A Picture of Her

Whenever Tyler Hynes is involved, I'm in, I really, really love his work and personality. This movie had not the greatest script, but Tyler and Rhiannon Fish did their best with incredible chemistry, humor, and I liked the instant genuine connection between the two. The aunt and the father were perfectly casted too, I liked their input very much. The movie was a lot quieter and slower in a good way, than we had seen both leads before. I've read a comment from someone, who thought, that Tyler Hynes didn't want to be in the movie, but I felt, that it was his way to play a somewhat disillusioned character, a photographer, who couldn't earn his living with his art and hated his own paparazzi work, but needed it nonetheless. Rhiannon is her bubbly, vivacious self, if you watch her interviews, she is just the same. And so I felt, that I get to see here a lot Tyler and Rhiannon, not only Jake and Beth. I already watched the movie 3 times, and believe me, it grows on you. Thank you, Hallmark, for the development of your movies from the boring formula to something fresh and genuine and for the support of interesting actors and their ideas!

This story was going so well! But unfortunately, the creators did not use the potential.

While the main character (Tyler Hynes) plays quite OK and you can actually feel that he is the photographer, his film partner (Rhiannon Fish) is childish and does not reflect the character at all. She plays a 17-year-old imprisoned in the body of an adult woman (her facial expressions and sweet voice are so irritating that I thought about muting her voice).

This story... this story could have turned out very differently. Unfortunately we have another Hallmark movie. Eh.

I'm really looking forward to a good romantic comedy. Anyone?

8.0 stars.

The film opens with a fisherwoman named Beth as first mate on her dad's boat in the Pacific Northwest. They learn of her aunt being injured so Beth goes to Los Angeles to take care of her while she convalesces. While in the city she meets a photojournalist named Jake and they fall in love. She soon finds out he has been lying to her, and in the midst of her grief she leaves the city never to return. Jake is left hanging and wishing he could have saved this fragile relationship he so callously dismantled.

The story is different than any Hallmark I've ever seen. First of all, there are few movies that showcase a professional photographer of his caliber, and the fact he's a paparazzi is interesting and fresh. Her character is not very fascinating, but I think she is a very pretty actress so there's wiggle room. Fish does have some idiosyncratic mannerisms that might be disenchanting for some viewers, but I still find her alluring. I feel I'm strangely in the minority based on the multiple scathing reviews.

'A Picture of Her' is an entertaining film for two reasons, the first being that the synergy between Hynes and Fish is undeniable. When they kiss it's real, there's no faking that level of chemistry. I like that she initiates the affection most of the time leaving us to feel like he's a real gentleman in spite of the biker boy/bad boy image he manifests. Secondly, this film provides a solid romance and a very enticing story. Don't focus on the nonessentials, keep your eye on the vibrancy and mystique that Hynes and Fish exude on the screen.

I have always liked Tyler, but was surprised that this character was so complex... so perfectly portrayed. For me, the in-depth picture was not in the girl's picture he (as a paparazzi type), took of her. Rather, it was the male motorcycle driving, self introspective photographer Tyler created for us. You know him by the end of the film: inside and out.

The film is well written, well filmed, and so very well acted and directed. I highly recommend this movie to all audiences.

And, for those Tyler fans, those who know him as not only an actor, but also in his roles as writer, producer, and director... you will not be surprised, but thankful. For, with this picture, we see Tyler at his best. Enjoy!

And no, I am not just talking about Australia's Rhiannon Fish (or is that Canada's Rhiannon Fish?) who is at her radiant and effervescent best in this film, opposite Hallmark favourite, Tyler Hynes. Their chemistry is off the charts, right from their first scene together - one of the most outstanding casting decisions Hallmark has made in a long time - and Fish nails her role, delivering a bubbly performance as Beth, opposite Hynes' photographer Jake. Their banter is A-grade, too.

Maybe I wouldn't be giving this 7 stars had it not been for Tyler Hynes and Rhiannon Fish.

The scenes in and around British Columbia that stand in for Washington state (as BC so often does in these productions) add another layer of beauty to what is a well-shot film.

P. S. Multiple (heavy!) kisses before the final minutes of the movie? What is this, Hallmark from an alternate universe?