Oak on the Outside

Badly-acted and poorly-edited tripe about a stick-thin college girl studying psychiatry who falls in love with a shy Keanu-Reeves lookalike while researching him for his past trauma. You see, he's a vigilante who accosts child traffickers in his spare time, while he helps run a farm which provides support for...

You know what, it's just not worth it. At least it wasn't the pretentious religeous propaganda I expected from the first few scenes, but what it is instead is a crashing bore of a movie where nothing really happens apart from our chemistry-free central couple bond over bad dialogue and intrusive 'inspirational' background music. Oh, and they like ice cream. They really, really like ice cream. You'll hear that a lot.

Unless you like endless montages of cows being milked, crops being planted and (this is the really cool part) tractors being repaired, that is. If you do, then have I got good news for you...! 2/10.

This unusual film attempts to combine a romantic drama with an anti-child trafficking subplot...and gets away with it. Adrian Roman's script and direction is only appreciated if you're ready to sit down and pay attention to details because the strength of the story is found in the little moments. Gaia Passaler carries the lead role exceptionally well. Brandon Scott Hughes shows good range. When they're on screen together they have undeniable chemistry. Scott James does a great job playing the strong, quiet type and Julie Howell's performance touches the heart in her first movie role. For people looking for a breezy Hollywood romance, this movie is not for them. The romantic narrative is great, and fun, but there's a lot more going on around it.