The Presence of Love

After faithfully watching Hallmark movies for years, this film finally broke the mold of predictable formulaic Hallmark plots. There was no big city girl returning to her home town to help fix the cupcake bakery or the seasonal festival, help because Dad hurt his back or broke a leg, meet her old boyfriend, review why they broke up, have an almost kiss, an accidental misunderstanding, and get it all resolved by the last 5 minutes.

Here is a story of real emotion, real life issues, professional conflicts, personal struggle with anxiety, loss, sadness, and unresolved relationships. Here is a sensitive young woman, searching for answers in both a professional and a family crisis of her own, opening herself to risks and unknowns to help her resolve her sadness.

The acting on the part of Eloise Mumford, the young child, and the granny were spot on. Truly sensitive, deep interpretations of their roles. Sadly, the leading man was bit bland and one-note, but nevertheless presented a solid rock to lean on for the young woman in her personal emotional search.

The scenery was just breathtaking! It added drama and seriousness to the story. The exploration of the child's dyslexia was done with great sensitivity. The issue of professional conflict and creative blocks had a real life quality to it. Addressing personal depression, anxiety, medication, and the helplessness of such moments is a real departure for Hallmark and is so welcome in our current world.

And yes, as a previous reviewer noted, how and why did the young woman manage to pack 4 coats and a jacket in her suitcase for such short trip? But one has to forgive such filming gaffes. This was a Hallmark movie, after all. Not everything needs to make sense.

Here is a film truly worth watching, and truly a departure for Hallmark, which has become so formulaic that one can predict almost everything in most moves before it happens. Not here. This is a gem!! More of the same, please!!

Here we go again, the woman staying with a man she only met recently... however... let's start at the beginning

Joss is working hard on a paper in order to get tenure at a university. Her mother, who has passed away, left her for her birthday a trip to the farm she grew up in England. There she meets Daniel, his daughter and his mom who own and live in said farm.

I like that it tackled serious issues like anxiety, dyslexia, abandonment, a failed marriage, struggles with money and not your typical "I don't have a boyfriend for my ex's wedding so let's pretend you are it (I do love a pretend relationship but you understand my point). Hallmark movies and mysteries tend to go the extra mile and this was no exception.

The scenery was beautiful, the cast was great specially the actress playing little Tegan, she was adorable. They all had great chemistry. I also liked that they kind of left the ending hanging for you to figure out what will happen. We all knew what was going to happen though, right?

Which leads to me to the point of Joss leaving behind her life to be with a guy she barely knew. I understand why she gave up tenure and I really hope she spent the following months travelling through Europe and then chose to come back to Daniel and his family.

Yep, that's definitely what happened.

For me, it was a beautiful surprise. Because it is one of films having the courage to be more than a Hallmark.

I love the themes and the manner to explore them.

Loving books, having the experiences of teaching and the work for Phd, I discovered so familiar slices from my life, just fair reflected.

I loved the acting and the landscapes. The courage to use, in wise manner, the subjects as dislexia, ruined marriage, motherhood and dyslexia. I loved the intro, using the verses of Wentsworth and the box with the old volume by Coleridge.

The problem ? Obvious, the too conventional ( but predictable ) end.

But, honestly, it is more than Hallmark. And this just matters.

I like the cast. They do a good job.

Eloise Mumford is not your average "peppy - happy", fake, blonde lead, which is great. What I like about her is that she is "real" and she has this fragility about her - in this case - perfect for the anxious Joss.

Male lead, supporting mum and daughter are good. There is chemistry between all of them.

The storyline, although predictable, is more original than most romance films.

The scenery of course, is gorgeous.

My only, big, problem is with the sound. I struggled to understand what they were saying, most of the time. You have lead actors who are soft spoken, a lot of outdoor scenes and, instead of making sure the dialogue is audible, you add music. This had a huge impact on my enjoyment of this film.

What a wonderful change of pace! This movie had depth, understanding, a steady pace and excellent acting. Such a relief from the annoyingly formulaic movies usually presented. No old boyfriend, no high heels, no saving the old bakery, festival, tree... here we had a lovely background, intertwining stories and themes, well developed characters, and a movie that was complex yet simple. It stays with me and I'll think about this one for a long time.