A Pinch of Portugal

7.2 stars.

The whole food theme is overdone, however it's not been done exactly like this one yet, so that's the only fresh thing about this film. The setting of Portugal is cool, but the whole scene is too polished, too much Hallmark, not quite enough foreign feeling to it. I didn't get the full zest of Portugal, it's too Western-Canadian-British-Aussie feeling and not enough of the grit and grime of the actual country they are attempting to capture. The man who runs the market is a sleeze, which was actually off-putting, I wanted to root for him. The lead female has been in several Hallmarks. She has charisma, the only saving grace of this movie.

Anna (Heather Hemmens) is the prep cook working in the background on a TV cooking show. While the arrogant host is away, she leads a team including hot Australian cameraman Russ (Luke Mitchell) to Portugal to prepare for an upcoming episode. She is guided by local grocer Lucas (Duarte Gomes).

Normally, Hallmark doesn't do love triangles. They usually go much more simplistic and undramatic. With Portugal as the exotic backdrop, I expected Anna to go off with the exotic man in the European locations. I can honestly say that I wasn't sure about the resolution during the first half of the movie. It does become obvious soon enough. It's not really that much of a triangle after all. Hallmark is still not actually doing dramas.

Another reviewer stole my thunder. It is true, they showed generic shots of Lisbon at the beginning and once in the middle to make you think that they were in Lisbon. As someone who knows Lisbon well, I could tell where they were most of the time-Cascais and Sintra. I was looking forward to something in Lisbon but I was happy to see some other familiar places. The story was typical Hallmark stuff and I thought Lucas' character changed really abruptly. Maybe that was the point. He was always like that and we just discovered it around the midpoint of the movie. I enjoyed it more than anything because it was filmed in Portugal (if not in Lisbon per se) and the nostalgia factor made me give it an 8/10.

For the first time, to my knowledge, Hallmark takes the viewers to Portugal, purportedly Lisboa, for one of their romantic adventures. Anna, an aspiring chef has the opportunity to replace a celebrity in a cooking show, with a friendly crew, including a charming cameraman from Down Under, Russ. What follows is a fairly generic series of events at a local groceries market, in Cascais, and food stores, among tastings of local offerings, and common meals, that highlight Anna's warm people's skills and enthusiasm for good cuisine. Through these activities and minor dramas, she avails of Russ's constant, kind support. There are a few cute or original moments and a little sightseeing, while the story evolves to its predictable ending. Most is done with reasonable subtlety and in credible tones . Arguably, the personalities of Chef Dean and Lucas could have been played with more finesse. Yet, the overall result is less disjointed or offensive than many other recent Hallmark productions.

My personal peeve is that the production has lost the unique chance to provide a meaningful glimpse of the location's rich heritage and remarcable attractions. Most of the sequences could have, or have, been filmed in Mexico, Latin America, California, or else and no one would know the difference. There is absolutely nothing of Lisboa, one of the most attractive cities in Europe, very limited views of beautiful Cascais and a couple of shots of Sintra's Pena Palace. Neither it is explained how Anna And Ross could visit places so far away in their only free day. And the music? Shouldn't the soundtrack have included a little "fado", the very soul of Portugal, instead of the rather generic stuff that was selected?

Despite my personal regrets, the movie is fairly entertaining and family friendly, hence worth a look.

The usual Hallmark stuff. Boring characters in an uninspired story. At least this one has nice scenery.

Middle-aged woman who works as a "prep cook" on the TV cooking show whines and whimpers when she gets a chance to take the spotlight when the show's star "quits."

I've never seen a prep cook or food stylist actually get air time on a cooking show other than IRON CHEF.

Anyway, she's "pursued" by two overly-groomed young men (enough with the 2-day beards already) while she dithers. We also get to see some shots of cheeses and breads in a fake market place.

Supporting cast is uniformly bad and all attempts at humor flop. That doesn't leave much. The dead fish wins the acting honors.