The Blessing Bracelet

Count your blessings plus a dose of forgiveness are the ideas behind this movie. A divorced woman who seems to be hopelessly in debt thanks to her ex stumbles on the idea of making these bracelets to remind people to count their blessings. These main ideas plus some chemistry between Amanda Schull and Carlo Marks are enough to make this a pleasant watch.

The story is simplistic and predictable. There are no great highs or lows or surprises and very little tension beyond Dawn's financial crisis which the viewer knows is somehow going to be rescued by the bracelet business.

I often say that these movies struggle with any resemblance to reality but this one really stretches things. The business model portrayed in the movie is a confusing mess but somehow produces revenue enough to pay off months of back house payments and more. I was surprised when I did an internet search and saw one article claim the inspiration for these was an actual product on Amazon. Looking there I saw the subject bracelets were selling for nearly $30 each. Still.

There is an unintentional secret in the story which leads to a conflict. I thought that was overplayed, but they needed something and I guess the backstory does sort of explain the anger.

For those who don't like religious sermonizing, that part of this story is benign. While Dawn talks to God several times and emphasizes counting her blessings, the movie is far from preachy. And she could have been part of almost any mainstream religion.

I was drawn to this movie because of the casting directors. Jackie Lind and Penny Perry are two of the top casting executives in the world. It has been a while since I have seen them team up because every time they did I loved the movie. I know it may be stupid to an average viewer, but these two are like Batman and Robin. They just never go wrong. Their movies are classic Hallmark.

I was absolutely shocked that Hallmark would return to a faith based movie. Hallmark has returned to a wholesome show. To be honest, I have turned off many a recent Hallmark movie within the first 15 minutes. The chemistry between the two leads is excellent, and the supporting cast fills in many of the lulls between the lead interactions. To hear Hallmark mentioned the word God unabashedly is absolutely fundamental for those of us who remember and wish Hallmark would return to the good all days.

I don't review movies to tell you what to expect and give a synopsis of the show. I did enjoy the show and would recommend it.

This is the story of Dawn a divorced single mom who is on the verge of having her home foreclosed upon by the bank. Her ex-husband has skipped out after putting his wife and son in a pretty big financial hole. Dawn, who already has a job at the local vet gets a second job waitressing at a local restaurant. Through faith or luck she meets Ben and starts selling these blessing bracelets that she used to make in high school. The bracelets take off, just like her relationship with Ben and his dog Lollie.

The two leads in this faith based romance had wonderful on screen chemistry and great actors, Carlo Marks and Amanda Schull. I appreciated that both Ben and Dawn still had both their parents and they were supportive...as was their local church community.

Normally I would complain about yet another divorce storyline on Hallmark, but I think this one was handled well and didn't bother me with this overall sad theme. In fact quite the reverse the overall message was one of hope. The Easter festivities were a highlight and it was fun to see all of the pastel colors, eggs and flowers.

I highly recommend this to fans of romance and faith based tv.

Let's forget about the faith based aspects of this film for a moment and just say that overall it was an above average Hallmark film.

The script was pretty sharp and acting was solid. It was obviously predictable but you still were rooting for various characters, even with the outcome already known.

One of the ways that I rate these movies is how frequently I have to suspend disbelief, and how ludicrous those moments are. This film only had 2 or 3 aspects which made me roll my eyes...which is pretty low compared to the average Hallmark film.

Ok...now to the faith part and overall message. I know this angle will be divisive but I thought it was well done, with things even non-Christians could take from it. It is unusually direct in its Christian references, which I liked but understand how others might not be.

8.0 stars.

As it got underway I could see this was going to be a special film. It's nice to have a story that is not totally outrageous with the miracles and the fluffy Christianity from a ridiculous perspective. A lot of Hallmark movies overstate these "miracles", making them out to be modern fairy tales. Yes, I believe in miracles, but how can we rightly believe that God will answer every little question or request by sending a fantastical set of signs and wonders? I would be in the majority who find those sorts of movies to be unconvincing.

'The Blessing Bracelet' is an understated version of an inspirational film, a tale of a woman who resorts to prayer to reconstruct a devastated life. Her husband disappeared 3 years ago leaving her and their son alone with massive debts. She is about to lose the house and she's in a very grim state trying to pick up the pieces of her life and learn to gain trust in men and life in general. God answers her prayers in a subtle yet undeniable way, and she builds her life once again until she is now in a better place than she was before. It's quite an endearing story of redemption, community and charity.