When Love Springs

The beginning of this film is just plain awkward and hard to watch...thanks in large part to it's lead actress Rhiannon Fish, but as the film goes on if you stick with it...it settles down into a decent Hallmark Romance with some good getting to know you moments and an excellent male lead James William O'Halloran. In addition to the very awkward beginning there is also the miss cast ex-boyfriend played by Callahan Colley who doesn't seem age appropriate for our lead.

This tells the story of a jr pr executive who end up doing pr for a small bed and breakfast owner in exchange for him playing her fake boyfriend for her parent's vow renewal. The message is slow down and don't miss out on the important moments.

"There are two kind of moments in life, those you miss and those you seize."

Romantics will enjoy this film if they can get over the initial awkwardness. The lead is not only handsome but really help pull this film together.

One more take on the "fake boyfriend" scheme. Rhiannon Fish plays Rory who, with her dorky-adorable sister Cleo, joins their parents, in a renewal of their vows at the very B&B where they fell in love. This is, definitely, not one of Rhiannon's better performances. There, she unexpectedly finds her ex and his new love interest, and becomes unglued. Impulsively, she convinces the B&B owner, Noah, played by James William O'Halloran, to pose as her new boyfriend. The rest of the plot develops along predictable lines. At first, Noah appears almost like a hapless klutz. Yet, he soon proves to have appreciable human dimensions and turns out to be a real "prince". Rory's family are very warm and pleasant people with captivating qualities. The problem with the show is Rory's character. Her embarrassment and discomfort are so enormously overplayed that she appears childish, emotionally disturbed, if not semi-hysterical for a good half of the movie. Honestly, I felt uncomfortable, just watching it all. Happily, she tones down in the second half. From there, the movie offers some sweet moments and glimpses of family values and sensible romance, as one would have expected. While this may reassure that a usually endearing actress has not totally lost it, it is not enough to completely salvage the production.

7.9 stars.

Like others have mentioned, this starts off a bit funny. Rory goes to a B&B with her family for her parents anniversary. It's the same place her parents fell in love and first kissed many years ago. Rory is recently single. Her recent ex-boyfriend shows up with his new girlfriend (coincidence?). Rory pretends to be dating the B&B owner Noah in order to avoid embarrassment because she is still sensitive to the breakup, and his new girlfriend is super pretty. The rest of the story is the same as every other Hallmark of its kind. The pretenders start to become more than friends, the ex wants her back, yada yada yada.

There is nothing original in 'When Love Springs', and Rory is a bit too silly at times, kinda shrill, maybe too quirky...

HOWEVER....the positive aspects of this film far outweigh the negatives for me. The ambience is very inviting somehow, Noah's character is very likable, the relationship that matures between them is endearing, and there are several charismatic moments one cannot ignore.

Rhiannon Fish's Rory is a contradiction but I think that is the point. On the one hand she can be a confident mover and shaker, but on the other hand she panics easily. And yes, the scene where she falls apart in front of her ex is definitely cringeworthy. It was way overplayed. Was it supposed to be funny? I might have been tempted to laugh if I hadn't been shuddering over the stupidity of it. I suspect some viewers were laughing at how bad it was. All of that to set up the fake boyfriend act. Fish continues for just a bit longer to spew out a combination of blabber and good advice while she sounds like a voice recording played at double speed. Good luck to Noah trying to figure out which is which. Actually Noah is quick to figure Rory out. He is also a bit of a contradiction where he sees through Rory's facade yet also has insecurities over his position as innkeeper.

If the fake boyfriend isn't enough of a cloud hanging over Rory's peace of mind, we quickly get a hint of another pitfall looming for her down the road.

It was seeing Rhiannon Fish's name in the credits that attracted me to this movie, so I have seen a few of her efforts on Hallmark. This may be the worst of those in terms of acting, or rather it is for almost half the movie. This part of the movie seems completely unnatural for her. Rory's hyperactivity softens a little toward the middle, especially her rate of speaking. The story settles down also as we watch the couple bond. While Act 1 was a silly disaster, Act 2 and beyond is more like a typical Hallmark movie. Both story and acting.

The common stories about one lead being jilted by a selfish ex often have her acting in desperation in the middle of starting something new with someone worthwhile, as is the case here.

Up to a point near the middle I was thinking to myself how unfortunate was Fish's appearance. With her hair up and the professional attire, even outdoors, Rory was almost austere. I knew Fish had a softer, more appealing side to her. Either by accident, or more likely by intention, the director changes all that suddenly. The transformation of Rory, both visually and emotionally, has taken place.

The evil boss pops up and echoes back to cringeworthy Act 1. Once again, overdone. Her scene in itself is important to the story, the problem is the overacting.

Well all stories have a conflict or obstacle. Three things come together to bring that about, one coming out of one of the others. Rory's insecurity temporarily blinds her to the obvious and it makes sense for the Rory we have come to know.

Once you get past Act 1, this movie fits right into the genre and is well done. If Act 1 had been toned down, this could be a very watchable movie. Even with that, the viewers can grit their teeth and persevere. Deduct 1 to 2 stars for the beginning.

Renee Herbert stole every scene she was in. She was a breath of fresh air in an otherwise sometimes awkward story.

The story line is your typical fake relationship that grows into a real one, with the ever present miscommunication and misunderstanding right before they realize they belong together.

It's not the acting I have an issue with, it's the stale plot lines that keep getting regurgitated on The Hallmark Channel and other channels that are simply cookie cutters of the same thing. It would be nice if someone could come up with something new. Perhaps look at the Pride community more and leave the boring same ole in the past.