This seemed to me like one of the least predictable Hallmark movies, but not really in a good way.
Generally speaking, there is some chemistry between the lead characters, even if it happens in a too-accelerated timeline. In this one, they seem to hate each other until the moment they decide that actually, they like each other! Usually, there is a conflict late in the movie, and we are shown the resolution. Here, there is a conflict... And then, hooray they're rich and living happily ever after!
Let's start from the top. The lead female character (Jennifer Stone) is meant to be a spoiled, rich city girl who finds herself in the country. For the first half of the movie, she is such an absurd caricature of this archetype as such that she is written as being completely clueless about basic facts of life that everyone else would have no trouble understanding. Case in point, when she is told they start early for work on the farm, she replies that is no problem as she is used to morning yoga, "which starts at 9am." Then, when she hears the rooster crowing early, not only does she not know what a rooster is (???), she runs out into the hallway terrified of the sound. It should be stated that she is in the upper level bedroom when she gets scared of the rooster.
Fortunately, her story arc does redeem in the second half of the movie, where she morphs into a woman with creative business ideas, a thick skin, and a generous heart who is quickly willing to turn away from the city life that she has always lived to stay on the pumpkin farm. OK, we can work with that.
However, then we get to the lead male character - Brett Jarrett. I think it would be fair to say he is a jerk. He is immediately rude to her, he bashes her to the farmhands before they have ever met her, and concocts a plan to make her do unnecessary grunt work so she sells the farm for pennies on the dollar to, surprise, him! He is a real winner. We are supposed to like and emphathize with him because his wife and parents died in a tragic accident, but unfortunately that tragedy has only made him bitter and mean.
As for how they get together, here's a story in three parts:
Part 1: Jennifer accidentally runs over some flowers in a tractor. Brett berates her in front of his family and the farm hands, telling her to go back to the city where she belongs. Part 2: When she comes to find him at a restaurant in town to pitch a business idea, he very publicly humiliates her, loudly telling the waitress to cancel his order because he has lost his appetite. Part 3: They go on a horseback ride, and kiss in the barn at the end. We should all hope to go on such an epic horseback ride some day! We should also all strive to be as forgiving as Jennifer is being.
Brett's younger brother Harry is probably the most likable and relatable character in the film (other than Brett's daughter, who, though she seems older than the age they seem to want you to think she is, is perfectly sweet in the movie), as he is open to giving people a chance, and pursues some hobbies of his own. Somehow, he even manages to find love despite what seems to be a severe incident of social anxiety in the diner. When he is there with Jennifer, the waitress who he has a crush on comes over to talk, and makes several not-subtle hints that she would like him to invite her to the dance. Who among us has not gotten tongue tied with a crush in a situation like this? Harry mishandles this a little bit more than simply being tongue-tied. He essentially flat out ignores her, refusing to look at her and instead looking down the table the whole time until she walks away from the awkward silence. Must the writers use such an extreme to portray his nervousness? Fortunately, his crush is not dismayed, and they end up together after all.
One final note on supporting characters - Brett has a cousin who works at the diner, who is consistently rude to Jennifer right until the time she can get something out of it. She is consistently unfriendly until, surprise, Jennifer is offering to give facials to the women in town! Fortunately, once she gets something out of it, she is more willing to let bygones be bygones, and even says she is "starting to like her" as she talks about Brett's plan to cheat her out of the farm. A true redemption story.
Finally, we have come to the end. After a misunderstanding that causes Jennifer to leave the farm to go back to the city, Jennifer is about to sign the papers to sell the farm. But wait! Jennifer's best friend comes rushing up to tell her not to sign the papers or she is making the biggest mistake of her life. Finally, we have a romantic in the film, and even though this friend has been very shallow throughout, she has made a breakthrough and recognized her friend is in love.
Wait, what's that? Actually, her friend is telling her that the pumpkin cream product from the farm is amazing for her skin, and her company's CEO wants to purchase the product. So, she will be rich again as long as she doesn't sell the farm! Fast forward a year, and fortunately, somehow, their love has been saved, since they both stand to make a large profit out of the deal. We don't know how this happened, only that it did.
Bottom line: I've seen worse movies, but this read more like a bad business book that was adapted to fit Hallmark with a clumsy love story thrown in.
Generally speaking, there is some chemistry between the lead characters, even if it happens in a too-accelerated timeline. In this one, they seem to hate each other until the moment they decide that actually, they like each other! Usually, there is a conflict late in the movie, and we are shown the resolution. Here, there is a conflict... And then, hooray they're rich and living happily ever after!
Let's start from the top. The lead female character (Jennifer Stone) is meant to be a spoiled, rich city girl who finds herself in the country. For the first half of the movie, she is such an absurd caricature of this archetype as such that she is written as being completely clueless about basic facts of life that everyone else would have no trouble understanding. Case in point, when she is told they start early for work on the farm, she replies that is no problem as she is used to morning yoga, "which starts at 9am." Then, when she hears the rooster crowing early, not only does she not know what a rooster is (???), she runs out into the hallway terrified of the sound. It should be stated that she is in the upper level bedroom when she gets scared of the rooster.
Fortunately, her story arc does redeem in the second half of the movie, where she morphs into a woman with creative business ideas, a thick skin, and a generous heart who is quickly willing to turn away from the city life that she has always lived to stay on the pumpkin farm. OK, we can work with that.
However, then we get to the lead male character - Brett Jarrett. I think it would be fair to say he is a jerk. He is immediately rude to her, he bashes her to the farmhands before they have ever met her, and concocts a plan to make her do unnecessary grunt work so she sells the farm for pennies on the dollar to, surprise, him! He is a real winner. We are supposed to like and emphathize with him because his wife and parents died in a tragic accident, but unfortunately that tragedy has only made him bitter and mean.
As for how they get together, here's a story in three parts:
Part 1: Jennifer accidentally runs over some flowers in a tractor. Brett berates her in front of his family and the farm hands, telling her to go back to the city where she belongs. Part 2: When she comes to find him at a restaurant in town to pitch a business idea, he very publicly humiliates her, loudly telling the waitress to cancel his order because he has lost his appetite. Part 3: They go on a horseback ride, and kiss in the barn at the end. We should all hope to go on such an epic horseback ride some day! We should also all strive to be as forgiving as Jennifer is being.
Brett's younger brother Harry is probably the most likable and relatable character in the film (other than Brett's daughter, who, though she seems older than the age they seem to want you to think she is, is perfectly sweet in the movie), as he is open to giving people a chance, and pursues some hobbies of his own. Somehow, he even manages to find love despite what seems to be a severe incident of social anxiety in the diner. When he is there with Jennifer, the waitress who he has a crush on comes over to talk, and makes several not-subtle hints that she would like him to invite her to the dance. Who among us has not gotten tongue tied with a crush in a situation like this? Harry mishandles this a little bit more than simply being tongue-tied. He essentially flat out ignores her, refusing to look at her and instead looking down the table the whole time until she walks away from the awkward silence. Must the writers use such an extreme to portray his nervousness? Fortunately, his crush is not dismayed, and they end up together after all.
One final note on supporting characters - Brett has a cousin who works at the diner, who is consistently rude to Jennifer right until the time she can get something out of it. She is consistently unfriendly until, surprise, Jennifer is offering to give facials to the women in town! Fortunately, once she gets something out of it, she is more willing to let bygones be bygones, and even says she is "starting to like her" as she talks about Brett's plan to cheat her out of the farm. A true redemption story.
Finally, we have come to the end. After a misunderstanding that causes Jennifer to leave the farm to go back to the city, Jennifer is about to sign the papers to sell the farm. But wait! Jennifer's best friend comes rushing up to tell her not to sign the papers or she is making the biggest mistake of her life. Finally, we have a romantic in the film, and even though this friend has been very shallow throughout, she has made a breakthrough and recognized her friend is in love.
Wait, what's that? Actually, her friend is telling her that the pumpkin cream product from the farm is amazing for her skin, and her company's CEO wants to purchase the product. So, she will be rich again as long as she doesn't sell the farm! Fast forward a year, and fortunately, somehow, their love has been saved, since they both stand to make a large profit out of the deal. We don't know how this happened, only that it did.
Bottom line: I've seen worse movies, but this read more like a bad business book that was adapted to fit Hallmark with a clumsy love story thrown in.