Nothing to fix except the Cottage
In watching the previews for this one, I was irritated to see that Erin’s eyelashes looked very black and furry. Over-the-top false eyelashes are on my list of make-up “no-nos”. Ahem Natalie Hall. Plus I had already yelled at her a while back for this very issue. However, she won me over pretty quickly and I soon forgot about them. Erin was very good in this and I also appreciated that the upper half of her face helped her convey the appropriate emotions unlike some of her peers. In fact, the whole cast was great, and her chemistry with Brendan Penny could not be denied. I normally don’t talk about “chemistry” because I think it’s pretty much in the eye of the beholder, and it’s kind of cliche, IMO. But to me, those two had “it.”
Erin plays Vanessa, a former Wedding Planner who has moved on to writing wedding guides. To promote her first one she has chosen a deserving couple as the winner of a free wedding of their dreams. They want to be married at The Wedding Cottage in Stoney Bridge, Vermont, where her grandparents were married. To Vanessa’s dismay, she soon finds out that the historic and famous Wedding Cottage has been closed permanently for 5 years upon the death of the elderly owners. Advertising a closed venue in her guidebook and disappointing her hand-picked couple would be very bad publicity and a severe blow to her credibility. She goes up to Stoney Bridge to see what she can do and is further alarmed by the state of disrepair the old cottage is in. The owners’ hostile and grouchy grandson appears and tells her to get lost. He is in a bad mood because he is a famous sculptor, and, like all artists and writers in Hallmarks, is blocked and can’t do his thing. And (of course) he has a looming deadline. I loved Brendan Penny in this. He needs to keep the scruffy beard and do more cantankerous heroes. He was a good foil for cheerful and very very animated Erin. He is dead set against a wedding in the Wedding Cottage but finally relents at Erin’s desperation and her offer to restore the old building to its former glory all at her expense. She has to beg him to take this very sweet deal which seemed a little improbable. It isn’t long before Brendan starts to soften towards Vanessa and the project, and even starts to pitch in to help.
I liked the relationship-building in this one. The attraction and subsequent falling in love did not come out of nowhere. I didn’t count them, but I bet there were at least 4 or 5 kissing scenes as opposed to the usual lone smooch at the very end. Although the plot was basically wedding planner theme 101 and very predictable, the script flowed well and made sense with some nice touches (grandma’s paintings), good dialogue (You don’t have to bow!), and funny scenes. Erin and Brendan made the most of these opportunities for comedy. That was not Vanessa wrestling with the leaf blower, but Erin having a ball with it. The new bride and groom were charming and Matreya Scarrwene especially as the bride was absolutely adorable. That smile! The scenery was very pretty. Finally, the plot of Brendan regaining his sculpting mojo by rejecting his old dark urban rebel approach to his art and embracing the peace and beauty of the countryside worked well. His sculpture (in wood rather than metal) was beautiful and even sexy, reflecting his new hopeful relationship with Vanessa. A job well done.
Rebekah's Readings and Watchings 