jamhendr
Joined Dec 2006
Welcome to the new profile
We're still working on updating some profile features. To see the badges, ratings breakdowns, and polls for this profile, please go to the previous version.
Reviews4
jamhendr's rating
I liked it. The strengths outweigh the weaknesses. I wouldn't mind watching it again in a couple months.
Strengths: Ivonne Coll. The leads are charming together, and I liked their duet. The Rivera family dynamic. Ivonne Coll dancing.
Weaknesses: Some holes in the plot. A lot of the dialogue. Some of the supporting cast. (Alex and Toby seem to have wandered in from separate movies.) The absence of any other Mendezes. What they have Carlos do in his rehearsal scenes. (Who would want to work with such a musician?) What they have Alexa do in her work scenes. (Who would want to keep such a job?)
Mixed bag: The fickle paparazzi plot. The agent AC and the father. Mr. Rivera (played by René Rivera) loomed large in the plot, but the actor himself was underused. His motivation changed very quickly. There's a scene where the father talks about how teenage Summer Rivera was teased because her parents had foreign accents; meanwhile, neither of the actors playing the parents have foreign accents.
Apparently, this is based on the true story of Willie Aames and Winnie Hung. Aames was a teenage star from Eight is Enough. (Before my time, but I'm told it was a thing.) I didn't know that while I watched the movie, but I do know it now. My guess is the writers took out a lot so that the story could fit in a 90-minute movie. The result is imperfect but enjoyable.
Strengths: Ivonne Coll. The leads are charming together, and I liked their duet. The Rivera family dynamic. Ivonne Coll dancing.
Weaknesses: Some holes in the plot. A lot of the dialogue. Some of the supporting cast. (Alex and Toby seem to have wandered in from separate movies.) The absence of any other Mendezes. What they have Carlos do in his rehearsal scenes. (Who would want to work with such a musician?) What they have Alexa do in her work scenes. (Who would want to keep such a job?)
Mixed bag: The fickle paparazzi plot. The agent AC and the father. Mr. Rivera (played by René Rivera) loomed large in the plot, but the actor himself was underused. His motivation changed very quickly. There's a scene where the father talks about how teenage Summer Rivera was teased because her parents had foreign accents; meanwhile, neither of the actors playing the parents have foreign accents.
Apparently, this is based on the true story of Willie Aames and Winnie Hung. Aames was a teenage star from Eight is Enough. (Before my time, but I'm told it was a thing.) I didn't know that while I watched the movie, but I do know it now. My guess is the writers took out a lot so that the story could fit in a 90-minute movie. The result is imperfect but enjoyable.
I like Brooke D'Orsay and Kristoffer Polaha, both together and separately, and so it's not surprising that I liked this.
As is usual with the recent Hallmark movies, there are several more plotlines than just the romance. The hero, Jake (Polaha), left the hometown and his family to become a big action hero. The nephew and the brother both felt genuine. I liked the PA, too; he would make a much better agent for Jake. All of those characters were connected to Jake, though, and not to the heroine, Cassie. Even though D'Orsay has top billing, her character does not seem to have many interesting connection to the other characters, except for Jake. (She has a mother, but we barely see her until near the end of the movie.) This really is more Jake's story than Cassie's.
I agree with the others about the OTT Ace Hardware placement. Pair that with the Ace commercial breaks, and it's too much. Speaking of too much, did they really need the exclamation point in the title?
As is usual with the recent Hallmark movies, there are several more plotlines than just the romance. The hero, Jake (Polaha), left the hometown and his family to become a big action hero. The nephew and the brother both felt genuine. I liked the PA, too; he would make a much better agent for Jake. All of those characters were connected to Jake, though, and not to the heroine, Cassie. Even though D'Orsay has top billing, her character does not seem to have many interesting connection to the other characters, except for Jake. (She has a mother, but we barely see her until near the end of the movie.) This really is more Jake's story than Cassie's.
I agree with the others about the OTT Ace Hardware placement. Pair that with the Ace commercial breaks, and it's too much. Speaking of too much, did they really need the exclamation point in the title?