In Merry Measure

'In Merry Measure' (2022)

Opening thoughts: Hallmark have been responsible for many good Christmas films, including from 2022. They have also been responsible for some real misfires, again also from 2022. The premise is one of those could go either way ones, potentially light hearted and cosy but also potentially a film with difficult to like characters judging from the early parts of the plot synopsis. Brendan Penny's, the most familiar name to me, films and performances for me have always been hit and miss, and it has been very dependent on how his characters are written and used (variable on both counts).

'In Merry Measure' is one of those films that people will consider light hearted and warm glow in the heart-inducing. At the same time, it is not for those that like characters to be likeable and easy to connect with regardless of their flaws, or if they are wanting anything fresh. To me, 'In Merry Measure' fitted in both extremes and was one of those mixed feelings, slightly above average films. Hallmark definitely did much worse in 2022, including in the Christmas output. They also did a lot better, with the year containing some of their best ever work in particularly the Hallmark Movies and Mysteries block.

Good things: There is a good deal to like in 'In Merry Measure'. The best thing about it is Penny, reading about the film part of me was expecting to be annoyed and/or bored by his character, but he succeeds in making an initially flawed character grow realistically and gives a charming and subtly charismatic performance that deserved a more consistent film. Also liked very much the performances of a funny and sassy Jennifer Robertson and beyond her years Cassidy Reichmann.

Despite the story being uneven, there are good scenes with a strong highlight being the amusing and charming scene between the two sisters. It is nicely made, love the scenery, and directed with competence. Also did like the music, which is catchy and beautiful with a real Christmas feel. It is also surprisingly well performed with no affectations, overuse of unnecessary interpolations and auto-tune, all of which tend to be distracting for me. Mostly, the story is very cosy and can warm the heart. And there is a lovely positive message delivered with sincerity and no preachiness.

Bad things: Viewers here are divided by the performance of Patti Murin, count me in as one of those who didn't care for her. Murin over-compensates badly throughout the film and comes over as annoying, found it very difficult to connect with her insensitive and judgemental character. There is very little chemistry between her and Penny, which is both bland and forced.

On the most part, the script is too talky. The film starts off really rough, with very awkward and cheesy dialogue and both lead characters are extremely unlikeable because of the overwritten character flaws. At least Penny's character grows though, Murin's though does not. Not to mention the too pat and unearned ending.

Closing thoughts: Concluding, above average if very uneven.

6/10.

To put it simply, Hallmark couldn't get any more boring than this. Talky scenes go on forever without saying much. By the end, you may ask, "So what?" The cast gives it the old college try, but there is just not a script here that is worthy of their attempt. There is not enough chemistry between the leads to elevate the material enough to make this believable or, for that matter, even interesting.

In addition, the direction and sets are very common and you are left with the feeling that you have seen this all before in many other Hallmark Christmas movies.

I consider this one of Hallmark's "filler" movies - quickly and cheaply made in order to fill in the new Christmas movie schedule.

This movie was not made for people like me, but I enjoyed it anyway. There is a LOT of singing, especially Christmas themed singing (and singing practice and singing prep). I love the holidays, but a little Christmas caroling goes a long way for me. But that says more about me than the movie. In fact, there's a line about "Sandy and Danny" that the teenager didn't get but the adults did. Except me. I had to Google those names. But again, that just says more about what I like as opposed to the quality of the movie, which was quite good.

Darcy is delightfully played by Broadway star Patti Murin who, though quite talented, doesn't sing my kind of music (I'm a Springsteen fan and just spent a small fortune on Taylor Swift tickets for my daughter and me). But there's some really good messaging in connection with Darcy encouraging a group of high schoolers to become better singers and, more importantly, to become more confident.

Brendan Penny plays against type as Adam, a music teacher with nerdy glasses and, at least initially, an unattractive personality and immature envy that he didn't even try to hide. Most fans of Hallmark movies and romance novels like the "enemies to lovers" trope, which is why we see it over and over again. But the best ones, for me, are when you can understand both sides. Here, there really was no justification for Adam's attitude. He inevitably acts better and, as Darcy puts it, she sees him as "dorky in a weirdly attractive way".

But if Adam needs to wear glasses, why does he show up one night without them?

Cassidy Reichman as Darcy's niece Megan was excellent as was Jennifer Robertson as Gretchen.

There were lots of fun lines by writer Russell Hainline:

Darcy: "Don't do anything I would do"

Adam: "So we both don't 'not like' each other. Does that mean we like each other?

Darcy: "Ooh! Let's not get ahead of ourselves."

Gretchen: "So, if you live in New York, shouldn't you have made, like, a teeny tiny gingerbread apartment with little gingerbread cockroaches?"

Lawyer Mom's reaction to Megan's burgeoning social life is fun, as is the $5 bet

I don't think I've ever heard anyone (who isn't a lawyer) react to a date proposal with "I would be amenable to that." But it worked.

I love the scene with the two sisters as one gets ready for her date. Very sweet.

But I wasn't thrilled with the very Hallmarky Career versus Small Town Love choice that Darcy had to make or how that was resolved.

In a nutshell, this is your standard cookie cutter made for TV Hallmark movie - with a lot of singing.

Everything about In Merry Measure is generic and unremarkable. The acting, set design, musical score, script writing and direction...it's all right in the middle of the "Hallmark movie bell curve"

Nothing objectively terrible but nothing memorable or worth rewatching for either.

The endless singing from the high schoolers and lack of notable chemistry between the lead actors make this one I wouldn't rewatch.

If you're more musically or vocally inclined, this might be more appealing to you. Watching teenagers sing for a cumulative 20 minutes of the 80 minute runtime was just too much for me (though to their credit, they sang well).

I was so ticked off at the gross unprofessionalism which obviously stemmed from professional jealousy by Adam, that I was very tempted to turn this movie off at the start. Fortunately, I try to avoid that knowing that so often in this genre, the tone of the movie and some character personalities change dramatically by the first commercial or shortly thereafter. I'm very glad I stuck with it.

For one thing, I enjoy Christmas movies that feature extended musical performances usually at the end, but sometimes also along the way. This is such a movie and the last performance is almost worth waiting for strictly by itself.

There are several common themes in the story. Fading musical star, Darcy, goes home for a break. She encounters an old beau, or in this case an old rival, Adam. She gets thrown together with him to produce an act for a contest.

Patti Murin's Darcy has a couple of nice performances and some mild chemistry with Brendan Penny's Adam. But for me the real surprise is Cassidy Reichman as Darcy's niece Megan. Reichman has no other credits listed on IMDb yet her intentional performances were excellent and she was a decent actor as well. I hope this is a rising star for Hallmark much like Joceyln Hudon and Kayla Wallace became.