Il bodyguard e la principessa

Amelia is soon to be crowned Queen and while she was having her portrait painted she became infatuated with a boy from Chicago, so she makes it her mission to go to the United States. So, she ends up in L. A and thanks to her uncle she ends up on a road trip with Grady, a bodyguard.

You know what to expect about this movie just from the title. I do think it's better than a lot of royal movies Hallmark has made. Speaking of royalty, I grew up watching "Chasing Liberty" and "First Daughter", so this was a must watch. It includes a road trip in a convertible and the typical American experience: a small town festival, camping & smores and an adorable inn with a wise couple.

I liked that we also got to know the vulnerable parts of the main lead not only regarding his feelings towards the leading lady, but also his personal issues and even an ex. They had good chemistry and as I mentioned before the "Royalness" isn't exagerated.

Anyway, it was okay.

Good storyline where the story unfolded in ways that the viewer would like. Te characters are interesting and the scenes in the movie were filmed in beautiful places.

The actors who played the character roles did a great job.

8.3 stars.

Two wonderful leading actors whose chemistry is off the charts, this is a must see royal journey to find love.

The story begins on a frustrating note. A man named Wes from Chicago, and a princess, are supposedly in love. Wes is a successful painter and his current project is painting a portrait of the princess. After he's finished, he flies back to the states. Side note: It's a stretch that he is American, he is olive skinned with an eastern look and a strange accent...

Princess Amelia wants to visit him, however he becomes somewhat distant, he is a busy artist after all. She leaves nothing to chance, she is persistent, and will visit him as soon as the opportunity arises.

Two months later, Princess Amelia and her mother are visiting her uncle in Los Angeles and soon she meets Grady the head of her uncle's security detachment. The first impression is icy cold...after all he is a tall and handsome American who symbolizes power and sex appeal. Immediately, she is overwhelmingly attracted to him, but carefully masquerades as a disapproving dignitary to conceal her feelings.

She wants to fly to Chicago to see Wes, but she knows her mother will not permit it, so she persuades her uncle to allow her to sneak off via automobile. He allows it under one condition, that she be accompanied by his trusty security guard Grady.

We can guess how the story goes...

They visit many places, Princess Amelia experiences the mid-west, and she falls in love with the culture and with Grady. Oh, but she is supposed to be longing to see her painter Wes, and her feelings become confused...will her rendezvous with Wes be a game changer, or does she have stronger feelings for Grady?

We can guess how the story ends.

This was more or less watchable although nothing special as Hallmark royal movies go. The Aussie did a better job at the fake British accent than an American but still not very believable. The chemistry was OK but again nothing special. The weirdest part is they tried to to film a US roadtrip in BC.

Snow covered mountains in Nebraska? Still hoping for 1 decent royal movie this year. So far no joy.

Hallmark have done a lot of royal-themed films and the quality of them has really varied. Some being surprisingly good, some watchable if rather average and some really bad. Have watched many Hallmark films with very mixed expectations prior to watching and 2022's 'A Royal Runaway Romance' was one of those initially when hearing that it was another royal themed film. Expectations did increase however when seeing the synopsis and seeing that there was a road trip twist.

2022 was a varied year for Hallmark, which was as has been said more than once not unexpected (as it is the same with previous years too). With some very good films, some very bad films and some that ranged between mediocre and slightly above average. 'A Royal Runaway Romance' is one of the good ones and was close to being one of the very good ones once it got going. Much has been said about the lack of location authenticity and geographical errors, but am going to talk more about what matters to me more. So quality of writing, storytelling and acting for examples. While failing on the authenticity, 'A Royal Runaway Romance' mostly succeeds in most areas.

It is not flawless. Phillippa Northeast does start off stiff and her character does come over as a bit too immature and naive at points. There is some awkwardness early on.

At times too, there is a stock look to the production values, meaning stock footage like.

Most of the time though, it looks quite nice. The scenery is absolutely gorgeous and the photography is mostly slick. The music at least fits and is pleasant enough, though never anything exceptional. Really liked the barn dance song. The script is light hearted and also has a warm heart, did appreciate that it didn't rush the relationship, overdo the antagonism, allow the playfulness to shine and didn't rush the softening.

Furthermore, the story on the whole is very engaging. It is predictable and starts awkwardly, but never takes itself too seriously while never feeling like a parody. Like the script, it is agreeably light hearted and charming while with a warm centre while the characters and relationship soften. The ending is sweet and while not surprising it doesn't feel too pat. The characters were likeable and worth connecting with on the whole, Brant Daugherty's character's development was very striking. Northeast does become much more natural and really matures into the role, so overall it is a charming performance that didn't look that experienced. Daugherty is also charming and easy going, while shining in his character's more vulnerable moments. Their chemistry is witty and touching. The supporting cast are solid.

Concluding, well done. 7/10.