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Happy New Year! We’ve made it through the holidays — or two-and-a-half months of Christmas movies — and after a merciful week off, Hallmark is back to warm up our dark, cold winter nights with the return of the Winter Escape movies all set in much warmer climes than a large portion of viewers in the US are currently experiencing. And who else gets to kick off the month but the Queen of Hallmark, Lacey Chabert, who finds herself somewhere in Fiji but not quite in the way she expected.
Chabert stars as fashion designer and company CEO Sophia (last names don’t matter in the credits, apparently, but it may be Tierra), who gets the devastating news that her ex and business partner Mario (Paul Hughes) has lost faith in the company and is preparing to alert the board that he is selling his shares in the high-end company to a rival with somewhat lower standards, causing Sophia to fear for the reputation she and her team have built with high quality fashion. She feels the only way to save the company is to appeal directly to the board members who may not be as quick to sell as Mario is, but her main target is on vacation in Fiji so Sophia packs up the latest collection — and her doggie Gianni — and books a last minute private flight to the islands. Ian Harding co-stars as Max, a chef whose boss is always stealing his thunder, taking the dishes Max has carefully prepared and presenting them to high-end celebs as his own. Max previously had his own pop-up eatery but the business of running things got out of control while he was more focused on the menu, so now he’s a little gun shy about going back into business for himself. His pal Julian, though, has an opportunity for him — a wealthy investor is very interested in funding a new restaurant with Max as the chef, but he’s currently vacationing in … Fiji. It just so happens that Julian is also a pilot, and he and co-pilot Lance are the ones flying Sophia to the islands so this is the perfect opportunity for Max to hitch a ride. There’s just one catch — since they have a previously unscheduled passenger in Sophia, Max has to pretend to be a flight attendant since no one else is to be aboard the plane with the passenger. Max reluctantly plays along and wows Sophia with some of his gastronomical creations, but there is an emergency as the plane is battered by turbulence from a storm, the pilots losing control, the plane plunging into the ocean.
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Not to worry, this is a Hallmark movie so everyone including Gianni survives. Sophia wakes up on the beach after being unconscious, and while Julian and Lance head out to sea in a raft to try to figure out where they are or find help from a passing ship, Sophia and Max are left to fend for themselves on the beach. Luckily Max has watched every episode of Survivor, so he knows they need to build a shelter and fire, but his firemaking skills would not win him a million dollars. Luckily Sophia remembers a magnifying glass in her sewing kit and she uses it to instantly start a fire. Sadly, much of the clothing she packed is ruined from being in the ocean, and Max has to ask her to sacrifice something so he can tie the shelter together. After a day on the beach, hunger sets in and they decide to try their hand at spear fishing, with Max making a catch and preparing a gourmet dish with found items on the island. Sophia also begins sewing some clothing for Max to replace the polyester shirt he’s wearing — not optimal for a tropical climate — and they both find that this experience has brought them back to the things they actually love. But they have no idea where Julian and Lance are, and don’t know if help is coming but while exploring their surroundings they hear voices and find a camp that has only recently been vacated as there is still a fire burning. There is also a duffel bag full of cash which causes Max to panic — they’ve stumbled upon a band of pirates (the modern kind, not the yo-ho-ho kind from the Caribbean). And the pirates have seen them, so now Max and Sophia have to run for their lives and hide before something terrible happens. Can they outsmart the pirates? Will Julian be able to find them before they become shark bait? Will love save the day, or will professional obligations split them apart? I think you know all the answers.
Lacey Chabert is always a welcome sight on Hallmark, and you generally expect that any movie she’s in will be of the highest calibre. Just in 2025, she appeared in a Valentine’s Day movie, a Halloween movie and a Christmas movie, so it seems only natural that she should help kick off the new year on Hallmark. Unfortunately, as anticipated as Lost in Paradise was, it just falls a bit flat in the story department (and it’s not helped by the pretty ridiculous resolution). The movie also occasionally flirts with Sophia being a Miranda Priestly/Anna Wintour fashionista (w)itch in a couple of scenes early in the movie, but it is quickly apparent that she is not that kind of person. And who would expect her to be, especially when played by Chabert? We pretty much know what kind of character to expect from her at this point. (And that’s not a complaint. It would be really odd to see her play totally against type.) Where the story, by Stephanie Jackson and Zach Lewis, drops the ball is when they get to the island. Not a lot happens. We never really believe either Sophia or Max are in danger — although Gianni seems to disappear for long stretches which does cause some worry — and most of their time is spent talking, cooking, sewing and actually enjoying being marooned. The only real action comes in the last act when they find the pirates, but that even ends as they hide, talk and sleep. Of course they are rescued (and there is a silly twist with the pirates) but the resolution is a bit eye-rolling because they were … well, we won’t spoil it completely. It’s only after they return to civilization that their personal business gets in the way of their potential romance with a missed connection that eats at both of them — usually the plot device is a misunderstanding that causes hurt feelings but not even that happens here — and it all comes to a happy ending for them both getting to do what they love — together! It’s just not the greatest story ever written and there really never is any life or death situations for the characters (we fear more for Julian and Lance out in the middle of the ocean in a raft that looks barely inflated than we do Sophia and Max). It’s just all aggressively pleasant.
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That’s not to say the leads are at fault in any way. If you had to be marooned on an island with anyone, it would be Chabert … or at least the Hallmark persona of Chabert. Even in tough situations, she always has a smile, is always optimistic, always pleasant to be around. There is nothing groundbreaking in her performance but she is always a reliable player, giving you exactly what you expect. If you can’t fall in love with the character, then there would be no reason to even watch the movie. Chabert makes it easy to fall for Sophia and that at least makes the movie as enjoyable as it can be (even though we also have to wonder why she isn’t keeping a better eye on Gianni). Ian Harding is also terrific as Max, able to bring a little more neuroses to the character, making him a little more well-rounded but even when he almost seems to be giving in to worst case scenario syndrome, Harding is still able to quickly bring Max back to a happy place, becoming the provider of food to keep them alive, discovering in himself what his true passion is with the food he prepares. Along with Sophia rediscovering her love for actually creating fashion, the entire experience informs what comes next for them. Harding just brings an irresistible charm to Max, making him someone else you’d want to be stranded with if the situation arose. Chabert and Harding have wonderful chemistry together, and while the story doesn’t give them a lot to do, it’s still pleasant enough watching the characters begin to develop feelings for each other.
As Chabert and Harding are on screen for the majority of the movie, the co-stars have to work a little harder to get noticed. James Trevena is completely gung-ho as Max’s friend Julian, giving off some serious Chris Hemsworth vibes and at times sounding like he’s struggling to make his New Zealand accent sound American. Sean Miguel Perez is pretty funny as the eternally pessimistic co-pilot Lance, who is a bit too matter-of-fact about their chances of survival. Lauren Gibson is also good as Sophia’s assistant Miranda, stepping up to take care of things after her boss and friend goes missing, taking charge with Julian to lead the search of the islands by helicopter. Paul Hughes has a few scenes as Mario, mostly by himself as he’s talking to Sophia by phone about his plans to sell, but at least he shows concern and puts his own interests aside while the search of Sophia gets underway. Everyone in the cast gives it their all and are really responsible for lifting the movie up to make it better than average.
All in all, Lost in Paradise is a nice respite from the overdose of holiday cheer, transporting viewers in colder parts of the country to a warm, tropical island with two immensely likable actors/characters. It may not be an earth-shaking story, and the characters may never be in any real danger, but it gives us just what Hallmark promises — a Winter Escape.
Lost in Paradise has a run time of 1 hour 24 minutes, is rated TV-G, and is streaming on Hallmark+.
Preview – Lost in Paradise
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Listen to Farewell Medley (Aloha ‘OE) by Gabby Pahinui featured in Lost in Paradise