Butlers in Love

Enjoyable film. I'm on the fence about the butler school plot, but appreciate Hallmark trying something a bit different and watched it twice.

The strongest part of this film is definitely Farber and Cott. They are both very likable and their dynamic is fun to watch and believable. Cott, in particular, is one of the best leading men I've seen in these. He plays cocky guy who is actually warm and grounded very well. I was rooting for both their characters and hope to see both these actors in more Hallmark films.

It's as if the writers of the final two scenes didn't watch the first 90% of the movie. They undermined it all with how they concluded the story. Without the inconsistent ending, this movie would probably be a pleasant watch -- maybe a 5 out of 10. It was pretty dull either way, though there were some nice scenes and a really fun, likeable lead actress.

I really didn't want to watch this. Only my compulsive side to complete everything had me give it a try since it was on my DVR list.

My first impression was that both Walker and Emma were too disruptive and with the personality to go with it. I wouldn't think either should have survived to the first commercial. "Perhaps concentrating on your work and not debating with other students will help you not burn down the manor."

Henry's obnoxious arrogance really made it hard to get to the second commercial. It ticked me off even more that Emma gets blamed for Henry grabbing her bottle. And that's the point where Henry's personality changes 100% in under a minute, which is a plot device I hate in this genre movie.

Emma has a positive and energetic personality and yet the first 40% or so of the movie is depressing. There are brief interactions between the leads, but to that point they don't have much connection.

I have wondered if this movie is meant to be a tribute to butling or a parody. The latter idea was reinforced when Emma thought she could change Henry's attitude with that lame movie. Emma's dedication is even more mystifying after Henry's speech about the time requirement of the profession. Why would a vivacious young lady like Emma sacrifice her entire life like that? 1 day off in a year?

That 40% point was significant. From that point on, the positive aspects of both leads' personalities, especially Emma's, starts to come out. And Stacey Farber, as Emma, paints a really appealing character.

The story seems unusual. The ending is interesting. Some of it was predictable. Some of it was a surprise. Some of it, I'm not exactly sure what happened.

If you stick with it, it's really not that bad.

At an exclusive butler academy, a young woman who has always aspired to be a butler at first conflicts with and then befriends a young man who comes from a long line of butlers but wants to do something else with his life.

According to this film, all butlers need to know is where to put the fish fork and the salad fork, know which wine goes best with Beef Wellington, and be able to carry four dishes at once (Are butlers not allowed to use TRAYS?). There aren't that many butlers in the world and I certainly don't know any but I have this odd feeling that this is not a completely accurate reflection of reality.

If you're going to enjoy this film, focus on the interactions between the two leads (played by Farber and Cott). After a rough start, they become friends. Their interactions actually seem somewhat realistic and when they begin to be romantically interested in each other, it kind of flows naturally. Oddly, the focus of the film is not really their relationship but the idea of pursuing your dream and being flexible about that dream. And it's appealing to see how Farber really tries to help and support the character played by Cott (and vice versa). So it's a nice, pleasant, nonstressful film and such films do have their place.

Maybe not the best storyline, but the acting was good. The three main characters were fun. Maxwell Caulfield was good as the stern but kind teacher. The overall movie was cute. The scenery was good. Would watch again.