A Harvest Homecoming

This one was actually produced by GAF, not acquired from an independent studio. So we have shirts buttoned up to the top with no troublesome decolletage or hints that two adults might be having extra marital sex, or relationships based of deceit and lies that generated so much unhappiness and feelings of betrayal in some of their loyal viewership. We had meal time prayer, references to faith and God and blessings. And, by Golly, we had leaves.

I have never seen so many fake decorative leaves in all of my life. Leaves of every shade of orange or red imaginable. Stringed up everywhere. Twinkling. On the eaves, on the window sills, wound around fence posts, gates, rails, in wreaths, pasted to walls (indoor and outdoor), on tables and every other surface. Even at the school, the barn, and in every room. It was hilarious. GAF must have raided every Hobby Lobby in Canada. I can only imagine the behind the scenes convos that broke out between the professional set decorators and the powers that be.

MORE leaves??!!! But....

YES! YES! YES! MORE MORE MORE!

But this is an Apple Orchard! How about a few Apples?

NO! Apples don't say Fall, Autumn or Harvest! Our viewers need more leaves, not more Apples!

I think the final autumn overload was the revenge of the Set Decorators.

"A Harvest Homecoming" is a good movie. Great acting by all, and I really like Trevor Donovan and Jessica Lowndes. Great story, too. Very sweet.

But there's just one thing: As far as I know, nobody decorates for autumn so much. I mean, really, the school, the house, the yard, just everywhere, had LOADS of autumn decorations. MAJOR overkill. I mean, people decorate that much for Christmas, but not for the Autumn season. It was so much, it was laugh out loud funny! Stole the show for sure. So, basically, there were so many decorations, it took away from the movie, because I was so busy looking at the decorations. The people who made this movie must really like the autumn season. I like the autumn season, too, but this is ridiculous.

Great American Family is trying hard to compete with Hallmark, but these movies continually look cheap and cut obvious corners. As other reviewers have pointed out, the leaf decor is over the top and ridiculous. No pumpkins or hay bales, and not one apple in sight -- at an apple orchard! Also, there's no character development and the story is too simple to stretch into a full-length feature. Where had Jessica Lowndes and her son been living before coming to Chestnut Hollow? What happened to her kid's father? Is he in the picture? Who is her best friend who drops by occasionally? How did this orchard stay in business without obvious things like a petting zoo and a maze? And isn't Trevor Donovan at 40 a little old to still be searching for a permanent life? GAF is certainly a player in these types of movies, but so far Hallmark continues to eat their lunch.

Trevor Donovan is experienced and I've enjoyed him in a lot of movies. I've come to enjoy Jessica Lowndes also. This movie was very disappointing. The acting is surprisingly average.

The story is average with no great highs or lows or surprises. In fact, if you break it down, it follows typical lines. This includes an antagonistic first meeting. Then that melts instantly and they get along great with no transition. There's friends and family all telling the leads to get back out there, repeatedly. There is even the line about "It's a date, no not a date..." (Ugh) There's a ticking clock as far as Drew leaving soon. The conflict occurs explosively, quick and maybe overblown. The ending is predictable.

Something was off with Donovan and Lowndes, just a little. It dampened any chemistry. The dialogue wasn't great. The sets are limited.

What about the singing? Whenever there is a movie with Lowndes I eagerly anticipate her singing. I guess there was one surprise. Donovan did the singing. He was decent in a country sort of way.

This is another totally family safe, family friendly movie. It's not bad, but it wasn't what expected with these leads. It's still a little better than many I've seen on this network with lesser known stars, so I guess it's watchable.

Love Jessica Lowndes and Trevor Donovan. On the positive side, the movie storyline was great and so was the supporting cast. On the negative side, Trevor Donovan, while one of my favorite actors, does not have a pleasant singling voice , It was painful to hear him sing. Unfortunately, they did not use Jessica Lowndes to sing as her voice is wonderful.

Overall, the movie was beautiful. Really loved the supporting cast. The grandfather was a hoot. The parents demonstrated a loving, long lasting relationship. The sister was memorable. Enjoyed the minor God references. The scenery was beautiful.

Highly recommend.