MOVIE REVIEW
Expecting a Miracle:Hallmark Channel Movie starring Teri Polo (“Meet the Parents"), Jason Priestley (“Beverly Hills 90210”) and Cheech Marin (“Nash Bridges").
CAST:
Teri Polo ... Donna
Jason Priestley ... Pete
Cheech Marin ... Father Arturo
Shalim Ortiz ... Tito
Kevin Hernandez ... Pepillo
Rebeka Montoya ... Magdalena
PLOT:
from Hallmark-
A couple at a difficult junction in their marriage will discover it is exactly where they need to be in “Expecting a Miracle”. Teri Polo, Jason Priestley, and Cheech Marin star in the romantic comedy that leads a young couple on an unexpected adventure to a small town in Mexico with life-altering results.
When Pete (Priestley) and Donna (Polo), a busy professional couple, are told their latest fertility test is negative, their world crashes down around them. Their once-strong marriage quickly unravels and literally goes south when a business associate of Pete’s offers them the
use of his vacation home in Mexico.
But the getaway takes an unexpected detour across the border when they take a wrong turn on a dirt road, leaving them with a damaged SUV, far from a main highway and out of cell phone range. When they spot a nearby sign pointing to the town of Dommatina, they agree to head there for repairs. What happens in the tiny village over the next six days not only changes the lives of the couple but of all of the townspeople they meet, including a kind priest (Marin) and a young boy. When all is lost, it takes a village to create a miracle.
Movie Review:
A couple going through this same situation of infertility- may find this moving uplifting and encouraging. Otherwise, I found this movie to be slow-moving and odd.
This couple (Pete and Donna) are supposed to be on vacation together - relaxing, yet this little boy, Pepillo, would come and pound on their door early every morning to get Pete (played by Jason Priestley) up to help Father Arturo build an aerial-harness project for the upcoming fiesta. The local mechanic, Juan (Pepillo's brother), was supposed to be helping with the project, but instead, he's busy trying to fix Pete and Donna's broken down SUV. Donna, in the meantime, starts helping with Juan's fiancee and the local children she teaches.
In my opinion... in real life, the couple would have just abandoned their vehicle, thrown down a credit card, rented another car, and gone on their merry way... to the vacation spot they were initially headed towards.
It seems the couple all too quickly becomes involved with everything going on in this small community. The locals and children quickly trust this couple and the couple quickly trust all the people in this town. It all seems too easy and perfect.
And then there's 90210.... It has been years since Beverly Hills 90210 aired, yet Jason Priestley still looks so much like Brandon Walsh and everytime he called his wife Donna... it bugged me, just a bit.
I love Hallmark Movies, usually... but this is just not one of them... yet, I really like Teri Polo and Jason Priestley, as actors. If you are looking for a sweet romantic Hallmark Movie, then I suggest, Straight from the Heart, starring Teri Polo, instead.
See or Skip:
I must suggest skipping this one.