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Be honest, if you were going to trip on acid would you choose Bruce Dern as your guide? For a better look at the psychedelic scene of the late 1960s check out Psych-Out with Jack Nicholson, Dean Stockwell, Susan Strasberg and, yes, Bruce Dern in another subtle role.

In the past the Hallmark Hall of Fame was known for quality television. In recent years, for whatever reason, they've been putting out barely adequate efforts. This is no exception.

In this one, Scott Glenn is badly miscast as a fisherman in 1909 Ireland who is still grieving for his dead wife after 5 years. Saffron Burrows is a silkie: a woman on land, a seal in the water. John Lynch plays the requisite villain, who holds her pelt (don't ask), thus keeping her on land, and helping him catch the most fish. It's pretty much by the numbers and nothing will surprise you.

You know a made-for-television movie is in trouble when the highlights are the commercial breaks. Sadly, with recent Hallmark productions, this has definitely been the case. If they took as much time and care with their movies as they do with their commercials, people would still be talking about Hallmark movies the way they used to do.

It's a shame because this movie could have been a contender with a little more care and respect for the intelligence of the audience. One thing a producer can always control is what music he uses in his movie. To see it done right check out any film directed by Martin Scorsese or Spike Lee. When a movie tells me it's the summer of 1965 and the soundtrack plays "California Dreaming" - released in February of 1966 - it tells me the filmakers just don't care, so why should I? My wife said it should have been called "Before They Were Stars" as it features early appearances by many actors who have gone on to bigger and better things - Noah Wylie, Rick Schroder, Kelli Williams, etc.