L'amore ritrovato

A good Hallmark movie tugs at your emotions and makes you feel good inside. This one tugged at your emotions alright, but it churned you up inside and left you angry and hurling things at your TV.

Amanda Schull and Brennan Elliott are two of my favorites, and they do their best to make this watchable, but in the end both of their characters come across as selfish and insensitive. The mom is an absolute self-absorbed monster, and the forced use of a Merry-Go-Round is head-scratching. At the end, when it would've made sense to use the Merry-Go-Round, they don't.

One of the worst of the year. Won't watch again. Would've been better off as a horror movie.

No great highs or lows or big surprises in the plot itself. The getting-married-but-not-divorced premise is not unusual, but it isn't used every week either. The reason for the original split is similar to a lot of teen break-up stories, but slightly different.

Amanda Schull and Brennan Elliot have a quiet chemistry which is appropriate for two leads who are in their 40's. Their time on screen together is good to watch. Zak Santiago does a nice job also. Santiago has a role which doesn't involve the extremes or silliness some of his characters have (or maybe just the one on Sign, Sealed, Delivered).

This story presents an impossible situation. Edward is cheated on, but Abby doesn't really cheat. Figure that out. The previous statement is not so much a technical statement as an emotional one. And the actors all do a good show showing all the feelings involved. That gives the movie slightly more depth than just saying no highs or lows.

The climax is cheesy. I often say I love sappy. There is a difference and to me this was cheesy.

I really like the actors. The scenery is beautiful. There is an unpredictable twist in the story. The story has my attention notwithstanding my predisposition to want to make fun of Hallmark Romances because of their predictable tropes.

I just never see people express themselves in real life like they do in these movies. This is life, polished. It is refreshing to see people willing to affirm past friendship and to forgive willingly. Real life seldom unfolds this way as far as I know it.

With all that said, Marry Go Round is an engaging and enjoyable Hallmark Movie so long as you enjoy fantasy movies without wizards and dragons. Great eye candy. Enjoy it. Just don't expect it to reflect on real life. But that's why we watch these movies isn't it?

Did someone cut Hallmark's lighting budget? Why is half this movie filmed in the dark? It's the oddest thing I've ever seen where half the movie takes place at night in the dark. Important scenes where you can barely read facial reactions. It's like they were given two weeks to film so they shot late in the night after cutting the lights and thought "just roll with it".

All that aside, this is still a hard pass. The mom is truly awful from start to finish. Her character is manipulative and clueless. It's actually the main reason this movie is just bad. The rest is typical Hallmark formula. You know what you're going to get so no surprises there.

Another Hallmark romance based on a ridiculous misunderstanding, a deception, or an out-and-out lie (you pick). I found the three main characters (Abby, Luke and Abby's mother) completely unlikable. Basically an interfering and/or dishonest mother; a female lead who is supposedly a successful and intelligent executive, but can't make the simplest decision or read people; and a whiney and needy male lead who is supposed to be lovable I guess, but just irritated me start to finish. Kudos to the supporting actors...a lovable and sweet sister/sister-in-law and niece combo, a kindly and calm father, and a likeable (finally) boyfriend/fiancee.

No obvious spoilers in this review...just an opinion...I did not like this movie.