The Bridge

It is a MOVIE!! This is like any movie that has a sequel!! Ignore ALL the other reviews on this!! It's a great, heart warming movie that pulls you in. It leads up to the second and final part to the movie series!! It is based on a book & they try to be close to said book but no movie has been spot on. I strongly suggest you want this if you are a fan of hallmark and good love stories.

The only "spoiler" here is that the movie is a spoiler. It's not a movie! It's an EPISODE.

It's pretty good when it comes to production & characters. But it's not a complete story! To blindside viewers with a "to be continued in 2016" is unforgivable. This is billed as a MOVIE - not a show. Not a series. Not a part 1 of ___. And now the resolution is a YEAR away?

You MUST tell your viewers what they're getting into. NOTHING happens & nothing is resolved in this 2-hour setup.

There's more story in the first 2 minutes than the entire rest of the 2 hours until the continuation blindside. Those 2 minutes were what kept me watching to the "end" that isn't an end.

Not cool.

Rather than upset viewers, be honest upfront & then maybe the entire thing wouldn't feel like 2 hours wasted. Might even help create anticipation rather than letdown.

log line posted on the day of airing 12/6/15: When Molly Allen finds out that The Bridge, a beloved bookstore back in her hometown of Franklin, TN, is in jeopardy along with the bookstore's owner, she returns to help, only to come face to face with her old flame.

The log line/description provided here on IMDb is completely bogus - probably matches the book, but not the movie. Even if Part 2 does resolve it to match the storyline somewhat, it isn't & never was the lead character's "hometown." And her name is not Molly Allen. So everything about this production is false advertising.

In other words, someone really screwed up here, ruining what may turn out to be a nice little series, but not when it's doled out like this.

I loved the movie! The characters were what I like to see in a movie , warm and helpful, (unlike the real world at times!) and caring. I loved the Bookstore/ café and thought it was a great idea. I've always loved bookstores and the idea of having both together to read and relax with two owners that are just as caring, to me, is a town I'd love to live in! The storyline and was what you expect from Hallmark, but that is why I watch them. The scenes were beautiful and I loved the idea of two people connecting so well! I was curious as to why certain parts of the film were lengthened. I can hardly wait for the next episode, I just wish it had an ending, not be continued to next year, hard to wait to see the ending of a movie I enjoyed so much!

I am writing this in the fall of 2024 while watching this on Hallmark Family. "The Bridge, part 2" is on right after so I won't have to wait a year for the second part which was the complaint of most of the original posters from 2015. I guess this was before the streaming services (Netflix, Prime, etc) got us used to waiting a year (or more) for subsequent seasons. Katie Findlay and Wyatt have great chemistry. I first saw them in another Hallmark movie "Love Strikes Twice" which I highly recommend. "The Bridge" is typical Hallmark with the usual tropes but the cast delivers. I especially enjoyed seeing Faith Ford and Ted McGinley playing the bookstore owners. Steve Bacic and Andrea Brooks, Hallmark regulars, always give a good performance.

It is billed as a Christmas movie, but you could watch it all year long. Very heart-warming tale about how you can touch people's lives in positive ways without ever realizing it. It's also about learning to love someone enough to give them the freedom to be themselves. Very heart-warming, but not sappy. It's about community and coming together to help someone in need. You come away with lessons learned. I highly recommend this Part 1 and Part 2. James Welch Henderson, Arkansas 12/20/2020