So, today was supposed to be my day-off from blogging. But it looks like Entertainment Tonight had other plans. Yesterday, on November 19th, ET’s Deidre Behar broke the news about the newest film from Hallmark’s longest running series, When Calls the Heart! The article reveals the movie’s synopsis, as well as some tidbits about season seven. Before writing this Word on the Street story, I read Deidre’s article. In my opinion, I was not impressed with the movie’s synopsis. It, honestly, makes me concerned for the next season. Because this is a post related to movie news, I will share what the ET article said and discuss my opinions on it. This article is not meant to be negative or mean-spirited, but only honest yet respectful.
Based on the fact that this plot was featured first, I’m guessing that Elizabeth’s story is going to be the main plot of When Calls the Heart: Home for Christmas. The article states that “Elizabeth Thornton is excited to celebrate her first Christmas with her son, Jack, as well as his first birthday on Christmas Eve”. It also mentions how she is still grieving her late husband. When I talked about the previous When Calls the Heart movie, When Calls the Heart: The Greatest Christmas Blessing, in a Word on the Street story last December, I said that the film’s trailer put too much emphasis on Elizabeth and her baby. Even though her story was not the film’s main focus, it felt like the overall narrative was turning into “The Elizabeth Thornton Show”. Since the season five finale, When Calls the Heart has started to become more focused on Elizabeth. To me, the screenwriters have given her a perspective that is more self-centered and entitled than in previous seasons. Because of these things, I feel that Elizabeth is going to find a way to make her child’s milestones all about herself. The aforementioned quote that I included in this paragraph is a good example of this. In my review of last year’s When Calls the Heart film, I said that the subplots were one of the weakest points of the project. This included Elizabeth’s subplot, where it seemed like she could only talk about two things; how she was pregnant and how she missed Jack. It seems like Elizabeth’s story is being reduced to almost the exact same thing.
Like I said in the previous paragraph, I wasn’t a fan of the subplots from last year’s movie, When Calls the Heart: The Greatest Christmas Blessing. This year, it looks the screenwriters are repeating the same mistakes. Bill, Lee, and Rosemary’s subplots revolve around the exact same thing: getting a Christmas/Birthday gift for Jack. I find their stories to be uninteresting. These characters deserve good subplots and larger roles on the show, so it’s a shame to see them get relegated to practically sitting on the side-lines. Even the subplots that Lucas and Nate were given don’t sound that creative. Once again, Nate is dealing with an issue related to his niece, Allie. Throughout season six, Nate’s story consisted of dealing with situations related to Allie, so I’m not sure how this subplot is going to be any different. As for Lucas, he will apparently be “transforming Main Street into a magical German Christmas Festival”. Correct me if I’m wrong, but Lucas doesn’t have any German ancestry that I know of. The only thing closest to ancestry that Lucas has ever hinted at is when he said he was from New Orleans and when he spoke French in one phone conversation. We also just got a festival in the season six finale. Maybe Lucas will share more of his back-story in this film. But, for now, his subplot just seems random and redundant.
I love When Calls the Heart and I want to see it succeed. As someone who has seen all six seasons and all the movies, I care about the overall quality of each project. However, I find myself feeling frustrated by what I read in the Entertainment Tonight article. To me, it seems like the show’s screenwriters are not only running out of ideas, but also like they are missing beautiful story-telling opportunities. When Jesse proposed to Clara in the season six finale, I was hoping that we’d finally get a Christmas wedding in Hope Valley. Since there are few wedding related movies found in Hallmark’s Christmas line-ups this year, this could have been an interesting story for When Calls the Heart to bring to the table. Instead, the screenwriters have decided to place the wedding in season seven, according to the ET article. Out of all of stories that were mentioned, the only one I’m looking forward to is the one involving Carson and Faith. This is because it has the potential to be funny and intriguing. Even though the movie’s synopsis doesn’t impress me, I still want to watch When Calls the Heart: Home for Christmas with an open mind. Maybe it’ll be better than the article makes it sound. But, for now, my expectations will be lower than they were for the previous film.
What are your thoughts on Entertainment Tonight’s article? Are you looking forward to this new When Calls the Heart movie? Let me know in the comment section!
Have fun at the movies!
Sally Silverscreen
Here’s the link to the article that I referenced in my post:
18 Cinema Lane 