Just One Kiss

If it weren't for the fact that this is slightly post-1990s TV-movie-ish (it is a TV movie, after all) and thus not quite as smooth, sleek, and developed as it might otherwise be, this would be a full 5 out of 5 stars! TV movies from the 1990s and before tended to be as good as anything seen in theaters, because the lighting, the musical score, and the cast made them so. But, this one, while still a product of its time, does seem more like the TV movies of the past than any I've seen this past decade or so!

This is honestly one of the best TV movies I've ever seen, and certainly the best Hallmark romcom I've ever seen! In fact, I would say this is the best romcom in general (theatrical release or not) of the decade so far!

Say what you will about the faults of the past, but if art reflects life at all, they did something right way back when, to create some of the most wholesome movies and music this world has ever known during the "golden age of Hollywood" and old Broadway, and we have never been as wholesome or romantic since. This movie recognizes and honors that wholesomeness by paying tribute to it in the love of its lead characters.

If you are a romantic and old movie buff like me, you will be awed at how much you relate to these characters, their shared love of classic b&w cinema, and old-time classic song standards. All this set against the backdrop of cozy old New York apartment buildings that harken back to the eras these characters watch so adoringly on the screen, and you have all the makings of a winner! This really was THAT GOOD!

I came upon this movie by chance, as it was one of those suggested for fans of the film "Random Encounter" (2013) that I had just watched, and being that there are an endless array of suggested movies at our fingertips these days, I almost passed right by it. But, the look of the leading lady stopped me in my tracks and I knew I had to see it!

Yes, you can have love at first sight, because when I first laid eyes on the leading lady of this film and saw the commercial for it, I knew it was for me! She reminded me of Joan Jett circa 1991-93 (the way she looked in her episode of "Highlander"). My Joanie!! I just kept thinking of Joan the whole time, and it made me love this even more. There was even a mention of Elvis, and the inclusion of the song "New York, New York" first made famous by Joanie's favorite actress and friend, Liza Minnelli. Plus, the leading man was a singer with fans, just like my Joanie! And the leading lady is a poetry buff, and I am a poet. So, this feels like OUR movie- and thus, I just can't say enough good things about it!

This is basically a Nora Ephron knockoff, and I love it! And no, I DID NOT see that twist at the end coming! What a sweet surprise that brought tears to my eyes!! Gosh, I love a good twist!!

This movie will make you feel nostalgic for a time we never had, and for the people we hardly have left (those kind of old folks are almost long gone by now), but it will also make you glad to be alive, thanks to all that talk of fate, the universe, and things happening for a reason- which is a really special balance. Yes, I'd say this is a Godwink movie!

I recommend this to fans of old Hollywood, romcoms, those who like to see more mature love stories (as opposed to teens or 20-30 year-olds), and those who believe in Godwinks.

If you liked "The Mirror Has Two Faces" (1996), "Serendipity" (2002), "Only the Lonely" (1991), and "Curtain Call" (1998), you'll love this!

UPDATE: As of 7:06 AM today 12/24/2022, I just found out that the leading lady who caught my eye and reminded me of my Joanie had actually portrayed Joanie's fave actress Liza in the Netflix mini-series "Halston". Wow- so when I said she reminded me of my Joanie, I was really onto something!

Two moms set up their romantic offspring who have both loved but had their hearts broken. Mia Rivera is a college professor of literature who was inspired in her youth by the Turkish poet Nazim Hikmet and him poem "on living". Tony Romano is a piano bar singer who wears a fedora and likes to sing the crooner classics.

"So many of us when it comes to love-the journey from aspiration to fulfillment is a very bumpy road."-Professor Rivera

Tony and Mia meet first while heckling each other in a theater and then run into each other on the street...thanks to a little help from their moms.

"I'm not in a funk."-Mia. "All hermits say that"-bff

Mia moves into Tony's appartement building with her daughter and is in the process of divorcing her good-for-nothing husband. Her daughters first friend in her new home happens to be Tony's niece who he is looking after while his sister is away.

Tony and Mia agree to be friends...and get to know each other...the rest is history!

The dedication at the end is sweet, sentimental and beautiful.

"Ralph Waldo Emerson says shallow men believe in luck, strong men believe in cause and effect."-Mia.

"Stab the body and it heals, but enter the heart and the wound lasts a lifetime."-Mineko Iwasaki

"Deny me bread, air, light, spring, but never your laughter for I will die."-Pablo Neruda

This was sweetly romantic in an old fashioned way that is very sentimental. I highly recommend this to any romantics out there.

There's a lot of great things to appreciate about Just One Kiss if you can get past the first 10 minutes. The male lead (Santino Fontana) doesn't exactly shine at first and there's an extended and infuriating scene in a movie theater with people talking like they're in a loud bar. Such a heavy, heavy dose of rude, inconsiderate thoughtlessness doesn't do the movie's key characters any favors.

You also have to overlook the exaggerated displays of mood killing self pity that show up right after the manufactured misunderstanding trope that often gets forced into these movies in the 4th quarter to create conflict just as the romance starts heating up (although I did like the quiet commentary exchanged between the 2 female students)

But, in between, there's some well written and well played banter and sparkling repartee between the leads (Krysta Rodriguez is particularly good and Fontana will grow on you). Their mothers are played by skilled veteran character actors Ileana Douglas and Aida Turturro (with a twist) and the movie features a normalized gay couple (Matty Finochio does a nice job as the level headed gay friend with common sense).

I've been defensive about the unfair criticisms that "all Hallmark movies are the same." We want those movies to depict romantic stories, between attractive and likeable leads, that reaffirm important values like love, family, friendship, and personal growth, with a few laughs along the way. And we want happy endings, new movies every year, and lots of them. But it's not easy to come up with something different while honoring the tried and true (and lucrative) formula that has made the Hallmark Channel the huge ratings success that it is.

And that's why Just One Kiss should be forgiven for its few missteps. It seems very different both in terms of the story and the style (like the dream sequences). And there was no sugar coating the realities of a painful divorce, and the even more painful chore of giving a child of that divorce an honest explanation. The few Hallmark movies with kids that break from the convenient dead parent trope and acknowledge divorce, usually do so by having the ex conveniently on assignment in Finland, or by presenting a healthy, but usually unrealistic, approach to co-parenting where everyone gets along great. Not here.

And while I wasn't wowed by the opening rendition of It Had To Be You (even though that's a great song), the performance and placement of Gershwin's classic Someone To Watch Over Me was quite beautiful, as was the use of Fly Me To The Moon.

Another reviewer, who inexplicably gave the movie one star because it "didn't make sense", actually raised a few valid points. But then that reviewer undercut those points by revealing a narrow mind and a complete lack of understanding of what "woke" means and using it in a pejorative way (it means being alert to injustice). Nick shouldn't have done what he did, but being gay doesn't necessarily mean that person is "woke" and there was nothing in the movie relating to any social issues of injustice. Plus, there are, sadly, plenty of gay people who have their own intolerant prejudices and are blind to injustice when it doesn't affect them personally.

And that reviewer missed the main reason why Mia wouldn't take back the alcoholic ex husband; he repeatedly lied to Mia and had failed to turn his life around, despite repeated attempts. Apparently, things got so bad, they lost their home. That's no small thing. When trust is lost, it's usually fatal to a troubled marriage.

That said, Hallmark movies often create worlds in which many of the financial realities of life are ignored unless they're plot points that drive the story. People often live in lovely homes that they couldn't possibly afford. A nice 2 bedroom apartment in Brooklyn near the water with a view of the bridge would cost around $7,000-$10,000/month. I don't know what an English professor with 20 kids in her class makes, but if she lost her home when her husband lost his job because she couldn't afford to pay the mortgage, it seems unlikely that she makes enough to afford $7,000-10,000/month. And there's no way the lounge singer across the hall can afford that either. But hey, if these 2 move in together, that might make it more affordable.

Also, Mia is referred to as an "ex wife" after they visit an attorney together. But then she balks at signing the "divorce papers" until the end of the movie. And just signing such "papers" doesn't instantly make you divorced. In fact, the "papers" that she signed were actually part of a California Judicial Council form for Petition for Dissolution of Marriage (the producers probably figured no one would notice and realize it wasn't a New York form). And that Petition, once filed, STARTS the process. It doesn't end it.

Finally, here are some lines I liked:

"Shallow men believe in luck. Strong men believe in cause and effect." quoting Ralph Waldo Emerson.

"For so many of us, when it comes to love, the journey from aspiration to fulfillment is a very bumpy road."

"Music is like a magical elixir."

"We tell people how to treat us by what we're willing to tolerate and I was just tired of being lied to."

"Stab the body and it heals, but injure the heart and the wound lasts a lifetime." quoting Mineko Iwasaki.

This movie is above average quality for hallmark. I'm a big fan of Hallmark movies but sometimes they can get a little boring and the Scripps are so G rated that the writers forget that you can still make adults witty and fun.

Thankfully in this movie, You get some witty banter. The leads actually flirt with each other versus acting like good buddies who suddenly realize that they are in love.

Plus, there is the inclusion of Tony-winner Santino Fontana as the male lead. I saw him played the lead in tootsie in 2019 before it went onto Broadway. He has such a natural gift for comedy and wit that I immediately recognized him three years later in this movie. Plus he has a great voice- if only we could actually see lounge singers that good in real life!

I was surprised to see all the 10 reviews for this movie. Don't get me wrong. This movie has a lot going for it, but even relative to the genre it's in, is it a 10? (I'm all for giving a 10 to movies that don't have A list actors or appear in theatres if they have something special going for them. If it hits me in a special way.)

Hallmark has been in a rut now for a while with a lot of really bland movies. Sure, there's been a couple that were better than that, but many of us who rarely miss a Saturday night have felt something missing from so many of those movies. The same goes even more so for the other "knock off" channels.

I can see why so many people welcome this movie as a break from that. It has a lot of really good elements going for it. The dialogue is very good. The leads have chemistry. There are some little twists and turns here and there. There are a lot of nostalgic old school songs and even a couple of little dance routines. The one with the two kids is a lot of fun. The premise isn't quite the usual stuff. The moms make the viewer wonder about exactly what's going on there. It's a fun movie with a lot of upbeat moments and some slightly tender ones mixed in.

I can't personally give it a perfect score. The story is predictable especially the "misunderstanding". I thought the ending was rushed. I could have easily given the movie another 5-15 minutes screen time.

I had trouble with the background for the divorce. I can easily understand that Mia had good reasons, but the movie's explanations for Casey's failings fall short. For much of the movie, it seems like her only complaint was that his drinking led to some irresponsible episodes. Did they lose their apartment only because he lost his job? That doesn't seem to fit. Mia talks about his lies, but the way it's presented lacks gravity, at least until very late in the movie. Mia tells Casey that she's doing it for Rosie, but Rosie doesn't seem to display the wounds one would expect given her father's drinking. There doesn't have to be abuse to leave a child with trauma. I guess what I'm saying is that for anyone who hasn't seen what alcoholism can do to a family, the movie didn't explain the pain from which the family is trying to recover.

Krysta Rodriguez has a beautiful voice. I would have like to hear more of her. On the other hand, Santino Fontana had some spotty moments, especially early on. For the early part of the movie, I was thinking - this is a headliner? His performances later on get much better.