A Country Romance

6.5 stars.

Just barely rounds up to a 7. It's somewhat difficult to manage placing this story in the realm of possible for several reasons. The main actor is not straight, so envisioning him as it is already difficult. But that's the reality of Hollywood, once an actor comes out, there's no stuffing themselves back in. Sure, we could say it's no different than trying to believe a straight portraying a non character. So be it. It's all about getting into the romance and enjoying the experience of attraction between two leads, knowing that one of them isn't capable of being that for the other. Ok, like I said, so be it.

Now let's talk about the movie. This story is presented to us in slow motion. I am not kidding. The tempo of conversation is literally turned down to 65%. Every sentence is deliberate, so the 90 minutes of run time is telling a 60 minute story. The story itself is not original in any way. In fact, this is about as unoriginal and monotonous as they come. So what was good about it? It's very relaxing and ASMR-like. This is a good film to unwind and end your hectic day with. Just too slow moving for any entertainment, but it has value in other respects.

First off, Jonathan Bennett being cast as a heterosexual love interest in 2021 (and a "country farmer" role at that) defies logic. And it shows in his acting and his relationship with the female lead.

I actually watched this movie because it sounded troupe-y. And it did not disappoint here. It was incredibly generic...and I loved this. Hence why it is getting four stars. Otherwise it would get one.

Because the acting was incredibly wooden. This is somewhat surprising given the seasoned veterans cast in this one. But wow was it bad. It felt like no one (except the little girl) really wanted to be in this film. The chemistry is non-existent. Any attempted banter falls flat.

My theory is that everyone involved secretly was a little embarrassed in Jonathan Bennett's puzzling role, including Bennett himself. So it just all comes across as awkward.

Another tale of city girl coming back to her country town and falling for local farmer boy. Nothing original, nothing offensive, nothing relevant.

FILMING: Some views of the countryside are pleasant and inviting, probably the better part of the entire content.

SCRIPT: rather generic and bland, with little or no drama.

CHARACTERS: Cute the little girl, the others have no depth, little vitality, and no endearing qualities.

ACTING: subpar across the field. Jonathan Bennett appears ill-cast in the role of what should have been a rugged countryman. He seems uneasy and comes out unconvincing. Definitely far from his best. Alix Angelis is pretty, but her acting is wooden, almost stereotyped. Half of the time, she is seen on close-ups with goo-goo eyes and a faintly lost expression that, I suppose, was intended to show how smitten she is from the first moment on.

DIRECTING: Probably the cause of all above detracting elements. It must be, as I have seen the same actors do better in other production.

Overall, a production that lives no marks, rather insipid and forgettable.

There are just too many things that don't make sense. To be fair, I was multi-tasking while watching, so I could have missed some things.

1. The dad goes on vacation during harvest time and makes no arrangements to pick the crops. All the neighbors have to come in and save the day.

2. The dad asks her to go review the sale papers, however, when he comes back, she is still in charge - and making all the decisions.

3. She grew up on a farm and doesn't even know the basic lingo or anything about farming what so ever. So the neighbors always came around to help, but apparently, they didn't make their able bodied kid help. And they must not have every spoke about their livelihood in front of said kid.

4. The main character said she left shortly after her mom died, so she never learned anything about the farm. She also said she left when she was about Mabel's age (12). Again - she should have known the basics of farming and where did she go and who did she live with? Her dad stayed on the farm.

5. Do you really need to do a fashion show when buying clothes to pick crops?

6. She had on as much make-up as a clown right after getting out of the shower.

It's all in the details!

It was a very formulaic film, city girl reconnecting with roots blah blah blah, put her in cute country clothes which never get mucky (dirty for non northern English people). The lead actress seems sweet and extremely pretty but lacked acting ability or emotions, whether that was because her character was two dimensional or on the actor's part, I don't know. The supporting actress is a much better lead and actress when I have seen her previously, so would have made a better lead. None of the males shined but possibly also due to a dire script.

The grapes with synthetic leaves, daffodils in harvest time and very red, waxed apples, just fallen from the tree were, as usual, very silly.

The positives were a beautiful setting, lots of sunshine to enjoy on a dull winter's day and an inoffensive way of relaxing.