2021, Robert Vaughn (High-Rise Rescue) -- Lifetime/Download
I might have a new trend. I turn on the TV, tune into a movie about 7 minutes after it starts, and decide I really want to watch it. Of course, it aired on some cable channel before whatever channel I saw it pop up on, so its up on the pirate web. I saw this Canadian-based one, obviously not Hallmark actually, and ALSO it was about a bakery, and specifically about a special Xmas Cake that the main character is supposed to be an expert on. Alas, she is not.
HERstory:
Yeah, so Gwen (Erica Durance, Smallville) is the granddaughter of the (late) town baker, who was famous for her Enchanted Christmas Cake that inspired love in all who ate it. It felt like there was a previous movie where the cake actually played a part in the romantic entanglement at the heart of a Hallmarkie. But no, its just that Gwen is a baker, but not able to recreate the extra special recipe her grandmother was famous for, a single ingredient missing from her hand written not-recipe card for lebkuchen cake. An ingredient starting with the letters M and A.
Gwen has been attempting to recreate the cake, by adding in many "ma..." ingredients, but it always seems to lead to a disastrous cake, not just a cake that doesn't quite taste good, but a truly, burned, fallen cake that kind of tells us Gwen ain't such a good baker. Likely she relies on assistant Becky (Kyana Teresa, Good Witch) to do all the heavy (batter) lifting.
Coming into town is TV Producer Gavin (Robin Dunne, Sanctuary) for terrible TV chef Cooking with Dante (Paulino, The Expanse). He is hoping to connect Dante to the legacy of Gwen's grandmother, but at the very least they will shoot in this typical PST. Sorry, typically Canadian PST. The thing is that Gwen is not exactly ready to be talking up her grandmother's legacy on syndicated TV considering she cannot recreate it, and really, is not sure she should be.
Upon literally bumping into Gwen, Gavin is instantly taken with Gwen. This was the entry point for me on whatever channel it was airing. And at this is the point, I got all judgey on an actor's appearance. Sure, I am rather partial to Erica Durance since Smallville, but whoever was doing her hair on this movie needs to be ... retrained. On OTA TV it looked all grey and haggard, but at least on the downloaded copy, it was just a bit frazzled and dry looking. I admit, I am rather challenged by what aging female (for the most part) actors feel they have to do to retain the level of interest in them.
ANYWAYZ, she doesn't quite rebuff Gavin but she doesn't like what he represents. I mean, all you have to do is take one look at Dante, and his amazingly fake looking toupee to know what he is all about. But soon after, she bumps into Gavin again, and again, and he is really pressing her on the TV appearance, but he calms down and he settles on asking her to be his local guide. He has to make sure this episode goes the way Dante likes things, starting with finding him an "authentic" place to stay, that has a hot tub. She suggests her mom's house -- while she is in Boca, she rents the place out. Apparently the overdone overwrought fake loghouse look is exactly what Dante would go for.
On that note, again I notice the level of income present in many of these movies. Gwen's dad grandfather runs the incredible looking Inn that Dante rejected. This is in an astounding massive stone structure that looks just wonderful. If I was wealthy I would choose to stay there. And her mom has this house, this INCREDIBLY big faux log cabin McMansion. Ignoring her taste, she must have money.
ANYWAYZ, they bounce around a bit doing Hallmarkie things, and Gavin is more than being obvious he has a thing for Gwen. He even wants to introduce her to his daughter Michelle (Sarah Abbott, V-Wars) who catches on instantly, and begins hanging with Gwen, even inspiring her to create her first acceptable cake. Its not THE cake but it's a pretty damn good bake. And the "ma" is "maple syrup".
Eventually Gavin and Gwen bake together, and THEY discover the real secret ingredient -- "marzipan" which is kind of obvious considering the German roots of her cake. Interestingly enough, Lebkuchen is more often a gingerbread style cookie than a cake, but TV, so whatever. Once the ingredient is known, she tells Gavin she still doesn't really feel secure sharing it with douche chef Dante, as this recipe was her grandmother's and she feels it should stay in-family. But when she agrees to do the show segment, Dante plays at knowing the ingredient already, and Gwen immediately falls for the 20-minutes-to-go misunderstanding, assuming that Gavin shared it with him. He didn't; it was actually Gwen's mom who has returned from Boca and kind of wants to impress the douche chef, so she tells him its marmalade. But Gwen is hurt and rushes off.
BUT she gets a letter which comes from one of her grandmother's fans, who tells her that she already got the recipe. Apparently Gwen's gramma was pretty open with it at the end of her life, not considering it worth keeping a secret. So Gwen rushes to find Gavin to tell him she overreacted and he tells he quit being a doormat Producer for douche chef Dante.
MEANWHILE Dante has had his own revelation, in that he never really wanted to be a TV chef. He wanted to do what he grew up doing -- running a cheesey (pun intended) themed Italian resto. He connects with Gwen's mom and decides he's dumping the show. EVERYONE is going to live Happily Ever After including Real Housewife Mom and Douche Chef Dante.
The Formulae:
Does Lifetime subscribe to the Hallmarkie trope recipe as much as actual Hallmark? This one does do the Xmas Tree hunting & decorating, and Gwen does take Michelle to an Xmas Fair, but that's pretty much it.
Unformulae:
Neither of them are vying for a great job that will appear or not appear on Xmas Day, like in most. It really is just a moment in time for the two that happens to be happening around the holidays, allowing for some of the Xmas tropes to seep in.
True Calling? Well, that's the thing. The cake is supposed to be enchanted, as in it has been making people fall in love for years and years. But that is not really the point of the movie. If it had been, then there would have been a star crossed couple playing the secondary plot, who would have fallen astoundingly into love once they tried the "real recipe". Alas its more just how the recipe seems to be everything to Gwen, until she realizes that Gavin and their potential relationship means more. So, no not an enchanted cake at all.
The Rewind:
Seeing Dante's terrible toupee for the first time was a chuckle, but not really worth rewinding. Instead, have a look at mine !
The Regulars:
Since leaving Smallville Durance has alternated between doing these kind of movies and other TV series in the Vancouver area. Meanwhile Dunne has been doing a LOT of these movies. Kyanna Teresa has been alternating between these movies and Canadian TV for a long time, so I guess its her niche. I wonder if its a supporting actor's inevitable niche in Canada?
How does it Hallmark?
The movie is less about the tropes and more about the general romcom direction being taken. I need to do more research to see if the Lifetimies have their own beats and notes.
How does it movie?
TBH, I am running out of steam on saying whether these have any merit outside their genre....
This did air on lifetime this year, but I gather by the opening production credits this was a Lifetime acquisition and not a LT production. In fact most of LT's slate of 35 movies seemed to be Canadian off-brand acquisitions which aired on Canadian channels other than Lifetime Canada (CityTV, CTV, Superchannel H&H)
ReplyDeleteYour toupee looks suspiciously like a cake.
w... t... f... some mistaken editing seems to have happened there. now it makes absolutely no sense, but i am gonna leave it because i cannot stop giggling now.
ReplyDelete