Amour banni

I know it's hard to get the same actors after a couple years, so I can for go that one. The other things.... So much of this fantastic story was left out, not even mentioned or changed. I know they didn't mention Katie's best friend in the second movie, I thought they might make up for it in this one. Seems like they focused a lot on Katie and not on the whole story. It is frustrating to think this is what people will see when it doesn't do the books justice. I know that it is a fictional story but there are just some things you don't change. Please read the books! I am so glad I did, before watching the movies.

You could almost watch this without the first two, but I started watching this with no clue it was a trilogy and immediately realized I was missing backstory. It is partially filled in but it's a little rough catching up. I found the other two.

This is more of a romance but there is still a lot about finding yourself. I think this is where watching the whole thing helps. There are some elements that follow the typical romance from Hallmark. It has a current fiancé vs the old hometown sweetheart. That part is the usual, although the loser has maybe fewer flaws than most of the rivals I've seen in other movies.

Overall I probably didn't appreciate this as much as the other two. I can't say I "enjoyed" the first but I did appreciate it. The second was enjoyable. This wasn't bad, just not as good.

There's a point where Katherine wants to say grace and Justin is shocked. This far into their relationship is a little late for him to realize how strong her faith is. She certainly has wanted to say grace before.

There is a strong Christian vibe to this movie, and not just Amish. But there is little preaching.

7.2 stars.

All three of these movies were average for me, so I don't plan on seeing them again. This one was no different than #2 in that once again they changed the cast, but now a new actor portrays her long lost Amish boyfriend, Daniel. I really liked the actor portraying Daniel in the second film, but they switched him out for some scruffy looking guy. And along with Mr. Scruff is a questionable scrub whom he associates with. These dudes look like shady trailer trash. But as time passes, Daniel's character becomes more palatable. And then we have her adoptive Amish parents who appear to also be different actors as well. I thought they were likable enough. And we also meet a couple other characters that are fine.

So, suddenly, I prefer the new guy in her life. He's tall, handsome, and relatable. Why did the author have to diminish her old flame into a half a man? If I were the author, I would have deleted his character from the franchise. Either resurrect him as the long lost love interest and soulmate that he should've been, or remove him altogether. And when he finally sees her for the first time in so many years, the meeting is anti-climactic. This was the moment I was anticipating since finishing 'The Confession' (a few hours ago...*snicker*), but it was a disappointment. The last 10 minutes wrapped up a bit too fast. At that point I was thinking they packed too much material into the ending. All in all this is not the most impactful conclusion for the trilogy.

The main actress (Leclerc) grows on the audience even more profoundly than in the second film. I really liked her in this, and so the romance has some redeeming value that make this watchable. Notwithstanding, 'The Reckoning' is not an improvement over the first two.

I really loved the storyline, and they were all three well made, but I couldn't have been more disappointed with the roles being played by other people. It nearly made me wish I would have not seen any of it to be honest. The original actress Danielle Panabaker was absolutely stunning and fit the role perfectly as did the original actor who played Daniel. They were perfect and they drew you in to fall in love with them. The actors who took on the roles were not bad actors, but just didn't fit, especially Katie. She just didn't look the part whatsoever. If new actors have to be brought in at least make sure they look the role. Just my opinion I suppose, but it really took the heart out of it for me. Even Katies Dad was played by someone else in the end. Without the changes I likely would have given this a 9 or a 10, but not now. At least I'm forewarned on Beverly Lewis movies to check these things out before making a purchase in the future.

So basically it is all new cast except the same Katie as The Confession. I had a hard time with this one because every actor was changed so trying to figure out who is who and then trying to reimagine the character as the new actor was hard. Also, this movie was terribly predictable. I don't want to spoil it for anyone so I won't tell you why it is predictable. I wouldn't watch it again.