Signed Sealed Delivered

I am excited to have found a little unknown gem like this one, but am extremely bummed out by the fact that nearly no one has experienced this. This, in my opinion is how more films should be, great plot with interwoven stories, great and likeable cast, and just an overall well written and fun film. After seeing this film I remember why I watch all of the mediocre and bad ones, it's to experience something like this. I'm overall just really satisfied with all aspects of this movie. 8/10, if we could go into decimals I might even go so far as to give it an 8.5/10, but I think 8 is a pretty fair score nonetheless. I'd recommend you watch this film if you like stress-free movies, the Mystery genre, or Romcoms.

A dedicated team of lost-mail detectives enters an unpredictable world where letters and packages from the past save lives, solve crimes, reunite old loves, and change futures by arriving late, but always miraculously on time. The team is led by the charming and idiosyncratic Oliver (Eric Mabius), who still considers the stamped and mailed letter to be the gold standard of human communication. Together with his team of lost letter experts, free-spirited Rita (Crystal Lowe), oddly-intuitive Norman (Geoff Gustafson) and newcomer no-nonsense Shane (Kristin Booth) they embark on a risky and unorthodox way, beginning with a chance to clear the name of a wrongfully accused man and reconnect him with the love of his life.

I love Hallmark movies, but even I know that they are a bit too cheesy for most people. Every once in a while however, they produce a little gem. This movie is just that. It's sweet and quirky and has a happy ending, but there's also a decent script, a lovely love story and good acting.

This is a lovely well thought-out movie, that is well directed and superbly acted by a talented cast, headed by one of my favourite actors, Eric Mabius. who I originally saw in The Crow: Salvation.

I really loved the idea of the "Lost Letter Department" whose sole job is to get the undelivered mail to where it's intended destination. If they cannot read the address on the envelope then they are allowed to open the letter, but they are only allowed to read as far as they need so they can deduce a delivery address, as it's a federal offense to tamper with mail.

In this case, though, they keep running into problems in determining the destination so they have to keep reading. As they do the viewer is shown the story of the letter's writer and becomes embroiled in their tale.

The reason this works is the juxtaposition of the two ongoing stories, as well as the different characters within each. It gives quite a lot of detail to keep you interested and entertained.

Eric Mabius plays Oliver O'Toole who is a stuffed shirt, but with a heart of gold. He likes his rules and regulations though if there's a logical explanation to circumnavigate the rules to get the desired outcome, then he will. He is a solid and strong character, a good lead.

Kristin Booth portrays Shane McInerney, "Miss McInerney" as Oliver likes to call her and the chemistry between them is nice. She comes to the Lost Letter Department by accident and can only get redeployed to her desired department after a couple of months. Even though she isn't good at hiding her disappointment, it's Shane who is pivotal in pushing the investigation to its conclusion. It's her curiosity and enthusiasm that help make her a well thought-out character.

Then you have the two "Side-Kicks" Rita Haywith and Norman Dorman, played nicely by Crystal Lowe and Geoff Gustafson. These are the "Geeks" of the Lost Letter Department, but add a depth to the team, which makes the show stronger.

Even though there are some adult issues represented in the story these are handled with maturity and in a light manner. This is not a doom and gloom show, and for that reason I loved it.

What works really well is the great direction, it cannot be easy to intertwine two stories and keep it well paced and smooth. The director makes this look effortless, all adding to the enjoyability of the movie.

I would recommend this to everybody, especially the lovers of heart- warming tales.

Shane (Kristen Booth) is getting her dream job, she thinks. This young lady has been sent to revamp the Postal System's dead letter office in a Western town. But, when she arrives, she learns that it is NOT the job she was promised. Andrea (Daphne Zuniga) the overbearing boss tells S too bad, a transfer takes six weeks. Yet, once Shane actually meets the crew that deals with misplaced letters, Oliver (Eric Mabius) and his two assistants, she learns these folks may have something going in their old-fashioned ways. Most importantly, the group stumbles on a love letter that should have been delivered a year ago. What's more, the woman who wrote it may have a fatal illness and not be able to meet the gentleman she wrote to, making plans for An Affair to Remember type re-union. As Shane and Oliver start to track this woman, they uncover more and more secrets. Since when is the DLO a detective agency? Since always! This darling film was offered from Hallmark and made into a series. Who else in the world is making such great romantic comedies? NO ONE! As the two principals, Mabius and Booth are just terrific but so are the entire rest of the cast. Likewise, the costumes, script, settings, and direction are blue ribbon winners. So, you feel abandoned by Hollywood, right romcom fans? This viewer does which is why she says HOORAY FOR HALLMARK. May this company NEVER disappear from the earth, not with terrific films like this coming time and again.

This movie script is sort of a rip-off of "Dear God," a 1996 movie starring Greg Kinnear. (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0116059/?ref_=nm_flmg_act_44) I happen to love that movie, so I'm not upset that someone chose to update the story and add a new twist.

I also like Eric Mabius, but found his performance in Signed, Sealed, and Delivered a bit wooden and forced. He overacted the role of being a sort of OCD-ish boss. The cast didn't seem to gel as quickly, as the cast in Dear God did. I hope Hallmark gives this cast an opportunity to find its "ensemble" quality.

I look forward to Hallmark making this into a series, because I think it would be very entertaining. I love non-violent programming and this dead letter story line offers a lot of opportunity to produce some creative stories for the whole family.

I hope Hallmark expands Kristen Booth's Shane character to add that subtle humor as Tim Conway did in Dear God.