Just a fluff movie, don't take it too seriously. I thought the casting was good, especially liked the girlfriend, she could have done the leading role just fine.
4 Reviews
Not to be taken seriously
LtlHippo30 September 2020
almost good enough to be a high school musical
omijer13 March 2020
For this faithful tv movie viewer, this film was clearly one of the most disappointing offerings in a very long time. The plot was so familiar, so predictable, that from first few minutes it was clear where things were going to go. There was very little to anticipate other than a happy ending, achieved by predictable behaviors and relationships. The wonderful Mackenzie Vega, who was so impressive as the daughter in the series The Good Wife, was sadly wasted in this movie's very silly leading role. Ms. Vega is a fine actress.. She deserves serious roles, which tap into her remarkable talent.
To see her was an unkempt, athletic tomboy, who challenges herself to attract a desirable man by changing her looks, hobbling around in high heels, a new coif, heavy makeup, is a message that should not be conveyed to young people watching this movie. Of course, it is predictable that she will eventually be loved and "chosen" for exactly who she really is..by the man who has been her "buddy" throughout. But to convey this message to young viewers who may already be struggling with their self-image, their appeal to someone they would like to attract, was presented in a formulaic, old-fashioned and currently unacceptable way.
This movie missed its mark. While it did, finally, send the right message, the concept and the culturally untimeliness of its overall plot was seriously disappointing.
Predictable
Jackbv1239 May 2021
It's a romance twofer. Throw in the screen time lost with the wrong guy and all of the baseball and there really wasn't as much screen time for Vega and Maden together. The other romance between Stowers and Pierre seemed just as important.
The one romance is a pretty standard girl ignores her male best friend romantically. And both the women in both romances learn pretty much the same lesson.
I liked Vega and her part was a little more complicated than the usual girl meets boy. She was a tomboy, an add exec, a little league coach and one of the leads in a romance. The tomboy part required her to do the bit about learning to be "pretty" and to go on fancy dates. She had a deer-in-the-headlights look a number of times and I'm not sure if it was too much too often or not. I do know that I don't believe this character would have made some of the bad choices she made, which means I also don't believe she would have totally sold out who she really was. But I do think Vega is well cast. I'm impressed at Vega's age - 24 when first aired. The women playing leads for Hallmark are almost all, maybe all, older than that.
Stowers did her part a little more seamlessly, but then she didn't have quite so many things to keep up with.
Rylan Lee does a good job as the girl in a boy's little league, except that I think in 2018, there would be more girls doing that.
The one romance is a pretty standard girl ignores her male best friend romantically. And both the women in both romances learn pretty much the same lesson.
I liked Vega and her part was a little more complicated than the usual girl meets boy. She was a tomboy, an add exec, a little league coach and one of the leads in a romance. The tomboy part required her to do the bit about learning to be "pretty" and to go on fancy dates. She had a deer-in-the-headlights look a number of times and I'm not sure if it was too much too often or not. I do know that I don't believe this character would have made some of the bad choices she made, which means I also don't believe she would have totally sold out who she really was. But I do think Vega is well cast. I'm impressed at Vega's age - 24 when first aired. The women playing leads for Hallmark are almost all, maybe all, older than that.
Stowers did her part a little more seamlessly, but then she didn't have quite so many things to keep up with.
Rylan Lee does a good job as the girl in a boy's little league, except that I think in 2018, there would be more girls doing that.
Enjoyable movie with a message
herrcarter-9216123 October 2023
Warning: Spoilers
I mostly enjoyed this movie. Okay, it's not a perfect movie, by any means. But the acting was decent, the characters were likable and the message was good.
First, what I liked about the movie. I enjoyed Makenzie Vega's performance as tomboy-turned-hot-girl Tori. She pretty much nailed it, making us believe this attractive girl was just one of the guys, but also making her subsequent glow-up believable. She was simultaneously cute, but also very relatable. The supporting actors were decent. I especially liked Sal Stowers as her friend Krista and Greg Gunberg as her dad, although Tom Maden as her BFF Adam was just so-so. The message of the movie about being yourself and not trying to impress people by being someone else was also good. I liked how they showed this, not only with Tori pretending not to be a tomboy, but with her friend Krista essentially pretending to be a tomboy, both to impress guys. Ultimately, a romantic interest will like you for who you really are (or not), so pretending is a losing game. The other thing I liked was how the movie had a fairly rich tapestry of characters and relationships that made everyone seem pretty real and genuine.
Now, what I didn't like. The script was good in spots, but very choppy in others. The relationship between Tori's friend Krista and hot athlete Sam was kind of weird. So, how many guys would be looking for, or even be attracted to a girl who was really into sports? It really seemed like a stretch. The plotline where Tori tests her officemate Brian's devotion by showing up at his formal gathering in a masculine-looking pantsuit was also pretty out there. It should have been pretty obvious to her that he was only into her as long as she looked beautiful and feminine. But beyond that, even if he wasn't so superficial, showing up at such an event so inappropriately dressed was just rude on her part and wasn't a good way to test his loyalty. The screenwriter should have come up with a better scenario for her to realize that this guy wasn't a keeper. I also thought the relationship between Tori and her friend Adam was poorly developed. I wasn't feeling much chemistry, and I wish they had had some more scenes to make me really believe that they were secretly in love with each other. And the grand gesture scene at the end, with Adam standing there in a tux, with a bunch of roses, professing his love for Tori, was pure cringe. I've always hated grand gesture scenes in rom-coms, and much prefer a sincere, honest meeting of the couple where they discuss feelings. The whole scene, with them confessing their love, was just too over-the-top for me. Another nit pick: I really hated Adam's beard. It was not well-trimmed, and it just looked bad. They should've just made him shave it off.
Okay, so the script descended into cringe territory in a lot of spots. But I must say that, otherwise, this was a feel-good movie with likable, relatable characters that you found yourself becoming quite invested in. That was enough to make you just sit back and enjoy it without caring too much about the weak parts of the script. This is a Pixl/UPTV production, and, although their production standards (particularly the writing) may not be quite up to their competitor Hallmark, I think their movies have a lot more feeling and heart to them. I think the production standards will eventually improve, and I hope that they will not eventually become as formulaic as Hallmark.
First, what I liked about the movie. I enjoyed Makenzie Vega's performance as tomboy-turned-hot-girl Tori. She pretty much nailed it, making us believe this attractive girl was just one of the guys, but also making her subsequent glow-up believable. She was simultaneously cute, but also very relatable. The supporting actors were decent. I especially liked Sal Stowers as her friend Krista and Greg Gunberg as her dad, although Tom Maden as her BFF Adam was just so-so. The message of the movie about being yourself and not trying to impress people by being someone else was also good. I liked how they showed this, not only with Tori pretending not to be a tomboy, but with her friend Krista essentially pretending to be a tomboy, both to impress guys. Ultimately, a romantic interest will like you for who you really are (or not), so pretending is a losing game. The other thing I liked was how the movie had a fairly rich tapestry of characters and relationships that made everyone seem pretty real and genuine.
Now, what I didn't like. The script was good in spots, but very choppy in others. The relationship between Tori's friend Krista and hot athlete Sam was kind of weird. So, how many guys would be looking for, or even be attracted to a girl who was really into sports? It really seemed like a stretch. The plotline where Tori tests her officemate Brian's devotion by showing up at his formal gathering in a masculine-looking pantsuit was also pretty out there. It should have been pretty obvious to her that he was only into her as long as she looked beautiful and feminine. But beyond that, even if he wasn't so superficial, showing up at such an event so inappropriately dressed was just rude on her part and wasn't a good way to test his loyalty. The screenwriter should have come up with a better scenario for her to realize that this guy wasn't a keeper. I also thought the relationship between Tori and her friend Adam was poorly developed. I wasn't feeling much chemistry, and I wish they had had some more scenes to make me really believe that they were secretly in love with each other. And the grand gesture scene at the end, with Adam standing there in a tux, with a bunch of roses, professing his love for Tori, was pure cringe. I've always hated grand gesture scenes in rom-coms, and much prefer a sincere, honest meeting of the couple where they discuss feelings. The whole scene, with them confessing their love, was just too over-the-top for me. Another nit pick: I really hated Adam's beard. It was not well-trimmed, and it just looked bad. They should've just made him shave it off.
Okay, so the script descended into cringe territory in a lot of spots. But I must say that, otherwise, this was a feel-good movie with likable, relatable characters that you found yourself becoming quite invested in. That was enough to make you just sit back and enjoy it without caring too much about the weak parts of the script. This is a Pixl/UPTV production, and, although their production standards (particularly the writing) may not be quite up to their competitor Hallmark, I think their movies have a lot more feeling and heart to them. I think the production standards will eventually improve, and I hope that they will not eventually become as formulaic as Hallmark.
See also
Awards | FAQ | User Ratings | External Reviews | Metacritic Reviews
