Sister of the Bride

I really did enjoy this one mostly because I really did not see how they were going to solve the dilemma that was threatening main couple's relationship. Stephanie and Ben both had successful careers in Academia. Stephanie is on the brink of obtaining tenure as a professor at her college, and Ben had just won a prestigious position at Oxford University to work under his idol. They were either going to put their engagement on hold and separate to pursue their equally beloved careers, or one of them was going to have to sacrifice their dream and hard work and talents in order to be together. Being a Hallmark romance, putting their relationship on hold was unthinkable. But how were they going to resolve this? Personally, I was all "go to England, girl!" But I knew it was a bad idea for her big chance for tenure. and that would have sent a bad message, really.

The other conflict was with her father, played by Michael Gross. He didn't approve of the engagement because they had only dated 6 months. His behavior was contemptible. Very sulky and controlling in a passive-aggressive sort of way. A Grade "A" jerk. Then there was her sister, who had also gotten engaged to her boyfriend of 10 years and had a wedding to plan in less than a month. Then there was the parents selling the beloved family "vacation home" . Which was a McMansion in a subdivision in Palm Springs. Weird.

So there was a lot going on, and all of the threads were handled very well, with even a teeny tiny bit of humor thrown in. Becca Tobin was excellent and the actor who played her fiance was competent. Everyone else was likable (both actors and their characters) except the Michael Gross character who very annoying, as he was supposed to be, I guess.

This one really dragged along. The Dad was horribly obnoxious. You wondered what idiotic thing he'd say next. The young Guys were really plastic. I don't think there facial muscles ever moved.

Ben (Ryan Rottman) proposes and Stephanie (Becca Tobin) accepts. They visit her parents (Michael Gross, Beth Broderick) in Palm Springs. Her sister Tracy (Chelsea Gilson) announces her wedding to Preston on the upcoming 4th of July. Her father is worried that Stephanie has only been dating Ben for six months. Her mother is worried that Tracy is getting married in four weeks. The girls are shocked that their parents are selling the house.

Nothing really happens. At least, it's nothing dangerous. I'm struggling to find the drama. There is nothing particularly funny either. I just kept thinking that this is going to end with a double wedding. I'm surprised that it wasn't suggested by either Ben or Stephanie right from the beginning. Then the other one can have cold feet and the movie can have real stakes. The stakes in this one ends up being something more pedestrian. In real life, it would be a real problem so I'm not completely dismissing it. It's not a cinematic drama. At least, it's not done in a cinematic way. The problems jumble together in a real way and again, it's not cinematic. The pacing is really slow. Oh and the carrot cutting is awkward. I feared for Becca's fingers.

That is the best thing I can say about this movie. The acting in this movies was pretty bad, the writing was even worse. It was very boring. Took me 5 evening to watch this. I have a lot of tolerance for the short comings of Hallmark movies but this one is the worst one I've seen.

7.0 stars.

Evidently a bunch of people who have critiqued this film had expectations for some reason. Maybe it's the lead actors, there's no doubt they are both very pretty people. The secondary cast are also very well adjusted actors. Michael Gross has a vast history of being in a multitude of random films and TV shows. He has proven his worth on screen. The plot is average however, the movie is enjoyable enough for me to give it a solid seven. I enjoyed the interactions between all the family members. The male lead trying to impress soon to be father-in-law is priceless. The setting is nice and the production value is sufficient. It's the charisma of all the actors that makes this a good film. Don't listen to or heed the previous reviews, go into this with no expectations and you might enjoy yourself.