La sorella della sposa

Ben (Ryan Rottman) proposes and Stephanie (Becca Tobin) accepts. They visit her parents (Michael Gross, Beth Broderick) in Palm Springs. Her sister Tracy (Chelsea Gilson) announces her wedding to Preston on the upcoming 4th of July. Her father is worried that Stephanie has only been dating Ben for six months. Her mother is worried that Tracy is getting married in four weeks. The girls are shocked that their parents are selling the house.

Nothing really happens. At least, it's nothing dangerous. I'm struggling to find the drama. There is nothing particularly funny either. I just kept thinking that this is going to end with a double wedding. I'm surprised that it wasn't suggested by either Ben or Stephanie right from the beginning. Then the other one can have cold feet and the movie can have real stakes. The stakes in this one ends up being something more pedestrian. In real life, it would be a real problem so I'm not completely dismissing it. It's not a cinematic drama. At least, it's not done in a cinematic way. The problems jumble together in a real way and again, it's not cinematic. The pacing is really slow. Oh and the carrot cutting is awkward. I feared for Becca's fingers.

I really did enjoy this one mostly because I really did not see how they were going to solve the dilemma that was threatening main couple's relationship. Stephanie and Ben both had successful careers in Academia. Stephanie is on the brink of obtaining tenure as a professor at her college, and Ben had just won a prestigious position at Oxford University to work under his idol. They were either going to put their engagement on hold and separate to pursue their equally beloved careers, or one of them was going to have to sacrifice their dream and hard work and talents in order to be together. Being a Hallmark romance, putting their relationship on hold was unthinkable. But how were they going to resolve this? Personally, I was all "go to England, girl!" But I knew it was a bad idea for her big chance for tenure. and that would have sent a bad message, really.

The other conflict was with her father, played by Michael Gross. He didn't approve of the engagement because they had only dated 6 months. His behavior was contemptible. Very sulky and controlling in a passive-aggressive sort of way. A Grade "A" jerk. Then there was her sister, who had also gotten engaged to her boyfriend of 10 years and had a wedding to plan in less than a month. Then there was the parents selling the beloved family "vacation home" . Which was a McMansion in a subdivision in Palm Springs. Weird.

So there was a lot going on, and all of the threads were handled very well, with even a teeny tiny bit of humor thrown in. Becca Tobin was excellent and the actor who played her fiance was competent. Everyone else was likable (both actors and their characters) except the Michael Gross character who very annoying, as he was supposed to be, I guess.

I truly don't understand all the hate for this movie. If you are a fan of Hallmark movies, then you will enjoy this. It's sweet. And a little different. Usually we get to see them meet, and fall in love within a span of a couple of weeks -this movie shows what happens after. The couple has already met. But they get a little bit of grief from the parents thinking that they're moving too fast. Kind of a nicer Meet The Focker's LOL the acting is lovely. I don't know what people are complaining about. It was an enjoyable two hours.

I liked that the story wasn't the typical, especially when they set up a few chances to do the expected but walked away from them. what kept me from giving it 7 stars was that the premise is hard to believe (who dreams of a wedding in palm springs on july 4th; the temperature's going to be over 110), the movie was obviously filmed in the non-summer, and for some reason in a few scenes the mom couldn't talk well - it was distracting. but I appreciate the efforts.

7.0 stars.

Evidently a bunch of people who have critiqued this film had expectations for some reason. Maybe it's the lead actors, there's no doubt they are both very pretty people. The secondary cast are also very well adjusted actors. Michael Gross has a vast history of being in a multitude of random films and TV shows. He has proven his worth on screen. The plot is average however, the movie is enjoyable enough for me to give it a solid seven. I enjoyed the interactions between all the family members. The male lead trying to impress soon to be father-in-law is priceless. The setting is nice and the production value is sufficient. It's the charisma of all the actors that makes this a good film. Don't listen to or heed the previous reviews, go into this with no expectations and you might enjoy yourself.