Movie Reviews: Love Begins (2010) & Love's Everlasting Courage (2011)

After the success of the Love Comes Softly movies that were based on Janette Oke's eight books of the same titles, Hallmark Channel aired two original prequel movies about Clark Davis (Wes Brown) and Ellen Barlow Davis (Julie Mond). 

Love Begins is the story of how Clark and Ellen meet. Clark and his childhood friend, Daniel Whitaker (David Tom), stop in town on their way to California in search of gold. Hungry from their travel, they visit Millie's Cafe, run by Millie (Nancy McKeon) with the help of her daughter Rose (Steffani Brass). Daniel starts a fight with two men from town, resulting in Clark and him being tossed in jail. 

While Daniel escapes overnight, Clark stays to face his punishment. Sheriff Holden (Jere Burns) feels Clark is of good character, but has no way to pay off the damage done to Millie's place. That's when the sheriff introduces him to Ellen Barlow and her younger sister, Cassie (Abigail Mavity). After the death of their parents, Ellen and Cassie are struggling to manage the family farm by themselves. If the Barlow sisters hire Clark, they will get the help they need, while he earns a fair wage. 

Cassie warms to Clark easily, but Ellen is suspicious of this stranger because of his arrest and because her beau Jake Weller (David Hoflin) ran off in search of gold two years ago and hasn't been heard from since. 

Love's Everlasting Courage was released a year later. Clark, Ellen, and their daughter, Missie (Morgan Lily) struggle to keep the family farm because of a two-year drought. In order to make payments on their loan, Ellen decides to take a job in town as a seamstress, which doesn't sit well with Clark's parents (played by Bruce Boxleitner and Cheryl Ladd) when they come to visit. 

Things go from bad to worse when Ellen comes down with scarlet fever and dies. Left alone to raise his daughter, when another tragedy strikes, Clark wonders why God is punishing him. With the help of his parents and friends Sarah (Willow Greer) and Ben (Tyler Jacob Moore), Clark just might be able to find a way to start over. 

In my opinion, these movies are an example of continuing a story that was already finished. While they might answer fans' questions about Clark's life with Ellen, I don't feel they portrayed the Clark Davis I knew in the Love Comes Softly series. Granted, these are meant to be movies of a younger Clark, but the second movie messes up the timeline because Missie is not a baby. 

At the most, two or three years pass between the end of Love's Everlasting Courage and Marty's appearance in Love Comes Softly where Clark says Missie is nine, but Clark would still be a young man by the opening of Love Comes Softly if that's the case. In addition, Clark's reason for asking Marty to marry him is because he believes she can teach Missie things she would have learned from Ellen, but she was old enough in Love's Everlasting Courage to already be on her way to learning some of those things before Ellen dies. We also meet the widowed Sarah (Willow Greer) and widower Ben Graham (Tyler Jacob Moore) in the second movie, and they are significantly younger than the Sarah and Ben Graham in Love Comes Softly, who have managed to have a bunch of children since marrying, so the timeline make no sense at all. 

There is another inconsistency between Love Comes Softly and Love's Everlasting Courage. In Love Comes Softly, Sarah Graham tells Marty that Ben and she married out of sheer necessity, and she doesn't even recall when she fell in love with him. However, in Love's Everlasting Courage, when Sarah and Ben are courting, he declares he doesn't want to miss a moment with her because life can change so quickly, and he is madly in love with her. She ecstatically says yes. They run off to tell their children before heading to the Davis farm to share their happy news. Also, Love Begins and Love's Everlasting Courage are set in the town of Trinity, but the original movies are set in Anderson Corner. So, it looks like Clark and Missie moved and the Grahams came along. Not unusual, but a bit odd. 

Circling back to my point about this Clark and future Clark being too different. Young Clark can't explain to Ellen in Love Begins why he doesn't find attending church services constructive, and that he doesn't even know what faith means. He admits he doesn't remember why he stopped going to church. When we get to the second movie, we will see that Clark's parents are believers, so unless there is some past trauma or tragedy, this storyline makes no sense. 

Even in Love's Everlasting Courage, we don't get the feeling that Clark Davis is the man of faith he is portrayed as by the time we are reintroduced to his character in Love Comes Softly. I simply can't see the Clark from Love Begins and Love's Everlasting Courage praying and reading daily from his Bible like future Clark does; even after his father explains how God loves him just like he loves Clark and Clark loves Missie. Based upon the prequels' character, I can't see the future Clark telling Marty that God has been right beside him all the moments of his life or saying, "The truth of God's love is not that he allows bad things to happen. It's his promise to be there with us... when they do."

Out of the two prequels, Love Begins is the stronger and better movie. Love's Everlasting Courage serves little purpose other than to kill Ellen off, share how Sarah and Ben Graham got together, and introduce Clark's parents, who we never hear about again. Different writers and directors could play a role in how these movies came to the screen versus the original movies. While I am glad I watched them, and I plan to watch Love's Christmas Journey (2011), I doubt I will ever watch these prequels again. 

• Aspect Ratio ‏ : ‎ 1.78:1
• Is Discontinued By Manufacturer ‏ : ‎ No
• MPAA rating ‏ : ‎ NR (Not Rated)
• Product Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 0.56 x 5.39 x 7.51 inches; 0.64 Ounces
• Item model number ‏ : ‎ 063484
• Director ‏ : ‎ David S. Cass, Sr., David S. Cass Sr.
• Media Format ‏ : ‎ Color, Multiple Formats, AC-3, NTSC, Dolby, Widescreen, Subtitled
• Run time ‏ : ‎ 1 hour and 28 minutes
• Release date ‏ : ‎ November 22, 2011
• Actors ‏ : ‎ Julie Mond, Abigail Mavity, Wes Brown, Nancy McKeon, Jere Burns
• Subtitles: ‏ : ‎ English, Spanish
• Producers ‏ : ‎ Erik Heiberg, Lincoln Lageson
• Language ‏ : ‎ English (Dolby Digital 5.1)
• Studio ‏ : ‎ 20th Century Fox
• 
  

• Aspect Ratio ‏ : ‎ 1.78:1
• Is Discontinued By Manufacturer ‏ : ‎ No
• MPAA rating ‏ : ‎ Unrated (Not Rated)
• Product Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 0.57 x 5.37 x 7.68 inches; 2.4 Ounces
• Item model number ‏ : ‎ 131605
• Director ‏ : ‎ May, Bradford
• Media Format ‏ : ‎ Multiple Formats, NTSC, Widescreen, Color, Dolby, Subtitled, AC-3
• Release date ‏ : ‎ May 8, 2012
• Actors ‏ : ‎ Brown, Wes, Ladd, Cheryl, Boxleitner, Bruce, Lily, Morgan, Mond, Julie
• Subtitles: ‏ : ‎ English, Spanish
• Language ‏ : ‎ English (Dolby Digital 5.1)
• Studio ‏ : ‎ 20th Century Fox
• ASIN ‏ : ‎ B0078X2A7I

• ASIN ‏ : ‎ B005N4DNDY

I own Love Begins on DVD and watched Love's Everlasting Courage online. This review contains my honest opinions, which I have not been compensated for in any way.

Books to Film: Love Finds A Home (2009)

 

Love Finds A Home is the final book in Janette Oke's Love Comes Softly series. In the book, Clark and Marty Davis' youngest daughter, Belinda, who had been living in Boston caring for Mrs. Stafford-Smythe, returns home, but has trouble adjusting. Then she returns to Boston and her life takes a series of unexpected turns. 

Now, that I've said that, toss all of it out of the window, because Love Finds A Home (2009), which is the final movie based on a book of the same title, is nothing like that at all. 

In the movie, Belinda (Sarah Jones) and her husband, Lee Owens (Jordan Bridges), have made a comfortable home in Sikeston while raising their adopted daughter, Lillian (Courtney Halverson). They are thrilled when Peter (Jeffrey Muller) brings his wife and Belinda's college classmate, Annie (Haylie Duff), to Sikeston for a visit while he is away for work. His mother, Mary (Patty Duke), is less than happy because she is the local midwife and plans to deliver their baby. But Annie assures her she will be back in plenty of time. When complications arise, Annie must stay in Sikeston until the baby is born, so Mary decides to travel there, which causes tensions between her and Belinda. 

Meanwhile, Lee welcomes an apprentice, Joshua (Michael Trevino), to his blacksmith shop. When sparks fly between him and Lillian, Lee is determined things won't get out of hand. But his daughter is a stubborn young woman, and when she gets angry at her pa, she puts her life in danger. 

If television writers had to reinvent a storyline for the last movie, they picked a great one that had plenty of dramatic moments, humor, and life lessons. The town of Sikeston has grown, but Belinda feels unchallenged at the clinic. She resents Mary's interference once she arrives, and it takes some time for her to accept that even without a degree, Mary's experience has value. And while she is thrilled to see Annie, her presence reminds Belinda that despite trying, she hasn't been able to conceive. 

Lee struggles with Lillian growing up. He wants to protect his daughter from getting hurt. Meanwhile, he has concerns about Belinda's feelings for him. She has been distant, and he wonders if she regrets marrying him.

Love Finds A Home is one of my favorites from the series. The writing and acting are strong. Family and faith continue to be a focal point. And the movie ends in a satisfying way. Definitely worth watching.

• Aspect Ratio ‏ : ‎ 1.78:1
• Is Discontinued By Manufacturer ‏ : ‎ No
• MPAA rating ‏ : ‎ NR (Not Rated)
• Product Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 0.56 x 5.36 x 7.56 inches; 4 Ounces
• Item model number ‏ : ‎ 88532X
• Director ‏ : ‎ David S. Cass Sr.
• Media Format ‏ : ‎ Multiple Formats, Color, AC-3, Widescreen, NTSC, Subtitled, Dolby
• Run time ‏ : ‎ 1 hour and 28 minutes
• Release date ‏ : ‎ November 10, 2009
• Actors ‏ : ‎ Sarah Jones, Haylie Duff, Jordan Bridges, Patty Duke, Courtney Halverson
• Subtitles: ‏ : ‎ English, Spanish
• Language ‏ : ‎ English (Dolby Surround), Spanish (Dolby Surround), Unqualified (DTS ES 6.1)
• Studio ‏ : ‎ 20th Century Fox
• ASIN ‏ : ‎ B002NUULQI
• Writers ‏ : ‎ Donald Davenport, Janette Oke
• Number of discs ‏ : ‎ 1

I own this movie on DVD. This review contains my honest opinions, which I have not been compensated for in any way.

Books to Film: Love Takes Wing (2009)

 

Love Takes Wing, the seventh book in Janette Oke's Love Comes Softly series, was turned into a television movie in 2009. Like the book of the same title, this storyline focuses on the character of Belinda, who viewers met in the movie, Love's Unending Legacy. However, the timelines between the book and the movie simply don't match up. 

In the book, Belinda is the daughter of Marty and Clark Davis, who trains to be a nurse and ends up heading to Boston with Mrs. Stafford-Smythe to care for her. In the movie series, Belinda, the adopted daughter of Missie and Zach Tyler, meets Mrs. Stafford-Smythe in Anderson Corner and cares for her until she is well enough to return to Boston (Love's Unfolding Dream).

Fans of the book series may have issues with the total liberty that the writers of Love Takes Wing and Love Finds A Home (the eighth in the series) take with the source material, but since timeline and storyline changes happened before, this is bound to present challenges. 

After Drew's death, Dr. Belinda Simpson (now played by Sarah Jones) travels with her friend from medical school, Annie, played by Haylie Duff, to Sikeston, Missouri, to care for the townsfolk when they take sick with a mysterious illness. Ray Russell (Lou Diamond Phillips) blames the orphans and their caretaker, Hattie Clarence (Cloris Leachman), and insists they be run out of town. However, the town's mayor (Patrick Duffy) encourages the Town Council to give Belinda time to cure them. And with the help of Lillian (Annalise Basso), one of the orphans, she just might have a chance.

Lee Owens (Jordan Bridges), the town's blacksmith, is smitten with Belinda from the start. But still hurting from the loss of Drew, and with time running out before the town loses faith in her abilities, he must patiently bide his time. Helping Belinda in whatever way he can, he must have faith that Belinda will one day come around. 

The team that wrote and produced Love Takes Wing used what had been successful in prior movies--faith, family, adoption, death of a spouse--to bring Belinda's story to life. Belinda and Annie arrive in Sikeston, a primitive town, where Belinda has been hired to take over the clinic. Facing the expected discrimination, especially from men, as a female doctor, she finds it hard to find her path. Separated from her family, Belinda corresponds with her mother, Missie Tyler (Erin Cottrell), who appears a few times as she reads letters from and writes letters to her daughter. Viewers saw this in Love's Long Journey, as Clark wrote to his daughter Missie across the miles. 

There are so many things Love Takes Wing and its actors portray well, but here are some of my favorites:

• Belinda's loss of faith and the anguish she feels after not being able to save her own husband
• The fear of the unknown disease threatening the entire town, which leads to irrational behavior
• The developing relationship between Lee and Belinda and Lillian and Belinda
• The point where Belinda realizes she needs God's help

What I truly missed is the rest of the Davis family. That's to be expected as a series moves along. In the book series, fans get a chance to see the Davis family again, but the last time movie fans get to see the family is at the end of Love's Unfolding Dream. Despite that, I felt this was a strong addition to the Love Comes Softly movie series, and Lou Diamond Phillips, who directed this film, kept the right feel to it so this movie was consistent with what viewers had come to expect. 

• MPAA rating ‏ : ‎ Unrated (Not Rated)
• Product Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 0.56 x 5.32 x 7.58 inches; 2.56 Ounces
• Item model number ‏ : ‎ 2258089
• Director ‏ : ‎ Lou Diamond Phillips
• Media Format ‏ : ‎ NTSC, Subtitled, Dolby, Color, AC-3, Widescreen, Multiple Formats
• Run time ‏ : ‎ 1 hour and 28 minutes
• Release date ‏ : ‎ May 5, 2009
• Actors ‏ : ‎ Patrick Duffy, Cloris Leachman, Lou Diamond Phillips, Jordan Bridges, Haylie Duff
• Subtitles: ‏ : ‎ English, Spanish
• Language ‏ : ‎ English (Dolby Surround), French (Dolby Surround), Spanish (Dolby Surround), Unqualified (DTS ES 6.1)
• Studio ‏ : ‎ 20th Century Fox

• ASIN ‏ : ‎ B001TOPYY8
• 
  

I own this DVD. This review contains my honest opinions, which I have not been compensated for in any way.

Books to Film: Love's Unfolding Dream (2007)

Love's Unfolding Dream, the sixth installment of Janette Oke's Love Comes Softly series, made it to the screen in 2007. Belinda (Marshall) Tyler (now played by Scout Taylor-Compton) is the oldest daughter of Missie Tyler (Erin Cottrell) and her sheriff husband, Zach (Victor Browne). She yearns to be a doctor, and when she hears that Dr. Jackson (Robert Pine) is looking for a medical assistant, she jumps at the chance.

Dr. Jackson has his reservations about hiring Belinda, especially because he thinks women are only good for marrying and keeping a home. As Belinda is traveling through town, the stagecoach driver stops her. One of the passengers has grown gravely ill. Belinda brings Mrs. Stafford-Smythe and her traveling companion Windsor (Richard Herd) to Dr. Jackson. When Mrs. Stafford-Smythe requires round-the-clock care, Dr. Jackson resigns himself to hiring Belinda to help. 

Meanwhile, Drew Simpson (Patrick Levis), the nephew of Clark and Marty Davis' (Dale Midkiff and Samantha Smith)  former neighbor Hank, arrives in Anderson Corner. The freshly out of law school Drew has inherited Hank's property and plans to sell it before returning to New York. When Clark drives him out there, Drew is dismayed to find the property in need of extensive repairs. Clark agrees to help, saying this will allow him to repay a debt to Hank. When Belinda meets Drew, they quickly clash. Seems Drew's sentiments on women are the same as Dr. Jackson's. However, they can't deny they are drawn to each other. 

As she tends to Mrs. Stafford-Smythe, the two women and Windsor, become friends. Once the two Bostonians are ready to return home, Belinda faces choices that will impact her future in many ways.

Love's Unfolding Dream is an excellent addition to the Love Comes Softly movie series. Since changes were made to characters in previous movies, some changes naturally came to this movie. Viewers must assume that Aaron and Arnie Davis are now off living their lives as adults, since they don't appear in this movie at all. Mattie LaHaye (now played by Randall Bentley) and Jacob Marshall (now played by Darian Weiss) are around, but don't see as much screentime since the focus is on Belinda's storyline. 

Another storyline that unfolds is that of Sadie and Charles Kent (Lori Rom and Paul Ganus). They have moved to Anderson Corner with their son, Caleb (Timmy Deters). Missie, the town's school teacher, calls Sadie in to let her know that Caleb is behind, especially with his reading. That's when she learns the entire family doesn't know how to read. So Missie devises a plan to help, which causes stress in the Kent's marriage.

Especially with Love's Unfolding Dream, the series becomes more about the community of Anderson Corner than just the Davis family. We see a town that has grown and changed since Clark moved there. 

Michael Landon Jr. returns as co-executive producer in this installment. I feel that's partially why I like this one. You can see his abilities shine through in the storyline and the actor's portrayals. I still miss Katherine Heigl as Marty Davis, who by this time was two years into her Grey's Anatomy role. One of the funny inconsistencies is that Missie can no longer cook, even though she could make fried chicken as a child. 

Friendship, community, and romance are what you find in Love's Unfolding Dream, along with a good dose of Clark Davis wisdom that viewers come to expect and appreciate.

• MPAA rating ‏ : ‎ PG (Parental Guidance Suggested)
• Package Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 7.56 x 5.31 x 0.59 inches; 3.2 Ounces
• Director ‏ : ‎ Harvey Frost
• Run time ‏ : ‎ 88 minutes
• Actors ‏ : ‎ Erin Cottrell, Scout Taylor-Compton, Dale Midkiff, Robert Pine, Victor Browne
• Subtitles: ‏ : ‎ English, Spanish
• ASIN ‏ : ‎ B07MXPCZLZ

I own this movie on DVD. This review contains my honest opinions, which I have not been compensated for in any way.

Books to Film: Love's Long Journey (2005)

 

In Love's Long Journey, the third movie directed by Michael Landon Jr. for Hallmark Channel's Love Comes Softly series, Missie (now played by Erin Cottrell) and Willie LaHaye (Logan Bartholomew) have left the wagon train and arrived to take claim to their homestead and start their ranch. Willie hires a few ranch hands, and Missie meets their Native American neighbor Miriam Red Hawk McClain (Irene Bedard). Even though Missie has a chance to teach some of the Native American children, she is desperately homesick, and danger may be lurking around the corner for the LaHayes. 

Though I haven't read Love's Long Journey by Janette Oke, based upon reviews, the movie leaves out the first half of the book, which is the LaHayes' time on the wagon train. Instead, it opens with Missie and Willie departing from the wagon train and stopping in town at the general store and land office before heading out to land that has been deeded to him. The rest of the movie is all about them settling in, getting the ranch going, and the dangers and life changes they face along the way.

While Love Comes Softly remains my favorite movie, Love's Long Journey is a fabulous film with tons of great characters who become part of Missie and Willie's new life. Dale Midkiff reprises his role as Missie's father, Clark Davis. He has two cameos in this film as he corresponds with Missie from across the miles. 

With the luxury of being able to watch one movie after the other in a series, you tend to pick up inconsistencies along the way. Suddenly, Missie, who told Marty in Love Comes Softly that she makes good fried chicken and teased Marty because she couldn't cook, can no longer cook, which comes up a couple of times. It reminded me of a similar inconsistency in Little House on the Prairie, where depending upon the episode, Charles could or could not cook. 

Love's Long Journey is a fine installment of this series. Though you could always watch only one movie, there is so much value in following the Davis family saga from the beginning.

• MPAA rating ‏ : ‎ NR (Not Rated)
• Package Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 7.1 x 5.42 x 0.58 inches; 2.93 Ounces
• Media Format ‏ : ‎ DVD, Full Screen
• Language ‏ : ‎ Unqualified
• Studio ‏ : ‎ 20TH CENTURY FOX
• ASIN ‏ : ‎ B004FD5I1Y

I own this movie. This review contains my honest opinions, which I have not been compensated for in any way.

Books to Film: Love's Enduring Promise (2004)

 

The Davis family saga continues in Love's Enduring Promise, the sequel to Love Comes Softly. 

Missie Davis (now played by January Jones) is the local school teacher. She finds herself wooed by a wealthy surveyor, Grant Thomas, (portrayed by Mackenzie Astin), but when her father Clark (Dale Midkiff) suffers a life-threatening accident, the help of a mysterious stranger has her second guessing her true feelings. 

Airing on Hallmark Channel in 2004, Love's Enduring Promise shifts the story arc to Missie's character, which viewers will see continued in the next two films. Having viewed all of these movies up through Love Takes Wing, I feel this is the weakest film of the series. Perhaps that is to be expected after the moving performances of Katherine Heigl and Dale Midkiff as two people drawn together by necessity whose arrangement blossoms into love. These actors had such chemistry together that the focus shifting away from them means the actors portraying the love story in the sequel had to have equal or better chemistry, which wasn't visible to me. 

By now, Missie's family includes Marty's son Aaron Luke Davis (K'Sun Ray) and her brother Arnie Davis (Logan Arens). As she developed into a young woman, some of that spunk viewers enjoyed in Love Comes Softly has been tempered, which is to be expected. We do however see a bit of it when Nate (Logan Bartholomew) is plowing the field as Clark recovers. 

Missie is quickly taken with Grant Thomas, a wealthy surveyor who pursues her. Yet, she can't seem to get the mysterious Nate out of her mind. Nate comes with his own backstory, which unfolds along the way, and Clark is a compassionate father figure to Nate. 

My favorite parts of this movie are, no surprise, ones that involve Marty and Clark. In the opening sequence, we see Marty and Clark relaxing in a field together. Marty asks Clark to promise that he will never leave her, which he does. She asks him how he can be certain, and he quotes Scripture stating the two shall become one. She also comments on what a wonderful life he has given her and what a wonderful life they have made together, so the viewers feel they have been successful in their endeavors and enjoy their life together. This foreshadows his life-threatening accident. 

My next favorite part comes at the end of the movie. 

SPOILERS AHEAD IN WHITE 

At the end of the movie, Missie is saying goodbye to her family, as she heads farther West with her new husband. Marty, holding back tears, provides motherly advice and reminds her to write once they are settled. But it is Missie and Clark's goodbye that tugs at the heartstrings. Clark tells her that ever since she was a little baby, he knew this day was coming because she had an independent spirit. 

She says, "Pa, my heart's breaking."

"Mine, too," Clark replies.

"Can you fix it?"

"Not this time, little one." They embrace. "Not this time."

Marty and the boys walk up to Clark to offer him support. As Missie and her husband pull away in their wagon, Clark waves and says, "Remember His Promise." 

Missie waves and replies, "No tears."

"No tears," Clark says. Then the camera focuses on his stricken face as he whispers, "No tears." 

Then the last shot is a faraway look of the wagon driving away. 

Clark's strong faith is a part of who he is. Viewers see that in Love Comes Softly, and they see it in Loves' Enduring Promise. That faith has helped him and his family through the years, and will be something they will lean on in the future. 

Michael Landon Jr. definitely inherited his father's ability to provide family friendly content that tugs at every heartstring. He has a knack for taking source material and adapting it to a new medium. I look forward to sharing more of this series with you.

• MPAA rating ‏ : ‎ Unrated (Not Rated) 
• Product Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 0.7 x 7.5 x 5.4 inches; 2.72 Ounces
• Director ‏ : ‎ Jr, Michael Landon
• Media Format ‏ : ‎ NTSC, Full Screen
• Release date ‏ : ‎ May 13, 2008
• Actors ‏ : ‎ Heigl, Katherine, Midkiff, Dale, Bartholomew, Logan
• Studio ‏ : ‎ 20th Century Fox
• ASIN ‏ : ‎ B00192YKE0

I own this movie on DVD. This review contains my honest opinions, which I have not been compensated for in any way.

Books to Film: Love Comes Softly (2003) Movie Review

 

When Marty Claridge (Katherine Heigl) set out on a pioneering adventure West with her husband Aaron (Oliver Macready), they were filled with hopes and dreams. But Aaron's sudden death soon after arriving, leaves Marty pregnant and alone. 

In steps Clark Davis (Dale Midkiff). On the day of Aaron's funeral, he approaches Marty with a proposition: marry him so she has a place to stay over the winter and so she can be a mother to his young daughter, Missie (Skye McCole Bartusiak). Then in the spring, if Marty wants to leave, Clark will pay for her journey back East. 

What choice does Marty have? So, she agrees, throwing herself into her new role. Little does she know that patience and faith will have to carry her through. 

Love Comes Softly is the first book in the series written by Janette Oke. Made into a movie that aired on Hallmark Channel and was directed by Michael Landon Jr., this wholesome story is one of faith, family, and love. I've never read the books, but this movie series is so well done that I definitely would like to read the book series they are based upon. 

Having now watched the entire original movie series (not the prequels), I can say that Love Comes Softly is my favorite. As the movie series continues, Katherine Heigl is replaced by another actress, who while talented, doesn't have the same chemistry with Dale Midkiff and who doesn't have the vitality that Heigl brought to the character. 

Love Comes Softly is about two people brought together out of necessity, whose relationship blossoms into love. Skye McCole Bartusiak plays the resentful daughter well, acting out because she sees Marty as a threat to her close bond with her Pa, and because she doesn't want a new mother. The interactions between Marty and Missie in those early days are entertaining and heartfelt. But just like Marty's heart softened toward Clark, Missie's softens toward Marty. That's when she realizes she doesn't want Marty to leave in the spring. 

Clark's strong faith plays a role in this movie as well. That faith inspires Marty when she doubts she can help Missie. It is Clark's faith that helps Marty understand that faith doesn't mean bad things won't happen, but that God will be there when they do. 

If you enjoy wholesome, faith-based family entertainment, Love Comes Softly is one of the best. 

• Item model number ‏ : ‎ 884482
• Director ‏ : ‎ Michael Landon Jr.
• Media Format ‏ : ‎ Color, NTSC, Full Screen, Multiple Formats, Closed-captioned, Subtitled, Widescreen
• Run time ‏ : ‎ 1 hour and 24 minutes
• Release date ‏ : ‎ September 14, 2004
• Actors ‏ : ‎ Katherine Heigl, Dale Midkiff, Corbin Bernsen, Skye McCole Bartusiak, Theresa Russell
• Subtitles: ‏ : ‎ English, Spanish
• Language ‏ : ‎ English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround), Unqualified (DTS ES 6.1), French (Dolby Surround), Spanish (Dolby Surround)
• Studio ‏ : ‎ 20th Century Fox
• ASIN ‏ : ‎ B0002IKSFM

I own this movie on DVD. This review contains my honest opinions, which I have not been compensated for in any way.

Downton Abbey: A New Era

 

I finally had a chance to watch Downton Abbey: A New Era. What a great movie. There are two main plots: a producer/director wants to make a film at Downton, and the Dowager Countess inherits a villa in the south of France from a man she was acquainted with decades earlier. Alongside these two plots, are a variety of subplots:

• Tom starts life with Lucy.
• Cora is facing a health crisis.
• Thomas Barrow feels lonely despite having the role of butler he always desired.
• Andy and Daisy are finding Mr. Mason's farm a bit cramped.
• Edith misses her work at the magazine.
• Henry Talbot continues to be away from Downton as he focuses on cars.
• Talking movie pictures threaten the silent picture industry.

There are others, but these are some of the most important ones. In many ways, Downton Abbey: A New Era is all a fan could ask for, especially if this is the final movie. 

• Many of the regular characters are facing happy futures.
• Tom's daughter Sybbie's future is solidified.
• Mary embraces her role as the leader for the future of Downton.
• Robert learns the truth about his mother and this mysterious man who bequeathed Violet the villa.
• If they had to (spoiler ahead) allow Violet to die, they handled it in a wonderful way with her family around her.
• Edith and Mary getting along.

I like that even though we have hints at the future for some of these characters, not everything was wrapped up nice and tidy, so they have something to work with if a third movie is made. 

A few things I didn't care for:

• Lord Grantham, Dr. Clarkson, and Murray were so orange it looked like they had been tanning for weeks.
• Jack Barber's pursuit of Lady Mary. It was handled well, but it could have been a great film without this plotline.
• We didn't see much of Sybbie, George, Marigold or Johnnie Bates.
• (spoiler ahead) Thomas Barrow leaving Downton. 

Did you see this movie? What did you think? Would you like to see a third movie?