 stars because they did a great job capturing Bruges on film. How beautiful. I'd love to go there after watching this movie. The story featured a chocolate competition which added to the dramatic tension...but Will was so dour and overly serious. He looked handsome but not much fun. The scene when the prince and princess told how they met was so charming. The script could've used the same touch in scenes with Will and Lacey.