La rosa di San Valentino

'Very, Very Valentine' is the second 2018 Countdown to Valentine's Day film from Hallmark. The first being 'My Secret Valentine'. It stars two of Hallmark's most popular regular actors Danica McKellar and Cameron Mathison, Mathison is always worth watching even in the not so good films but McKellar can be a bit too more of the same in her typecast roles. Hallmark do vary when it comes to their Valentine's Day films, which is not a surprise as all their seasonal blocks are inconsistent.

Luckily, 'Very, Very Valentine' is a winner and as far as the Valentine's Day films from Hallmark go it compares favourably. Similarly it compares favourably when it comes to talking about Hallmark's 2018 films, without being among the very best. It is a good representation of both McKellar and Mathison and one of the films to see if usually McKellar's appeal is lost on you (have seen this quite a lot in reviews for some of her other films so that's why it's being mentioned).

By all means, 'Very, Very Valentine' isn't mind blowing. Story-wise, it is very formulaic, where most plot points are foreseeable well before they happen (due to Hallmark doing them a number of times before). And also on the lightweight side, meaning on the slightly thin side and also where it is all wonderfully pleasant and polite with lots of charm but also with not a lot of depth or goal.

Occasionally the dialogue is on the corny side and some of the editing is a little disorganised and in the wrong order like.

However, there is a lot to like about 'Very, Very Valentine'. McKellar is charming and perky in a role that may not be too much of a stretch for her but it's not dull or annoying. Mathison is every bit as appealing and always looks relaxed and positive in energy, as well as showing his usual subtle natural charisma. Their chemistry is warm and charming, and never feels forced. The supporting cast are good too, especially Damon Runyan as the sort of Hallmark cliche character that can be played too much of a jerk but here played in a way that refreshingly makes it easy to root for him.

Also thought that the scenery was beautiful to watch and that the photography complemented it nicely, never cheapening it. The music didn't come over as over-powering or used too much. The film is assuredly directed, while the script mostly flows well and has an appealing light-hearted-ness. The story is cute and heart-warming and even with the predictability being high there is also a cheerful energy that stops it from getting mundane and although prematurely telegraphed the ending is also surprisingly touching. Characters that didn't sound like that they would be appealing conceptually did turn out to be a lot more interesting and easier to get behind than expected.

In summary, not great but a very pleasant watch. 7/10.

We've been consistently watching Hallmark's Christmas movies for at least ten years now, but very seldom paid attention to the rest. We branched out a bit this year, and discovered to no surprise at all that all of their movies are very similar ... it's just that the Christmas movies throw in a Christmas theme which may or may not have much to do with the story.

But Cameron Mathison and Danica McKellar are two of our favorites in the Christmas movies, so when I happened to spot this on the schedule I flagged it to record. We're happy I did. The movie was as charming as these two actors consistently are, and the story was at least a BIT different, as these two romantic leads are best friends without a clue they're really in love ... that is ... until Mathison thinks McKellar is attracted to a mysterious man from a costume event and tries to make the match ...

This tv movie is a sweet, very romantic story about two college best friends, who discover their true feelings about one another a bit late in life. It benefits from being tied in to a serious enviromental theme of preserving a botanical garden that is at risk for being turned into a condo/mall money-maker. Both leads are established made-for-tv movie stars and are very appealing favorites. However. both seemed a bit mature in years to be experiencing such a romantic realization. Having been best friends in college, and then each going their separate way is a good beginning background story..But Danica McKellar is 43 and Cameron Mathieson is 48..leaving this viewer to wonder how the audience is expected to believe that more than 20 years had passed before they revealed their true feelings. Their romance seemed more appropriate for people in their late 20's, perhaps mid-thirties..but not at age 43 and 48. Something about Cameron Mathison's wide-eyed, innocent portrayal of a very smart botanist left one in disbelief. He is too mature and too established an actor to portray such an immature suitor. Danica McKellar is always lovely and takes her roles seriously. However, at this time of her own career, she might want to rethink all that long hair and all those tendrils around her face. She is far too beautiful to cover so much of her beauty with all that fussy hair. The second male lead, Damon Runyon, is under-used in Hallmark films. He is handsome, talented and very much leading man material. He needs to be moved out of the 'other man'/bad guy roles.

As a Hallmark fan, I'm very familiar with Danica McKellar and Cameron Mathison (whose best Hallmark role was in the Murder She Baked series, sadly no longer). This was a great pairing and I believed in their friendship from years ago that sustained until the present. However, as one reviewer noted, these leads are in the 40's and I did feel as if they each were trying (not too convincingly) to play their parts at least 10 to 15 years younger than they really are. While I think it worked for this film, it would have been even better if they portrayed their characters as their own true age and discovered love after decades of friendship. That would have been more believeable. I love Ms. McKellar in Hallmark, however, she needs to stop playing the wide-eyed innocent girl in her 20's. Although Ms. McKellar looks fantastic, we all know she is in her 40's and viewer her age would love to see her characters played to her true age. Not to mention she is a brilliant mathematician in real life and I think that alone has great potential for a future Hallmark movie. A very, very good movie that I actually did end up watching again because of its sweetness.

I will not add much about the overall movie as many others have given plenty. I will, however, comment on the editing...not so good. One moment she is wearing a black wrap....and then she's not. One moment a friend was going to get Helen's coat and only came back with a scarf, wrapped it around her neck...on a body already wearing a black coat. Helen leaves the store in the black coat...but all of a sudden she is wearing a red coat. In the masquerade ball Henry has a mask, and then he doesn't in the next shot. This was all in the first third of the movie...and little things like that just kept happening. So while I enjoyed the movie, storyline and acting...the editing was poor and thus distracting and detracting.