Fall Into Winter

High hopes for this one and Lori's return to movies despite the many recent Christmas movie disappointments from Great American Family. Unfortunately, this was a huge disappointment with a distinct low-budget feel including: -Annoying background music throughout the entire movie -Terrible "winter" decor consisting of obvious fake snow carpets, cheap tinsel garlands, and odd leftover Christmas decorations.

-An unconvincing candy shop set with very little candy and no display cases, but plenty of diner-style counter stools.

-Absolutely no chemistry between the poorly matched leads.

-Awkward dialogue and a plodding storyline.

First I want to say that I don't understand the bad reviews for this movie. I have watched a lot of these romance movies and I have seen a lot worse. In fact I really liked this movie. I thought they played well and I liked the characters.

Some says they didn't had any chemistry. Well, I think they had. Sometimes a relationship grows slowly and their characters developed and was believable. I liked that they were sincere and tried to get things to work. I thought the male character played an interesting and likable role. I thought they all played pretty well.

So I can only recommend this movie.

The story is very predicable but if you are into these types of ultra simple, pedestrian movies and actually can suspend belief with the lackluster acting, then I guess it does it's job.

The premise is rather ironic, Lori plays a single mom with a daughter away at college (har har) in Europe and her brother thinks he's doing her a favor by getting her a new investor in her candy store. You can piece the rest together from the synopsis already published. James plays a money focused, stiff and unemotional business guy. Nothing to see here, the acting is at best barely passable.

I wish the characters were able to show more emotion, more flirt, more depth, more build up to the romance with more authentic drama. The story could have been fun and sweet instead it's dull and lifeless. It's just too vanilla and simplistic in it's depiction.

I watched it because I have never watch these types of made for TV movies and wanted to see what the hype was around Lori. She was just passable in it, it's all very straight and basic so hard to get a sense of what any of the actors are truly capable of.

I don't understand why these actors - Lori an ex con/fraudster and James in the news for trying to get his grubby hands on his dead ex's estate money by bullying her son - are even still being given acting roles? This is the best they could find? Don't they want actors who are role models in these "Christian" GAC productions?

I don't understand the negative reviews for this movie. I almost didn't watch it because of the bad reviews, but I decided to anyway and I'm glad I did because I loved it. It's a movie I could watch over and over, and I don't watch many movies again unless they bring joy and hope to my heart. This one does.

I thought the two leads had great chemistry. I loved the growth in both of their characters, both personally, and as a couple. Yes, they've both had issues in their real life personal lives, but I think they've tried to make amends and they're trying to move on. Forgiveness is important for all of us. If you're bitter towards them (and it seems some of the other reviewers are), you need to forgive and move on. You're bitterness only hurts you, it's not hurting them.

I enjoyed the side characters as well. Great casting all around!

So don't believe the naysayers, give this one a try!

Okay .... so we have a locally-owned candy shop where the candy is handmade ... SLOWLY, and we virtually never see a customer in the shop. This place isn't going to survive a month, yet we have a savvy businessman with modern business ideals buying into it?

Nope.

Then let's take James Tupper. I'm sure we've seen him in some stuff where he showed some life, but that isn't in this movie. He put on the mantle of timid and awkward and apologetic for EVERYTHING and never took it off.

The romance is a typical antithetical romance, where at least one of the romantic leads seriously dislikes the other. Normally those are supposed to be funny. Nothing funny anywhere in this movie.

We were happy to see a resurrection of Lori Laughlin's career. We thought what happened with her was ridiculous. When California won't even charge someone who steals hundreds of dollars of merchandise with a crime, you're going to incarcerate someone who paid big bucks to get their kids into college? Great behavior? No. But save that cell for someone preying on innocent victims.