What Matters Most

Some have called this movie a "modern day Romeo and Juliet" tale. That might be a bit of a stretch, but there are some similarities. Chad Allen plays a H.S.Senior, Lucas, whose well-off father has some real anger management issues. Allen has a lifelong friend, Heather, who lives with her divorced mother and together they run a busy diner. Lucas' parents have all but arranged a marriage for him with to a family of their choosing, one of acceptable social status. Needles to say, the star- crossed lovers, Lucas and Heather, realize they are in love and want to marry. You may guess where things go from there. Friction would be putting it mildly. There is a pretty good, surprise ending which makes the rest of the movie worth the time. One problem I had with the movie is that, in the beginning, the main character, Lucas, is rather "hard to like". It becomes clear, later, that his mood and attitude are due to his home situation. Getting past that, you start to pull for the young lovers who are rowing up-stream all the way. There is a near tragedy which makes for an interesting sub-plot. For those who like romance stories with a satisfying ending, What Matters Most works. This movie has just a little cussing by the high-school boys and the only skin shown are the shirtless H.S. basketball players as they banter in the locker room.

With the presence of Chad Allen, this B movie is raised to a higher level. I saw this actor perform on stage several years back and thought then he was very good. I have seen him lately in several films involving being a gay detective. But this one, made in 2001, and directed by Jane Cusumano, is exceptional. He brings touching honesty of a young man who is dominated by his father and kept from being his own identity. Chad gives a heartwarming and convincing performance. It's a shame that his admittance of being gay interferes with his work. Yet his courage to continue to work is commendable. Such a loss that some audiences can't look beyond the tabloids and judge an actor's work on his abilities and not his private life. Let us not forget John Barrymore's private life and yet he's considered one of the great actors of our time. Go figure.

Allen is backed with Polly Cole as his young girlfriend. And she fits perfectly with him on the acting side. They both seem to bring forth the right touch of emotions in the situation and they work well together. Also Marshall R. Teaque and Gretchen German as his parents gave terrific performances. Teague's scenes with Allen were electric. Tamara Clutterbuck plays the girls mother and does a wonderful job as well. All the actors were well chosen. I can't recommend this film highly enough.

This Lifetime film involves the richest kid in a small Texas town who falls for a girl from the other side of the tracks. Much is made of the lack of identity of the girl's father, but in the end that turns out to be quite irrelevant to the proceedings.

There's no anonymity in a small town like this. Maybe if young Polly Cusumanno had grown up in a big city, her past might have disappeared, but in a place like this everyone knows everyone's business.

Including Marshall Teague, the richest guy in town. He wants son Chad Allen to marry the banker's daughter in fact he insists on Chad standing up Polly and taking Shonda Farr to the senior prom. They do have a rendezvous after the prom though.

Teague and his wife Gretchen German are an interesting pair though, a bit freaky. They are also single minded in training Chad's younger sister Kaitlyn Lewis to be a new Miss Junior Texas. Seeing her in that pageant reminded me of Jon Benet Ramsey and what her parents must have been like.

A serious crisis brings the parties together though not quite all at once.

What Matters Most is not bad for a Lifetime Channel production. Viewers from Texas seem to think it captured the culture very well and who am I to argue?

I taped this movie from Lifetime and my wife and I watched this movie together on December 19, 2005. It was good to see two good actors we were familiar with, Chad Allen and Marshall Teague giving believable performances to difficult parts. As a former counselor in one of my jobs prior to retirement, I met young people in love with parents of one or both not approving. My wife's parents did not approve of me at first. With this background we could feel the emotions of the two young people in love. The accident, the period of recovery, all the way to the conclusion kept us both glued to the TV set until the end although we felt some of it toward the end was contrived but we enjoyed the ending. We recommend the movie to anyone whose hearts go out to others in time of need.

I loved this movie so much because it makes other people see how it is to live and grow up in a small town with all the pressures and things of life. I'm so glad the Cusumanos chose Vega to film there movie there. I got to be a part of it and I think that the movie is wonderful!