As many other reviewers have pointed out, this movie's biggest plus is the beautiful scenery and nautical ambience brought by the coastline atmosphere. It definitely lives up to its title with lots of stunning shots of sailboats on the water (although near the end, these sweeping nature shots seemed to be a bit overdone - more to pad out the movie's runtime than anything else), but the movie is dragged down by poor acting and an unbelievably predictable plot.
Leading lady Leah Renee has certainly received her fair share of critique in some of these comments, and while yes, her voice is much too impassive and veering into high-pitched vapid girl territory, her bad acting stood out much more to me. There is never a point when she doesn't make it obvious that she is reading lines rather than attempting to actually be her character; her flat portrayal and wooden intonation are a constant reminder to the audience of her lack of acting skills. To make matters worse, her character isn't all too likable either; most notable is the scene in which her ex-boyfriend plants a seed about her love interest betraying her and she refuses to talk this out with said love interest. Her constant brush-offs and cold shoulders during a misunderstanding she could've easily fixed with a bit of grown-up conversation are a cliche of women in television that's getting downright tired.
The movie's chief problem, however, is that its B-story, next to the blossoming love, is that a beloved nearby island may or may not be for sale for the sake of building a hotel resort. The movie digs its heels into this plotpoint, completely oblivious to the fact that the audience doesn't share the same passion for this relatively insignificant island as its main characters do (specifically, the female lead, who seems to be hanging on to childhood memories more than anything else). What makes this storyline even more frustrating is that Hallmark has milked the "evil development company wants to change the beloved town" angle to death. It's a miracle if you can find a movie these days where a sentimental building isn't being torn down for the sake of condos/hotels/golf courses, and the town has to rally around the preservation of said building. It's getting unthinkingly old.
The film's only saving grace is its scenery and the rest of its cast, who do an adequate job carrying the movie around the dead weight that is Leah Renee.
Leading lady Leah Renee has certainly received her fair share of critique in some of these comments, and while yes, her voice is much too impassive and veering into high-pitched vapid girl territory, her bad acting stood out much more to me. There is never a point when she doesn't make it obvious that she is reading lines rather than attempting to actually be her character; her flat portrayal and wooden intonation are a constant reminder to the audience of her lack of acting skills. To make matters worse, her character isn't all too likable either; most notable is the scene in which her ex-boyfriend plants a seed about her love interest betraying her and she refuses to talk this out with said love interest. Her constant brush-offs and cold shoulders during a misunderstanding she could've easily fixed with a bit of grown-up conversation are a cliche of women in television that's getting downright tired.
The movie's chief problem, however, is that its B-story, next to the blossoming love, is that a beloved nearby island may or may not be for sale for the sake of building a hotel resort. The movie digs its heels into this plotpoint, completely oblivious to the fact that the audience doesn't share the same passion for this relatively insignificant island as its main characters do (specifically, the female lead, who seems to be hanging on to childhood memories more than anything else). What makes this storyline even more frustrating is that Hallmark has milked the "evil development company wants to change the beloved town" angle to death. It's a miracle if you can find a movie these days where a sentimental building isn't being torn down for the sake of condos/hotels/golf courses, and the town has to rally around the preservation of said building. It's getting unthinkingly old.
The film's only saving grace is its scenery and the rest of its cast, who do an adequate job carrying the movie around the dead weight that is Leah Renee.