Cut, Color, Murder

Give me back Hailey Dean, Hannah Swenson, or The Chronicles. This was just a flatline movie. First it's so cutesy, then it becomes harder and harder to like either of the leads, too many people look alike, and it's just a trite and very tired attempt to bring in a new series. I did not feel any chemistry among the cast. It's not hard to predict revelations coming in the second installment, her photos at the end were a dead giveaway. We are watching more and more Brit Box and Acorn these days.

This is a new mystery series on Hallmark is which a hair cutter, Ali, at her salon seems to be the best detective the town has. She is a widow who lost her husband in the line of duty. The current Sheriff Tom takes advantage of Ali's knowledge and observation skills to help him solve local crimes...of which there are not a lot. In comes a new out of town detective and a murder at the local beauty pageant. The head of the pageant, the murder victim, has a lot of enemies. But it is a real shock to discover Ali's sister being treated as a suspect...this makes it personal!

I liked the two leads and I think they have potential for chemistry. I am a little concerned about what they will do going forward a hair salon fits in well with a beauty pageant, but beyond solving her husbands murder how will they tie in a hair salon?

I liked the cast and this mystery worked well. I will tune in for the next one to see how it goes.

At this point it doesn't come close to my three favorites Hannah Swensen's Murder she Baked, Aurora Teagarden mysteries and Mystery 101.

I do not rate this movie because I didn't watch it all. I gave up when Ali started going rogue.

I have a personal categorization of these amateur detective mysteries (called Signature Mysteries on HMM) based on how much the non-cop in the story violates procedure and even laws. As a result, I put the Gourmet Detective series in the positive category because the amateur is actually helping the police at their request and he rarely does anything his cop partner wouldn't approve. The different franchises are all over the scale with Aurora Teagarden being near the other end of the scale. This new franchise appears to be on the negative end. One of the first things Ali did regarding the murder was gather DNA evidence from a potential suspect without his knowledge. And she was interrogating people in ways which could potentially prejudice the investigation.

What little I did see wasn't positive.

Put this series on my no list.

God Bless Hallmark for attempting to create interesting crime dramas, but the recurring theme is getting a bit worn out. First, there is a proprietor of a cupcake shop solving murders, then a Crossword writer doing the same, followed by a college lecturer outwitting the bland "professional" detective to solve crimes and now, a hair stylist who is the female version of Sherlock Holmes. I suppose that all of the police professionals did not take notes at the Academy nor have any time on the job. This latest drama follows the same formula, that is, a hair cutter (whose clients only need a trim and are in the chair for under two minutes), who lives in a very hospital-clean town and works in a beauty salon that never needs hair trimmings swept from the floor. On top of her brilliance, she is rude and snarky to the new detective, so you know that romance is in the offing! Also, everyone in the perfect town appears to be in the six-figure income bracket...no homeless, no graffiti, no cigarette buts on the ground in this Hallmark World. Plus, their private homes appear to be from the pages of House Beautiful. If you like perfect environments, cleanly scrubbed citizens and storybook tales, this is the series for you.

This movie is a decent relaxing movie for an evening watch. More of a tv movie type naturally. Everything moves at slow pace. The lead characters have some banters which are enjoyable. The ultimate murderer is not too difficult to locate, though many other red herrings are thrown in between. Don't expect too much and you will be happy.

The visuals and music doesn't have much impact. Acting is decent.

A friendly neighbourhood mystery. One beauty pageant boss suddenly gets done in in the middle of a preparation for the big event. Many competitors and their aggressive moms, support staffs as well as secret admirers are suspected. And a homely sharp brained local girl one ups on the local police to find out the culprit. The new detective also comes under her attraction. All in all enjoyable soft romantic mystery.