Very Pleasant

This was a very nice romance. I liked the dynamic between Molly (the caterer hired for the biggest event held in the small town) and Carson ( the leading citizen’s nephew put in charge of this charity gala). Molly is just starting her business which has been her dream since childhood. The name of her catering business is called “Molly’s Menu Magic” which I mention because that is a very silly name. It sounds like it was named by a 4-year-old and doesn’t exactly convey sophistication and expertise.  What was she thinking? Carson is an internationally famous and successful event photographer who is home for Christmas and is helping his Aunt, who hopes that he will take charge of the family foundation when she retires. Carson is smitten by Molly right away, but she rightly is not interested in getting involved with a guy who travels the world 11 months of the year. She wants to concentrate on building her business.

Influenced by Carson’s recommendation, Aunt Jean hires Molly even though she is not as experienced as the most prominent caterer in town. The rest of the movie is Carson trying to get close to Molly and worm his way into her affections. Molly likes him and nicely doesn’t avoid him (she can’t-he is basically her temporary boss) but she is cautious and professional at all times. Daniel’s pursuit of Molly might have come across as a little inappropriate and stalker-ish given the power dynamic, but thanks to Merritt Patterson and Daniel Lissing’s portrayals, it does not. He comes across as very nice, a little vulnerable, and trying to be helpful, and Merritt is very together and has the situation well in hand.  It creates some welcome romantic tension.

One thing I really liked about this was that we don’t have any of the usual catering disasters that threaten the heroine’s future livelihood.  Everything goes smoothly thanks to Molly’s skills and talent. There is a crisis, but it has nothing to do with her and she solves it for them. Molly and Carson get closer against her better judgment and the plot is kept moving by Molly trying to duplicate a lost fudge recipe beloved by Aunt Jean, a cute turn by an as-yet uncredited actress as Molly’s young assistant, and Carson’s growing appreciation of the mission of his family’s foundation (thanks to Molly.) We also have a sweet secondary romance for Aunt Jean. The romantic crisis comes when Carson’s beautiful agent shows up right before the Gala to whisk him away for a fashion show in Berlin confirming Molly’s worse fears. All is resolved with Daniel trading in his glamorous career for a more fulfilling one, and Molly’s business really taking off. Also, I think Daniel and Molly just might make a go of their relationship!

**This will be my last review of any movie showing on GAC. It has been brought home to me just how pernicious this network is behind its soft words. I was not aware of how closely affiliated the ownership group is to our former president and the PACs that fund and support him and his agenda. I suspect that they may have even been connected to the dark money that funded the January 6th insurrection.**