Right in Front of Me

...the majority of Hallmark TV-movies, thanks in large part to the natural acting style of the leading man, Marco Grazzini. Yes, others in the cast are good, including Janelle Parrish and Hillary Jardine, but Grazzini plays it all so low-key, and with such self-effacing, easy-going charm, that he makes it believable that Nick and Carly are actually falling in love.

Anything positive for me in this movie is Janel Parrish. I loved Holly and Ivy and the character of Melody. Parrish has hints of that same character here although not quite as selfless.

The plot revolves around the triangle with Carly and her college crush and Nick. That means a lot of screen time with the crush and Carly, but that felt like a waste to me. With Nick, I was distracted by what seemed like his determination to get fired. He rebels against Chef Edward from the beginning. In short, the story didn't appeal to me.

I have been a hard time watching Hallmark this last year because of all the craziness of the pandemic. The movies with lots of families, restaurants and parties did not seem normal during this time- but I really enjoyed this movie. Both lead characters were very charismatic and they had a lot of chemistry together. The rest of the movie was the usual Hallmark fluff, but the two actors and they're on screen rolls really made it all worthwhile.

Carly decides to take some well deserved break from work, so she goes to this lodge up north where her best friend from college works. There she reunites with a group of girls from the same dorm she was in and her crush from that time. She also meets and befriends the sous chef from the lodge, Nick.

I'm disappointed to say that this wasn't for me. I was really was looking forward to the movie and I was let down. I liked both actors in their parts and the chemistry was great. I do enjoy Janel Parrish as a lead and I wouldn't mind more movies with her. But...

What even was the plot? I finished the whole movie and I still don't know. The first part was awfully boring, nothing happened the first 35 minutes, it was just Carly wandering around the place. So, plotwise? Nothing exciting, it was quite a let down.

I did liked, as I mention before, the dynamic between Carly and Nick. They hit it off at the beginning, and they set a nice path for their relationship: from strangers, to confindants, to friends. They really encourage the other to be the best version of themselves, and that was the highlight of the movie for me.

Marco and Janel did the best with that snoozefest they had.

Why does Hallmark think that 30+ women act like 16 year olds? The way they portray Carly as a silly school girl with a crush on the guy is ridiculous. I realize they have to create some kind of drama - but come on! Carly is 32-33 years old, a confident and successful business woman ... in real life, she wouldn't behave like this about a guy from her college days...