If you like poetry, especially historically famous poetry, then the first half of this movie will appeal to you more than it did to me. I'm deaf when it comes to poetry.
This movie is based on the secret admirer premise but about half way through there is a very nice twist. Fooled me completely. The reveal is not long after that and it is a little twisty also. That leads into the conflict which is where I had trouble following the why's of it. I thought Kallie overreacted and getting things put back together was a little rough.
I really liked the muffin metaphor toward the end.
Vanessa Sears and Franco Lo Presti were OK together but by no means sizzling chemistry.
I can't say much for the dialogue and there were a lot of sequences with little or no dialogue.
Plot summary
Kallie Sharp (Vanessa Sears) is carrying a pail in the barnyard when she quickly responds to a man calling her name. Tia, one of her goats, escaped to the neighboring farm. Her neighbor Jackson Flynt (Franco Lo Presti) is upset he has to again collect the goat for Kallie and reminds her of his offer to buy her land. Kallie promises to fix the gate.Kallie leads a bit of a lonely life but enjoys her beautiful farm and her cute goats and talks to them like family. She is fulfilling her dream of developing her goat milk skin care line and doesn't have time for romance or the pest next door, Jackson who farms the massive acreage that once belonged to Kallie's family and is constantly reminding her of his offer to buy her property, too.Sahara (Madeleine Claude), Kallie's best friend, calls to invite her to a housewarming party that evening at 7:00 p.m. Kallie readily accepts. Kallie is successfully selling her cremes and lotions online. That day, she has 13 new orders which she boxes up and sends off with her courier (Jeff Irving) who receives free lotion for his baby's eczema as part of his compensation. Kallie opens her mailbox and receives an unexpected letter telling her that her life will unfold like the bloom on a rose. She thinks the letter is advertising from a real estate broker.Kallie also sells her lotions at the local farmers market where she is joined by her mother Caroline (Kim Roberts) at their stand. People are pleased Kallie is back in the neighborhood. Caroline and Mrs. Satti (Ronica Sajnani), a local spa owner, make sure Kallie is reacquainted with the spa owner's son and Kallie's old school pal, Dex (Fuad Ahmed) who is now a high school teacher at Willow High.Jackson is also at the farmer's market where he is approached by Alison Fletcher (Sugenja Sri) who wants to do a story on Jackson for the magazine Rural Heartbeat. Jackson, a former horse jumping champion, recently purchased Caroline's farm which Alison spins as saving a local farm. Jackson has no interest in Alison's offer.Kallie also meets the attractive new veterinarian, Dr. Grant (William J. Edwards) who is visibly attracted to Kallie when she brings her goat in for a checkup after eating something digestively upsetting in Jackson's barn. That night Kallie attends Sahara's housewarming party in which Kallie and Sahara's realtor are the only guests. Kallie identifies Sahara's obvious attempt to set her up on a date.Kallie has no time for love. She is taken aback when a second love letter appears in her mailbox. She reads the love poems and romantic phrases with no signature attached. Kallie takes the letter to Sahara who is a librarian. Sahara identifies the letter as a famous historical love letter and identifies a book on the shelf for reference.Jackson stops by the next morning with a box of items left by Kallie's mother when she vacated the farm. Jackson asks about Caroline's wellbeing. Kallie informs Jackson that Caroline found a satisfying new life. A stop at her mailbox reveals receipt of a third love letter. Kallie is intrigued as to who her secret admirer might be. Kallie takes the box Jackson delivered to Caroline's LP and coffee shop. Sahara is there considering buying a vintage LP for her husband for their anniversary. Kallie shows them the most recent letter. Both are thrilled Kallie has a secret admirer.At the library, Kallie realizes a theme in the letters of a shared past. She leaves Sahara to compare some handwriting. Kallie arrives at the high school to hear Dex dismissing his chemistry class. Kallie suggests they catch up. After a lingering student suggests coffee, Dex makes a lunch date for Saturday with Kallie at Maeve's.The next morning, Callie is reading her latest letter to her goats when Jackson comes by to reiterate his offer to buy Callie's property. He asks Callie about what she was reading, and Callie tells him she received a love letter. Jackson cautions Callie to be careful of strangers but also recognizes that Callie is intrigued by the letters.At the library, Jackson checks out "Darkness on Death" from a series Kallie has put on reserve. He gives Sahara the excuse that Kallie has ruined the plot of all the previous books by reading then to her goats. Kallie discusses Jackson's repeated purchase offers with her mother at the coffee shop. Her mother promises Kallie that she reserved Kallie's grandmother's home and land for her, bur defends Jackson ownership of her land in that he will carry on many of the Sharp family traditions including hosting the town fair and barn dance. Caroline has also heard of Kallie's date with Dex from Sahara whom Caroline treats like a daughter.Kallie continues to get even more of the treasured love letters. Kallie again visits the library. Sahara apologizes for letting Jackson get the book Kallie reserved stating Kallie and Jackson have much in common. Kallie shows Sahara her latest love letters which have a nature and nautical theme. Kallie has narrowed the mystery writer down to two prospects, Dex who has a history minor in college and Dr. Grant who have sailboat pictures in his office. Kallie resolves to date both of them to see who confesses.Over the next several days, Kallie has lunch and milkshakes with Dex and dinner with Dr. Grant. She shoots rockets with Dex and drinks wine with Dr. Grant. Meanwhile, Jackson works on his farm repairing a tractor. The letters keep coming. One morning Kallie is off to a late start on her work day which Jackson notices. Being neighborly, he offers his help. Callie invites him into her kitchen to help with her soap-making. Little sparks start to fly as she describes how Jackson owns her family home. She tells Jackson the home Kallie is living in was refurbished by herself and her dad which is a cherished memory. Just before he leaves, Jackson gives Kallie the library book he borrowed that Kallie had reserved without reading it. Jackson said he always wanted to be a writer but found he was not so skilled with words.Kallie is at the library showing Sahara the 13th love letter Kallie received which speaks of a man losing sleep for Kallie but without the previous natural or nautical theme. Alison Fletcher is browsing among the shelves and cannot help overhearing their conversation. Alison proposes a story on Kallie and the love letters mystery for the Rural Heartbeat magazine. Kallie is initially uncomfortable having her personal life written about in a magazine, but Alison offers six months free advertising of Kallie's Goddess Goat skin care line if the story is published and gives Kallie just one night to consider the agreement.The next day, Kallie is at the Rural Heartbeat offices. She has a photoshoot and is interviewed about the love letters. A photo where Kallie tosses the letters into the air becomes Rural Heartbeat's next cover. Dex, Dr. Grant, and Jackson all become aware of the popular local article. Sahara confides in Caroline that Kallie being in the article in unlike the private person Kallie is. Caroline is proud of her daughter in that she has opened herself up to possibility, dating two successful men, and has her own successful business. Sahara fears the whole situation could blow up on Kallie.The weather turns stormy and Tia the goat is missing again. Jackson helps Kallie look for her and they finally locate the goat in Jackson's barn. There Kallie learns Jackson's noble intention to turn the property into a therapeutic riding camp for kids in memory of his sister and that is the reason Jackson was so interested in acquiring more land. Jackson asks if Kallie had received any more love letters. Kallie is surprised Jackson read the article. Jackson asks if she is any closer to uncovering the mystery writer. Kallie says no and is ready to put the whole episode behind her. Jackson says he thought Kallie was having fun dating Dex and Dr. Grant, but Kallie admits she had more fun making soap with Jackson. Just as they are about to kiss, Tia interrupts by butting a nearby table. Kallie decides she needs to get the goat home.The next day Kallie gets an email from Dex and roses from Dr. Grant as they try to up their game. Jackson invites Kallie to go to Mr. Fisher's (Ted Atherton) ranch which was Jackson's previous training camp There are two horses there that Jackson would like to buy for his riding camp. When Jackson takes a phone call, Kallie learns that Jackson was the best rider in his class and could have had professional aspirations. Jackson and Kallie take the horses out for a ride. When they stop, Jackson tells Kallie he was riding since he was four years old but ultimately stopped competing when his parents died when Jackson was 19. He was left to take care of his disabled sister Jane. Jackson goes on to explain that Mr. Fisher was like a second father to him. Jackson also realizes that Kallie's business is going better than even she expected so he will have limited ability to ever acquire the additional land.Kallie texts Sahara that she thinks she is in love with Jackson Flynt. Sahara shares the news with Kallie's mother Caroline. Caroline insists however, that they deliver the last love letter thus revealing the source of the letters. Jackson is parked in his truck near Kallie's mailbox and catches Sahara delivering the last love letter.Jackson's farm is hosts a carnival for the local kids. Kallie has a stand selling her Goddess Goat skin care line with Sahara. Jackson is operating one of the carnival games. Alison approaches him with a glass of lemonade and is openly flirtatious. Later, Jackson asks Sahara whether she has told Kallie the truth about the letters trying to shield Kallie from getting hurt.Kallie tries on a mountain of dresses before selecting a stunning red dress for the barn dance. Dez and Dr. Grant are in attendance but Kallie tells Sahara that she has ignored them since neither one admitted being the sender of the letters. Jackson approaches and Caroline encourages Jackson and Kallie to dance together. Sahara urges Caroline to tell Kallie about the source of the letters. Caroline says they served their purpose and got Kallie's head out of books and into the possibilities of real life and there is no point in telling her their origin.Kallie and Jackson dance the night away. Kallie reveals how she and her mother managed to move on after her father's death. Kallie is glad her mother found her own life so she does not have time to meddle in hers. Infuriated by the attention Jackson is giving Kallie, Alison grabs the microphone and attempts to solve the mystery of Kallie love letters openly asking Dex, Dr. Grant and even Jackson if they are the source. The men remain silent. Finally Caroline steps forward and admits sending the letters embarrassing Kallie in front of the entire community. Kallie is not entirely surprised that her mother was behind the letters but is shocked Sahara was her accomplice. Caroline explains that she wanted her daughter to get away from the farm and explore the mysteries in her own life. Kallie rejects that her mother quickly sold the farm after her father's death taking away so many memories without Kallie's blessing. Kallie leaves the dance. Jackson trails behind.Outside the dance, Jackson tries to offer Kallie some consolation telling her that the episode is finally over. Kallie believes she has been humiliated in front of the whole town. Jackson tells Kallie she is lucky to have people in her life that care about her happiness that they would go to such great lengths to help her find love. Jackson lets it slip that he knew about the source of the letters. He then tells Kallie he staked out her mailbox the previous night and learned the truth. Kallie is upset he did not share that knowledge with her and tells Jackson that she actually wished it was Jackson that was sending the letters but thinks Jackson was toying with her affections to get possession of her land. Kallie drives off even more upset without giving Jackson a chance to explain.Kallie goes on with her life, reading the final letter and filling the many internet orders she is getting for her skin care line. One morning, Sahara and Caroline arrive for coffee. Her mother tells Kallie that she was hoping Kallie would open herself up to the possibility of a relationship. Caroline tells Kallie that the letters were the same ones she received from her father. It seems Caroline was engaged to someone else and her father, a school friend of Caroline's, sent the 14 letters on the days leading up to Caroline's wedding. It inspired Caroline to call off her wedding and find real happiness with her father. The letters were meant only to inspire Kallie, but Kallie turned it into a mystery to solve. Kallie no longer believes anyone in town would date her anymore, but Sahara offers she believes Kallie and Jackson have a real connection. Kallie counters that she messed up that relationship all on her own.Jackson has just finished calling off a purchase from Mr. Fisher when Kallie arrives. Kallie tries to make amends, but Jackson says he simply got caught up with something and distances himself from Kallie.Jackson decides to go for one last ride at Fisher's ranch. Mr. Fisher finds Jackson loitering by the gate. Mr. Fisher Is surprised Jackson is alone and has not brought Kallie and implies that Jackson really wants Callie to be his girl. Jackson tries to deny that Kallie is anything but a friend. Fisher says he observed that Jackson kept his heart well-guarded since the death of Jackson 's parents and sister death. Fisher, however, has always hoped Jackson would eventually find someone who could break through his fences. Jackson leaves for his ride.Kallie is talking with Sahara at the library. Kallie tells Sahara about how Jackson would hardly look at her when she visited. Sahara says Jackson put himself out there and that means something. She goes on to tell a story of how when she and her husband Rob were dating, he would always give her the top part of the muffin they were sharing. She later learned that Rob did not prefer the bottom but wanted to give Sahara the best part. He showed his love by sacrificing something so Sahara would have what she wanted. This inspires Kallie and she quickly exits.Kallie goes to Mr. Fisher to ask a favor of which Fisher is more than willing to comply.Jackson goes to his mailbox and finds a letter which directs him to the shelter from the storm, the barn. From there Jackson is directed to the property line, where he finds a third letter that leads him to Rocket and Dash, Mr. Fisher's horses that are in Kallie's field. Kallie is there and tells Jackson the horses are on loan until Jackson can buy them. She offers all of her lands except her garden and goat pen for Jackson's therapeutic riding camp. Jackson also has a letter for Kallie. Kallie however, tosses the letter and says that all she wants is Jackson and kisses him. Jackson tells Kallie he has had trouble expressing his feelings but is not interested in her land but in making her happy. He declares he is in love with Kallie. Kallie admits the feeling is mutual. They kiss again
February 21, 2023 at 02:50 AM
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Poetry and mystery
Sweet movie!
I thought this was a precious movie. The main characters had amazing chemistry. Kallie is a genuine character who I couldn't help but cheer for throughout the movie. Job well done!
Very good
The chemistry between the actors was amazing. The story was very good Heck yes I will highly recommend it Very good movie. James Welch Henderson Arkansas 8/4/2022.