Hallmark Channel
On the eve of Autumn, Hallmark Channel presents another Fall-themed movie as part of its ‘Fall into Love’ series. And this one has a completely different feel to it than the previous films we’ve reviewed … and that’s a very good thing. The other films have been mostly romantic fluff, but this production almost forgoes the romance, even if it is just simmering under the surface, and focuses on much bigger issues.
Falling Together stars Ashley Williams as Natalie Calder, an outgoing young woman who finds herself transplanted from her home in the South Beach, Florida area to Pittsburgh, PA. She’s alternately sad about the change, because she and the residents of her apartment building have become a real family (no mention of her own family is made), but excited about the new opportunity that awaits her and, most of all, the chance to see real Fall foliage as the season changes, hoping to get some ‘leaf peeping’ in before she starts her new job. Arriving at her new home base, the perennially optimistic and upbeat Natalie discovers that life is going to be very different in Pittsburgh, as her new neighbors either humor or avoid her, none of them really interested in what’s going on outside their doors. There’s also the nice-on-the-surface HOA president who warmly greets Natalie and then warns her about breaking any of the building’s rules. Her one possibly saving grace is the building super, Mark (Paul Campbell), who also does not want to get involved in any of Natalie’s shenanigans in trying to force the residents to bond, but also goes out of his way to warn her about the residents and show her around the city, even agreeing to go ‘leaf peeping’ with her (and yes, leaf peeping is a real thing).
But finding herself with six long weeks on her hands before starting her new job, Natalie makes it her cause to unite the neighbors and also finds herself volunteering for the local Walk to End Alzheimer’s (the film’s premiere on Hallmark also marked World Alzheimer’s Day), making herself indispensable to the organizer Linda (Linda Kash) who, it turns out, is also in the early on-set stages of Alzheimer’s, which only make Natalie all the more determined to make the Walk a success. And what better way to unite her neighbors than by asking them to do something positive for the world! After brokering peace between a few of the building residents, Natalie seems to think she’s going to hit a home run with forming her team for the Walk but she learns that the tiniest misstep can shatter all the relationships she’s worked so hard to mend. The question is will she succeed in trying to turn other people’s lives around, will she realize there is chemistry with Mark, or will she learn more about herself in the end?
Hallmark Channel
Falling Together is the movie most unlike the Hallmark movies that have be broadcast so far that Hotchka has reviewed. Probably the biggest difference here is that the romantic aspect is by far the least important part of the film. In fact, Mark seems to just tolerate Natalie for most of the film until diner owner Drea (Rryla McIntosh) tells them to just kiss already. They both seem clueless that there might be something worth pursuing because Natalie is so focused on everyone else. That’s where her relationship with Linda comes into play. It’s a real jolt when Linda reveals her diagnosis to Natalie, and an even bigger gut-punch when she can’t even identify herself in a photograph for a brief moment. Linda is the one who keeps pushing Natalie to focus on herself for a change because, as her T-shirt says, ‘ife s to hort’ … at least that’s what Natalie says when Linda tells her to read the shirt, which is partially hidden by her jacket. That was one much needed bit of humor in that rather heavy moment. But finally understanding that maybe she isn’t going to be able to ‘fix’ her building and create a new family like she had in Florida gets Natalie to finally do things for herself. And not for nothing, her Florida friend Tobias, Drea and Mark all have been trying to tell her to take time for herself as well. Seeing that she’s willing to momentarily forget about her quest, Mark even becomes closer to her as her guide around the city, and even invites her to a cookout at his father’s house (and Mark has his own dramatic subplot that explains his desire to remain only an employee to the residents). It really isn’t until the end that the two acknowledge maybe there is something brewing between them, which is a refreshing change of pace.
Williams is on the verge of being annoyingly perky for the first half of the film, but once she gets involved with the Walk and begins to examine her inner self, her performance is toned down much more and she becomes less exhausting to watch. Campbell is the exact opposite, always very low-key to the point of being a bit too stand-offish but as Mark warms to Natalie and begins to understand her, Campbell’s performance also becomes warmer and pleasant. This is actually a film in which you aren’t sure if the two leads are going to become romantic, leaving the viewer with a constant ‘will they or won’t they’ feeling, actually rooting for them to find some common ground and each other. McIntosh’s Drea, who barely knows Natalie but forms an instant bond over their love of Fall and pie, is fun as the all-knowing character, the one who can basically see into everyone else’s souls. My one note about both Natalie and Drea is that someone should have told them to tone down the heavy, dark orange eye shadow they both wear. It really was inappropriate for daytime-wear and neither of them changed the look throughout the entire movie, and Drea’s even seemed to become heavier than usual at one point (the women’s make-up in general also seemed to be applied with a very heavy hand, giving Williams a much too plasticky sheen to her face). But the three actors and characters are all very well played and it wouldn’t be terrible if they somehow found a way to do another story with them.
The film also has a wonderful supporting cast as the residents, and through their performances you also feel good when they resolve their differences … and sad when they fall apart again. Sometimes these TV movies have supporting actors who feel inexperienced and give not great performances but all of the supporting cast of Falling Together are true pros.
Director Mark Rohl steers the story with a sure hand, and he and cinematographer Tyler Walzak make the most of their Vancouver location standing in for Pittsburgh. The film is bathed in a warm Autumn glow in the outdoor scenes, and as long as you aren’t looking too closely you’ll buy that the film was shot in the Fall (closer looks will have you noticing that most of the trees on the street outside the apartment aren’t real, and one wide shot across a river looks like a painting on the other side). But the film succeeds on Williams’ infectious performance, making you believe she truly loves the Fall weather and changing leaves, and more importantly truly cares about everyone around her to the point of neglecting herself. And that is really the message of Falling Together — think about others but take time for yourself because life is too short. These are definitely words to live by, and this is a wonderful movie to help deliver that message.
Falling Together has a run time of 1 hour 24 minutes, and is rated TV-G.
Hallmark Channel
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