Honestly, I was baffled with all the rave reviews this movie received. It fell a little flat for me, and didn't stand out as anything other than fairly average Hallmark fare. The acting chops of both Andrew Walker as Nick and Bethany Joy Lenz as Abbey were well done and believably performed, but the script and story itself did absolutely nothing to draw me in, possibly because my suspension of disbelief was snapped fairly on after a string of truly inconceivable coincidences. The chances that Abbey's message in a bottle, thrown into the Boston harbor, would wind up on a beach in Maine and be found by a man who is both age-appropriate and soon to be her coworker, is simply too fantastical an idea to entertain. More likely would have been that a retired fisherman finds Abbey's letter.
On top of that, Abbey as a character was hard to like. Although well-portrayed by Bethany Joy Lenz, Abbey was simply not a charming character. Her snap decision to block her online companion after he couldn't make it to their meeting felt rash and incredibly immature, like the rash reaction of a middle schooler to being rejected (after all, it's not like he stood her up without a word). Also, what on earth was going on with her wardrobe choices? She went from slightly vintage inspired, to frumpy secretary from the 80s, to wearing a denim jacket in a professional meeting. Those reading glasses! Those unflattering shapeless blazers! Bethany Joy Lenz's previous Hallmark movies definitely did her more favors in both the hair and fashion department.
Meanwhile, I was struggling to understand why Andrew Walker's character, Nick, was called back to his father's company for a "temporary position" at all. It was as if the company was swamped with so much work that he was a dire addition, but all he seems to do is accompany Abbey on a few potential acquisitions (the majority of which he botches or doesn't prepare for). Was it really necessary for him and Abbey to have an antagonistic real life relationship while their online one was thriving? I know that Hallmark adores the trope of giving their love interests a rough and tumble start that slowly warms up as the movie goes on, but it's personally much more refreshing to see characters genuinely enjoying each other's company and chemistry from the get-go.
The ultimate conflict in the movie was a surprise as I had been predicting different outcomes for the two of them figuring out each other's online identities. When Nick ended up confessing to Abbey directly who he was, I was surprised by her anger, which would have been much more justified if she had found out from a source other than Nick himself. Hallmark has a serious problem with winding realistic, plausible conflict into the climax of their stories, and this movie was no exception. Perhaps the only thing worse than their contrived argument over Nick being ReelTraveler was the fact that the movie ended with the entire wedding party and all the guests clapping at Nick and Abbey's kiss from a distance.
And lastly, while more of a nitpick than anything else: the characters reading aloud their texts as they're typing them felt wildly uncomfortable. Background voice-overs being used consistently throughout the movie would've been a much better choice.
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