Romance sous les étoiles

First, I do realize that this a Hallmark movie of the week but I really wish Hollywood would either find a new formula or find some actors who don't have that Ken and Barbie look. I'd rather watch great acting from ugly people than bad acting from good looking people. Otherwise, all Hallmark needs to do is stop spending their money, make one move and run it over and over again. They are all the same anyway.

The kid is mildly cute but the two main adult actors, are formulaic, predictable, tiresome and over done.

I'd rather watch 24 hours of a good working formula (Murder, She Wrote, MASH, etc) than this goulash of nothingness.

Becca (Ashley Newbrough) is a flustered aimless college grad student. Her mentor English professor Walt (Barry Bostwick) wants her to get serious about her thesis and directs her to his school teacher niece. She befriends student Emily (Jaeda Lily Miller) who is still dealing with her mother's death. Nate (Wes Brown) is surprised that her daughter's new friend is a full grown woman.

This is a Hallmark movie. Newbrough deserves more and better roles. The little girl is plenty cute. The dude is boring. Bostwick has a minor role for the pay. It's pretty pedestrian as far as these movies go. Newbrough and the little girl have some nice emotional moments. There isn't much else.

How have I never seen this movie before now? Ashley Newbrough has been on my radar for at least a year or two. Wes Brown is always solid. And Jaeda Lily Miller by now has turned out more significant roles than a lot of adults and I think this might be one of her best even if it is early in her career.

I was thoroughly enjoying the story especially the three way relationship between man, woman and child. So much chemistry. Then after what I thought was a little hiccup (see below), it kicked into overdrive. Watch for the postcard size picture and take note of all of the people in it. But then the climax not only surprised me but touched me deeply, as well it should have. So well done.

The dialogue between Becca and Emily was a lot of fun and I always enjoy quirky characters. Emily is probably a bit too mature in some ways for her age and for a movie about child psychology, I think it's ironic that she exhibits thought processes a child her age hasn't developed enough for. But we call her precocious and audiences love it.

In some ways the story rehashed plot lines that have been done before, but Becca's thesis puts a fresh spin on it. And yes there were some other predictable things. I definitely saw the conflict coming, even if I thought maybe this was a terrible excuse to create a conflict. Yet it had to be that way for the whole thing to work.

Tiny pet peeves: 1) Some of us older adults can't read the tiny text on phone screens even if we pause it. 2) I'm always a little annoyed, especially in books, when more than a few words are spoken in a foreign language without an immediate translation.

There were two primary reasons for seeing 'Love Under the Stars', and they are the two most common reasons for me in seeing anything. One was the premise, have liked most of the premises of Hallmark's 2015 output (though with exceptions such as 'Perfect Match'), but even with it being an unoriginal one this was a very easy to relate to one. The cast is a talented one, have liked Ashley Newborough and Wes Brown in other things and the same goes for Barry Bostwick.

'Love Under the Stars' was every bit as good as the premise sounded. As far as Hallmark's 2015 output goes, it is one of the best and when it comes to Hallmark's Hallmark Movies and Mysteries films in general it is better than most. All the cast come off very well, and the story has a lot of charm and heart without taking itself too seriously (which is not always the case with Hallmark Movies and Msyteries films, this is in regard to the latter). It isn't perfect, but this is one of those nearly great films that fell pretty much at the final hurdle.

If there was a nit-pick, it is that it could have gotten going quicker, with the film not finding momentum straight away.

Really though, when it comes to criticisms, only the far too pat resolution (have found this to be the case a lot with Hallmark, have found myself unintentionally criticising this aspect a lot) doesn't ring true and it did spoil the film a bit. It did make the female lead character come over as too naive and undermined a little the growth that she went through throughout the course of the film (and the growth actually was pretty significant).

A lot however is great. Newborough and Brown both give likeable and agreeably well meaning performances, in roles that on the whole felt true to life. Their characters coming over as flawed people to begin with (not overdone flawed though), while going through growth at a not rushed or aimless rate. Their chemistry is understated but still natural and genuine. Bostwick is solid in his role and Jaeda Lily Miller stands out in a beyond her years performance that mixes unforced cuteness, easy going charm and sincerity, never coming over as too cute or bratty. The characters, or at least the types, are ones seen a lot, but they aren't dull and only Newborough's character's final decision frustrates.

Furthermore, 'Love Under the Stars' looks attractive, especially the scenery and the music doesn't dominate or feel drab. The script is well meaning and takes the subject seriously without being over-serious, while having some light hearted-ness that doesn't come over as too jokey. The story isn't perfect, but is very touching and was easy to relate to while not feeling mawkish or over-serious. The music isn't overused or over-scored, often sensitive.

Concluding, liked it a good deal. 8/10.

Lovely movie with a great story and wonderful characters!