User reviews

7.4 stars.

There is a whole lot of really touching and moving subject matter in 'Fallen Angel', and it has potential for greatness. Unfortunately, it misses the mark of a great film. It has a few poignant moments, but never attains greatness. Why not great? First of all the back story is somewhat jumbled, leaving us wondering what is happening and what is the main focus. Is this about him and his father's relationship, or about a customer's family, or a character study on becoming a man amidst the struggles of an absentee father, or maybe how people handle guilt? It feels like the theme of the film doesn't hit the spot until near the very end. Generally, the audience should detect the point of any story sometime in the first act, if not early in the second. In this case, we are late in the fourth act before realizing this is about a woman and her daughter being fulfilled. To me it seemed the whole time this was about the protagonist male (Sinise) but it's really not about him at all. He's more like a figure narrating from the sidelines, but is also pivotal in bringing cohesion to all the scattered components. His backstory is inconsequential to the audience's interpretation of what is important. They should have had the sweet little girl (daughter of lead female) be the narrator sometime in the future as she is retelling the story of a man who found a woman after 30 years of silence and regret.

I say 7.4 stars for the acting and drama aspects, but the entertainment value was compromised by the confusion and lack of direction.

I've seen this movie 3 times over the years, at Christmastime. It has a melancholy tone that sets it apart from the usual saccharine, hyper, nasal, peroxided, alternate universe movies served up at Christmastime on TV. It ends on a heartwarming note.

I liked the backstory, the scenery, the inclusive casting, the weight Gary Sinese gave to the piece every time he was on screen (which is pretty much the whole movie).

The weakest part is the woman who is too coy, with Princess Diana doe-eyed silliness, and a manner of speaking that makes her seem mentally challenged.

The fact that I could watch it 3 times over the years speaks well of the overall product, however. It is rare for me to watch one of these Christmas moves even once, let alone 3 times!

Terry McQuinn (Gary Sinese)'s father takes care of the Wentworth family's summer place Serenity Cottage in Rosepoint, Maine. He recalls a time 30 years ago as a kid when Charles Wentworth brought his family for an unusual Christmas visit. On a snowy road after delivering gifts to the hospital, Charles killed a woman and child in an accident. He became despondent, and his wife leaves him taking their daughter. He would work at the hospital until he's gone. Terry constantly clashed with his father and struck out on his own. He returns home from California after 20 years when his father dies. He meets Charles' brother Warren (Gordon Pinsent). He reconnects with Charles's daughter Katherine Wentworth (Joely Richardson) after 30 years who arrives with her adopted blind daughter but she doesn't remember her time in Rosepoint.

The movie takes a bit too long to get to Joely Richardson and even longer to get her together with Gary Sinese. It has a slow sad tone. This is more of a relationship movie between Terry and his dead father as well as Katherine and her father. It's also a very haunting movie. If the movie has more Joely Richardson, this would be more of a tear jerker. This is a sweet melodrama performed well by excellent actors.

If you need our heart lifting then watch this film!! All cast members excel in playing simple human roles. There's nothing complicated or gimicky about this film, it just touches your heart and gives the message that there is always hope.

Joley Richardson, Gary Sinise and Jordy Benattar play their roles perfectly. I've read comments about Sinise being wooden but surely that's the point, his character is supposed to be cold and straight out of the executive machine. I think he does well to portray a man whose heart warms to what exists outside of the career ladder.

Highly recommended for all those romantics out there...

I viewed this movie tonight 12-19-04 and thought it was very well directed. I was awestruck at the acting by Jordy Benatter. I am not familiar with this actress, but if she isin't blind in real life she is one great actress. This movie had everything, sadness, joy, highs and lows. It will keep anybody that likes great family movies glued to their seats.

I have never wrote a comment before on any movies, but this one just tugged at my heart. I will recommend this movie to all my friends and ask them after the film how they enjoyed it. I am sure I will get very favorable comments from all. Give this movie at least 9 stars out of ten.

You're going to expect some great acting when you tune in to Hallmark's Hall of Fame drama Fallen Angel, starring Gary Sinese. But with a lackluster plot that can be found in any number of tv movies (he returns to his small town after his dad dies and falls in love with the girl next door), and very unrealistic details, it's hard to really enjoy it. Everyone (whether they're from Maine or not) knows a person can't jump into frozen water, swim around with full mobility and tug a rowboat. Hypothermia and death would be more realistic. And almost everyone knows that homeless people do not hang around in freezing towns during the winter months. They migrate to warmer areas, or they just live in temperate cities year-round, like Los Angeles. So seeing impeccably clean homeless men gathering around burning trash cans out in the snow of Maine, with no puffs of breath coming from their mouths, just doesn't work.

The beginning sequence is pretty dark for Hallmark. As a child, Gary's character isn't close to his father, who works as a caretaker for wealthy homes in the area. During one Christmas, the patriarch of a rich family takes his daughter and young Gary to the hospital to give away presents to children. On the drive back, he hits and kills someone - and the little children are forever traumatized. How is this a Christmas movie?

As you can tell, I really didn't like this movie. Joely Richardson plays Gary's love interest, a wealthy woman with a heart of gold (because, don't forget, on Hallmark most rich people are mean spirited and in dire need of a Christmas lesson). She has a blind daughter, but she's not convincing as a devoted mother for a minute. She acts like a space cadet, and she's not protective over a little girl who needs extra care when in new surroundings. But to each his own. Try it if you really want to.

This is the single, most depressing, downbeat, dreary, morose Christmas movie Ive ever seen and ive seen a lot. The entire movie is gray, even the end was not upbeat. God i hated this. I had to watch it cause my wife loved it. Lol

A nice movie to watch as we ready for the holidays. Gary Sinise gave a great performance. The location was beautiful and fit in with the story well. I hope to add this one to the movies I watch every year at this time.

I just saw this last night and it moved me so I can't tell you. It was beautifully done. Gary Sinise is a hell of an actor. I just wished that they would have explained why his father did not show him any affection. That is the only thing that was off in this picture.

I saw this movie and enjoyed it very much. The way it was made was unique in how that young Terry and Katherine were in a car accident and then after when as as adults the way Terry recognized Katherine. I liked the way Terry explained to Katherine how he knew her and told her about her dad and how her and her dad met each other. It really meant very much to me.

This movie is one of my absolute favorites to watch at Christmas time. It has all of the qualities I enjoy in other favorite Christmas movies, but with a fresh and original story line! Although completely different from what you have seen before, it leaves you with the same wonderful feeling! We, my entire family, experience drama in the mystery it holds from the very beginning of the show. You may find yourself holding your breath in one moment while chuckling or tearing up as you heart melts in other moments through-out the story! This is definitely a movie the whole family can enjoy together! I love that the outcome has me feeling good at the end. Enjoy!

Wow! What a wonderful story full of depth and emotion. Great acting, good plot, strong characters. It tells a special story about family - no matter how much distance or time come between family members, the love doesn't change. Side note: I love the current Hallmark movies, but these older ones had such better stories that really make you feel something. I'm glad my cable provider now includes Hallmark Drama, otherwise I would have never known about this amazing movie. 10/10!!!

I loved this movie. It had a very interesting story that left you wanting to know what will happen next. Love the innocence of it all. They rarely make movies like that anymore so when I saw it I said finally. No sex scenes that you're forced to look at to get to the next part of the movie..LOL....just a really nice well put together movie...had a lot of twists. I didn't understand why someone would leave their family just because of an accident that clearly wasn't their fault. However, that might have been one of the things that made the story interesting. I missed the end but the hallmark channel is airing it again next week so I'll catch it then:)

i saw this movie the other night and i found it to be pretty decent. however, there were some parts that i didn't agree with. for one, i would never believe that a father will abandon his daughter that he loved so much. another is that Gary Sinise's character would not speak to his father after he left. if i was him, i would come back and prove to him that i became a successful businessman.

On the theme of "you can't go home again", Fallen Angel takes both sides of the question. Gary Sinese plays a son with a troubled relationship with a hard-working father who disappeared into his work after the death of his wife.

The son left town for college and a successful career in business law, then gets the call he didn't expect because he just didn't think about his. His after is in the hospital and not expected to make it.

The other side of the story is a man who married into a wealthy family and was involved in a snowy car accident, not his fault, but a mother and daughter were killed. He disappeared.

As Gary Sinese works to handle his father's affairs, the daughter of that man decides to return to the house his father worked as caretaker, and he decides to reopen the house as a last fanfare to his father.

The result is a charming, heartwarming, and at time bittersweet movie you'll never forget, and want to watch again and again.