Per amore di Daisy

My guilty pleasure is Hallmark and cheesy made for TV rom coms, and I have a pretty low bar for them when it comes to expectations. But this one I even had a hard time sitting through. One, there was really bad background music in pretty much every scene. It felt like a really bad after school special. Two, the main two love interest characters pretty much had zero chemistry. The main guy seemed like a robot on camera. The writing was really terrible - like, even for this kind of movie where you don't really need great writing. It was just a mess. Wanted to give it one star, but added an extra because of the cute dog, Daisy, who was by and far the best part of the movie.

Not an unpleasant film, but nothing interesting about it either. Agree with others that there's definitely no chemistry whatsoever between the 2 leads and the "love" between them at the end came out of nowhere. Jake also has a slight speech impediment, where his upper lip sticks out as he speaks and the words sound almost like a lisp. Distracting at first. Very funny at the end with a newspaper article with an HD photo in place of what should have been a newspaper photo. Looked ridiculous. I guess there was no money to print the newspaper. The dog Daisy was definitely the best part. I liked the mother also. The secondary plot was okay. There are always several character stories in Larry Levinson films. This was not one of his best.

Jake portrayed an adult on the "autism spectrum " with great accuracy and understanding. The dialogue written for Harrison Curry(Jake)gave many clues as to why there wasn't the usual chemistry between lead male and female actors. He mentions:"I like people who are straightforward, I don't pick up on emotional clues, I relate better to animals",etc. Kelsey(Brooke)comes along with cute Daisy dog and Harrison finds a person he can relate because of the common bond of a dog. Brooke has her own issues,work and personal and they are interconnected because of Daisy. She is willing to accept not only the help Harrison offers but his quirky manner as well. The film encompasses acceptance of human differences, the unconditional love of dogs, the success of therapy dogs in today's world and a very sweet romance. I found the film charming.

Pixl movies have dar too many plots going on. Every single one I've seen has at least three love stories going on. Not necessary. Stick to one story line. I don't care about the coworker's pregnant wife OT the mom dating. Too much going on. Also the music is really annoying. I like Brooke Nevin. She's been good in most of her roles. The male love interest (Jake Sand ig) is an unknown. He was adequate in the role. Anyhow - it's watchable - and good background noise as long as you're doing something else.

Have never had any bias for or against Hallmark, and have always watched their films since starting my quest in the latter half of 2019 with an open mind and with a real effort with knowing what to expect. They have done some good, some bad or worse and plenty that is in between those extremes, so as has been said in other reviews for some of their previously seen output their filmography is pretty variable. While not being overly enamoured by the premise, there was potential for it to be charming.

To me, 'Hometown Hero' was not terrible. It was also not great, or particularly good. It was merely okay that left me rather conflicted. There are good things here, such as a couple of good performances. There are also some major debits that really spoil things, much of it story-related. If asked whether 'Hometown Hero' is recommended, my answer is that it is worth a one time watch but there is not enough to it to make it much more than that.

As said, a couple of good performances can be seen here. Brooke Nevin is on the most part controlled and at ease in her part, and makes an effort in not making her too perfect or exaggerating the flaws (apart from initially trying too hard with the cynicism). Megyn Price plays one of the most relatable and better developed characters with heart and charm. The best thing about 'Hometown Hero' is the dog, who is absolutely adorable with a lot of personality.

Furthermore, Rhonda's subplot is heartfelt and warm-hearted. It is the only one of the subplots that comes over near flawlessly, faltering only with ending on an incomplete note. It's a nice looking film.

Really do have to agree with the criticisms regarding Jake Sandvig, who comes over as stiff and never comes over as comfortable or involved. He and Nevin don't have much chemistry, where the communication is a mix of awkward and barely existent and the relationship itself is too abruptly and out of the blue introduced with no prior development. The characters are not developed enough, with only Rhonda and the dog coming over as real people.

Script on the whole is mundane and lacks spark, it never sounds natural as well. The story does try to cram in too many subplots that don't ever properly connect together and feel like more than one film in one, giving it a very disjointed feel. Also agree with the music being too constant and over-bearing, plus it sounded like the composer had written the music with no idea of what genre the film was (that's how ill-fitting it was). The direction has no character and really struggles to sustain momentum or stop the story from sprawling.

In conclusion, merely okay. 5/10.