Happy weekend, everyone! It's been a rainy week for us - with more rain on the way. I'm hearing a lot of places have been experiencing flooding across the U.S., so if that's you or near your area, please be safe. This just might be a good weekend to stay inside and watch a movie or two. I've been catching up with some of the UPtv rom-coms, and I finally watched/streamed the first episode of A Thousand Tomorrows, the new bull-riding series on Pureflix. You can read my review on it below, plus check out details on the new movies...
Saturday, March 25, 2023:
Storyline: Beth (Rhiannon Fish) unwittingly becomes the subject of an award-winning magazine’s cover and goes on a quest to uncover the true identity of the mystery photographer who snapped her photo.
Rhiannon Fish and Tyler Hynes movies on DVD:
Saturday, March 25, 2023:
It's now 9 months 'til Christmas! Here at "It's a Wonderful Movie," we highlight EVERY 25th Day of the Month TOGETHER as we Countdown to CHRISTMAS DAY! You can join along simply by choosing something Christmassy to watch on this day.
Since Great American Family is currently doing their Jingle Bell Bracket and since we are getting closer to Easter, I decided my movie choice will be the faith-based Christmas movie A Christmas... Present, starring Candace Cameron Bure and Marc Blucas. The movie has a beautiful message of being present at Christmas, letting go of the stress, and being still in the midst of all the busyness while recognizing the true Gift of the season... Jesus!
If you'd like to Countdown to Christmas with us and join in the Christmas movie watch party, please share your Christmas movie pick to *Mark the 25th* in the comment section below!
Great American Family Christmas movies on DVD:
Sunday, March 26, 2023:
Crossword Mysteries Movie Marathon
on Hallmark Movies & Mysteries:
CROSSWORD MYSTERIES: A PUZZLE TO DIE FOR - 3PM
CROSSWORD MYSTERIES: PROPOSING MURDER - 5PM
CROSSWORD MYSTERIES: ABRACADAVER - 7PM
CROSSWORD MYSTERIES: TERMINAL DESCENT -9PM
Crossword Mysteries on DVD:
Sunday, March 26, 2023:
UPtv Marathon Schedule:
LOVE FINDS YOU IN CHARM - 9AM
RUNAWAY ROMANCE - 11AM
LOVE FINDS YOU IN SUGARCREEK - 1PM
LOVE FINDS YOU IN CHARM - 3PM
PLUS ONE AT AN AMISH WEDDING - 5PM
BEVERLY LEWIS’ THE CONFESSION: MUSICAL - 7PM *NEW
Amish Movies on DVD:
Sunday, March 26, 2023:
*NOTE: This is a little different than the average movie. The Confession Musical is a stage adaptation of the New York Times best-selling book series “The Heritage of Lancaster County,” written by Beverly Lewis. This program airs for THREE HOURS - from 7pm/6c. to 10pm/9c.
Storyline: In this musical adaptation of Beverly Lewis’ beloved novels, two worlds collide when a young Amish girl discovers she was adopted by a wealthy family. As she seeks her birth mother, she must overcome the obstacles of a lost fiance and a crafty gold-digger who seeks the fortune of her birth mother.
My Thoughts on Ride and A Thousand Tomorrows:
For those of you who have been asking, the new Hallmark Channel television series Ride does premiere this Sunday night; however, I wanted you to be aware one of the characters, Tuff McMurray (portrayed by Jake Foy), is an openly gay cowboy. Tuff is the youngest son of Isabel (Nancy Travis), so it appears he will be one of the major characters throughout the series. Due to my own moral and religious beliefs, I will not be watching or promoting this series.
As I mentioned in my intro, I finally had the chance this week to stream A Thousand Tomorrows on Pureflix, the new streaming series based on Karen Kingsbury's book. Well, I was hoping this series might be the family-friendly alternative to Ride, since both are series about bull riding, country life, horses, romance, etc..., but for me, personally, it wasn't. I can understand needing to show character development and change from being a sinner to finding redemption, but 10-15 minutes into the first episode, we see the main lead male character, Cody Gunner, in a bar drinking with his friends after a rodeo competition. As Cody pays his bill for the drinks, a random woman is sitting next to him at the bar, and at first, Cody doesn't seem interested, but then she asks if he wants to "talk," and he finally gives in, and they leave together. None of the intimacy part is shown, but the next morning we can clearly see they've had a one-night stand. I was absolutely floored and shocked, as this was definitely not something I was expecting to see just minutes into a series on Pureflix that I was watching with my family. Needless to say, I was extremely disappointed. After seeing this content and the way the other bull riders constantly talked about women in a lustful sort of way, the rest of the series is a pass for me.
New Movies:
Hopefully, the new movies airing this weekend will be good, and you all will get a chance to check them out. I'm quite curious about The Confession Musical on UPtv. I'm not sure if I'll get a chance to see ALL 3 HOURS of it Sunday night, but I will watch a little and record the rest.
"Now Jesus was going up to Jerusalem. On the way, he took the Twelve aside and said to them, “We are going up to Jerusalem, and the Son of Man will be delivered over to the chief priests and the teachers of the law. They will condemn Him to death and will hand Him over to the Gentiles to be mocked and flogged and crucified. On the third day He will be raised to life!”
Disclaimer: Please know when I share a movie, this is NOT an endorsement of any of the actors involved, personally or professionally, with their other TV/film projects.
I hope to 1 day see A Thousand Tomorrows on DVD, looks like an incredible show! -Maria
ReplyDeleteMaria, I was hopeful about this series, but I was very disappointed with the first episode. Be sure to read my review above before watching.
DeletePaucity of choice here.
ReplyDeleteI'm personally not a fan of musicals (Mamma Mia excepted).
It will be interesting to see how Rhiannon Fish and Tyler Hynes combine together - Florence
Florence, I've been wondering about Rhiannon and Tyler too. I think they look like a fun match in the promos. I was also wondering if they both might be single in real-life. They seem like they would make a cute couple - on & off screen!
DeleteRhiannon is NOT single. Shes dating Richard Harmon and has been for years. And they've both been in Hallmark movies that premiered pretty close together.
DeleteTyler is very close on his private life - apparently he has a long-time partner and there are numerous rumours that they are actually married - Florence
DeleteI'll join you Net in watching A Christmas... Present this weekend. My husband hasn't seen it yet and I've been telling him he has to see it. I mostly liked the church scene at the end. Paula
ReplyDeletePaula, Thank you for joining in! I hope your husband enjoys "A Christmas... Present" too! I know just what you mean about that church scene at the end - it always chokes me up a little - it's sooo beautiful! Enjoy watching! :)
DeleteThat's too bad about A Thousand Tomorrows. I bet that was awkward seeing that scene with your family in the room. That doesn't sound like something I would be interested in seeing either, even at my age and with no children present. My friend read the book and she said she was sobbing at the end.
ReplyDeleteThank you for your comment. Yes, it was very uncomfortable watching A Thousand Tomorrows with my family when that scene was shown of Cody having the one-night stand. Like I said above, I can understand wanting to show character development and growth, but instead of showing what they did, I think they could've just shown him dating several different women. That would've been enough to get the picture.
DeleteSo much for the channel being “Pureflix.” π
DeleteNet and Paula - I will be joining both of you in watching A Christmas...Present, one of my favorites from this past season.
ReplyDeleteMark, So glad you will be joining us in watching "A Christmas... Present" - again! It blesses me so much every time I watch it. So good to know how much you love it too! Happy *Mark the 25th* to you!!! :)
DeleteThank you for the heads up on Ride. While I'm not surprised Hallmark would do this again, it's still disappointing. And with the way you described A Thousand Tomorrows. it makes me worried we really don't have anywhere to turn to any more for family friendly shows. Pre-marital sex is not something I want my children, even my teenagers, to watch.
ReplyDeleteI appreciate your comment so much. It's a blessing to know there are still others who want to watch shows with good morals and standards with their family. I know exactly what you mean about it becoming harder these days to find wholesome entertainment. That's exactly why I'm continuing to do this blog; I'm trying my best to be a light in this dark world.
DeleteNot a fan of Amish movies because they don't accurately portray the Amish. The whole idea of an Amish musical is wrong given how it's the antithesis of what Amish believe and how they practice their faith.
ReplyDeleteI love everything Amish. Books, movies, and the shopping of furniture and baked goods. But I agree, it would be nice if the films did a better job portraying them, especially in hair and wardrobe.
DeleteI didn't say I was anti-Amish. I'm not. I'm of Pennsylvania German heritage and my mom was raised Plain. I know their faith and lifestyle from a true perspective.
DeleteA Picture of Her is family friendly about a woman named Beth embarks on a quest to uncover the true identity of photographer named Jake Meyers who snapped her photo after becoming tge subject of an award-winning magazine cover. Beth’s dog is Golden Retriever named Goldie & Jake’s dog is black bulldog named Princess
ReplyDeleteHappy 25th!
ReplyDeleteDidn't plan on watching that series anyway, but thanks for the heads up Net.
I hope to watch the Amish movies. I own some of them on dvd, but hopefully I can find the others on YouTube. Love Finds You in Charm is my favorite Amish film. I love Trevor Donovan in that movie!
A Picture of Her is family friendly about Beth goes on a search to find the identity of a photographer as shutterbot who took a shot of her that became part of an award-winning magazine cover: LA Culture.
ReplyDeleteThank you, Anonymous, for sharing this review! :)
DeleteYour review was posted here:
https://itsawonderfulmovie.blogspot.com/2023/01/hallmarks-march-2023-movie-schedule-is.html
Didn't hear of anything naughty in A Picture of Her. Though, I did hear there is an awful lot of kissing (possibly more then in any other Hallmark movie), and 1 of them I heard was a French kiss -Maria
ReplyDeleteMaria, Thank you for this extra info. I appreciate you searching for these movie details and sharing with us!
DeleteThanks for the tip on the Amish movies. Would like to see Up do more of these marathons where they include some of the older movies. I haven’t seen some of these for awhile.
ReplyDeleteA Picture of Her is a good movie. It does have more kissing than usual in a Hallmark movie, but to me that makes the story more realistic. That kiss always interrupted in the middle of the movie is very unrealistic.
ReplyDeleteJoyce, I so appreciate you giving us your take on this new movie. Nice to hear you thought it was a good one.
DeleteI shared your review here:
https://itsawonderfulmovie.blogspot.com/2023/01/hallmarks-march-2023-movie-schedule-is.html
Net-thank you for the update on A thousand Tomorrows, really disappointing but I'm thankful you updated before I purchased a subscription to Pureflex as I had planned. It is really getting harder and harder to find family friendly entertainment. You ARE a light in the dark, so appreciate you!
ReplyDeleteYou're welcome! I'm still really stunned at the content I saw, as I thought I could watch their programming without worry. I'm glad I could inform you of this.
DeleteThank you also for your kind words - God bless you!
A Picture of Her was okay, not great but not bad. One plot problem I had though was that a crowd swarms around her - a regular person - in public after seeing her on the cover of a local L.A. magazine. Most wouldn't attract that attention if they tried! Anyway, it was well acted with good chemistry between the leads, although I think Tyler's true niche is in more comedic roles (An Unexpected Christmas, Three Wise Men and a Baby). And as Maria mentioned, there is a rather lengthy kissing scene (but unless I missed it, no French kiss). Good for a one-time only viewing for me.
ReplyDeleteMark 25, Thank you for this wonderful information on "A Picture of Her." I haven't watched this movie, yet, but I know just what you mean about the movies being "okay, not great but not bad." I think most of the movies I've seen this year, about 95% of them, fall under that same category. I'm so ready for a standout, hit the ball out of the park movie, but most seem to falter there.
DeleteAt least, it's nice to know it's family-friendly. Thank you again for sharing with us! :)
I shared your review here:
https://itsawonderfulmovie.blogspot.com/2023/01/hallmarks-march-2023-movie-schedule-is.html
Thanks for the heads up on Ride -- we love Westerns, but don't care to watch an openly gay anything. I noticed that Hallmark left that detail out of the character bio page. Interesting.
ReplyDeleteYou're welcome. I'm so glad I could inform you of this before you watched. That is very interesting that they didn't include this info in his bio page - I'm glad you shared that.
Delete