All Anything or Love

Caught this on Prime on Christmas day 2021. Not sure if it was a Hallmark or Lifetime production. It's definitely one of the more heartwarming romantic comedies I've seen in a while. Silly me, caught myself smiling widely with glee at certain points while watching this. The two leads have great chemistry and were nice to look at which is always a plus. Check it out if you like romance movies.

I wasn't expecting much from this flick as I didn't know much about Sara Rue and I have never seen the lead actor in anything else before. Considering the fact that he was obviously much older than she, I didn't think there would be much chemistry there. Boy, was I wrong. Everything about this movie, from casting to especially the writing (witty, charming, funny) is a win. Rue is absolutely adorable, and she has great comedic timing. I recommend this to all rom-com fans.

First of all, in the book cover photo shoot his uniform DID HAVE 4 STRIPES!!!! Next it says he could not obtain the rank of Captain in 15 years. He retired after 15 years as a SEAL. It does not count hisd years of service before becoming a SEAL. YOU DO NOT BECOME A SEAL AS A PRIVATE.

Hallmark movies, for me, are usually 4-to-5-star affairs, formulaic and moderately cute, with interchangeable actors. But Sara Rue completely elevated this movie, in my opinion. She took a character that most other Hallmark actresses would have turned into your stock "America's sweetheart" heroine and made her quirky and engaging. She gave off a "Reese Witherspoon" vibe. Rue totally elevated the script she was given; I actually watched the film thru to the end.

Also a shout-out to Teryl Rothery, who plays Jo's editor. I thought she, too, did a great job with the material she was given.

Now, to be clear, the story itself was still (IMHO) formulaic. I think the plot points unfolded in a very predictable manner.

So for me, the plot is, like, 4-to-4.5 stars, but the actors elevate everything enough to raise my IMDB rating to a solid 6.

Oh, and I felt the first part of the movie--where Jo starts attending the seal boot camp--was a shout-out to the wonderful movie Private Benjamin. Or rather, Private Benjamin as it would be played by Legally Blonde's "Elle Woods" character.

I thoroughly enjoyed this movie tonight. Yes there might have been a question at the end about a passport. but this did not interfere with the building of this story and development of each character. I liked the restraint of affection as most love stories today end up with a date or two then become very intimate. If you are looking for a nice movie to curl up and watch and enjoy love stories I am sure this would be a pleasure for many.

The light touch of comedy was also good and very tasteful. Most movies I fall asleep after I have figured out the ending but this kept me watching and hoping the end would be what I hoped it would be.

This was a very good movie and kept you guessing to the very last moment.