Love Upstream

8.0 stars.

An author is getting her own TV show and her book about relationships is going to be a bestseller. Something goes awry and it all falls apart in a very short time. Now she's left picking up the pieces. She meets a man in an elevator and she comes off as very uptight and city girl snooty, but this guy is special and down-to-earth. Even though he is turned off initially, she gets another chance (by coincidence-a Hallmark one). Eventually she ends up doing a story about him and a lake resort that he owns with two of his friends. The rest is an adventure that is original, refreshing, and entertaining. I really enjoyed the romantic aspects, because they are tangible as both leads reach down to their core to give us something real. She is flawed, yet cute and insightful. He is very deep and emotional, but really loves her. They are great together, the passion is palpable. I love this film.

Charlotte Meyers is a successful writer of relationship books. Her new book is about salvaging her relationship and getting engaged. She is blindsided when her boyfriend dumps her. Her whole career is put in doubt. Wilderness guide Rob Wilson is tired of his clueless city dwelling clients. They are two very different people and they get stuck together in an elevator. Despite hating him, she has an idea to rejuvenate her career and he needs the money for his father's medical bills.

The premise is fine especially for a TV romance movie. It's not anything great but at least, it's quick. It basically boils down to the two leads. They are relative nobody actors. They do have functional chemistry after a fun meet-cute. She's better than him. They're both fairly fine. She just seems more comedic or at least, she's trying harder to be comedic. More could be done with the style. It's not just about the money but imagination. This is fine.

A supposed smart woman has hissy fit in elevator. But didn't have one when boyfriend breaks up. Poor dialog. Bad story line. All around bad movie.

Quite an average love story. Nothing more, nothing less. Fortunately the lead actress wasn't too dolled up and after a rough start she was quite likeable. The lead actor didn't look like an outdoorsy type to me at all though (it takes a little more than a beard). Not very believable. Support cast was okay, nice scenery.

The benefit of the doubt, just because I like love stories in general: a very meager 6 out of 10.

This movie is actually worth watching, probably because it wasn't actually produced by Hallmark. Good acting. Nice witty dialog. Yeah the plot is not original like most of these movies, but the good acting / directing / writing make it very watchable as a romcom.

Of particular note is the male lead actor (Canadian) who can actually act, unlike many of the male actors in this type of movie. In fact the chemistry between the male and female lead is also very good. They do a great job playing off each other.

As what I call a "Hallmarkish" movie this is a cut above most of them.