“Love Romance & Chocolate†aired on February 16, 2019 on the Hallmark Channel. It stars Lacey Chabert, will Kemp and Brittany Bristow and was filmed entirely in Belgium (most notably Bruges).
In a nutshell
I liked it very much. I thought the actors were all engaging and I couldn’t help but love all the on-location scenery.
Plot
New Yorker Emma is upset when her boyfriend breaks up with her before their planned romantic vacation to Belgium. Emma decides to go by herself, and meets a local chocolatier, Luc. Luc is participating in a competition to create a special chocolate to be passed out at an approaching Belgian royal wedding. He finds out she knows her way around a kitchen and soon she’s working alongside him to create the perfect romantic chocolate.
Actors
Lacey Chabert is the princess of Hallmark, and is great in this movie, as always. Lacey Chabert, despite being in so many Hallmark movies, is three degrees from Kris Polaha. She was in “Not Another Teen Movie” with Randy Quaid in 2001. Quaid was in 1996’s “Last Dance” with Rob Morrow. Rob Morrow was also in “Atlas Shrugged, Part III” in 2014 with Kris Polaha.
Will Kemp seemed new to me, but apparently he has been in Hallmark movies before, although I don’t remember him. Brittany Bristow played the hotel owner in “Chocolate” but has been second fiddle in several Hallmark movies in recent years. I think it’s time she be sent up the chain and given a lead spot.
But the one who made me say, “Who dis?” was the guy that played fellow chocolatier (and competitor) Max. I’m a sucker for salt & pepper hair and the actor reminded me a lot of Vincent Cassel, who is one of my favorite actors. Much like Marco Grazzini in last week’s “The Story of Us,” I feel like Hallmark needs to hire the actor that played Max for more movies. He was great and (for me, at any rate) stole every scene he was in. Sadly, I can’t find his name ANYwhere. Hallmark made no mention of his name online in their promotions, and on Twitter I only ever saw Chabert, Kemp and Bristow get @ or #. Sadly, I deleted the movie from my Tivo without taking note of his name because I assumed I’d be able to find it online afterwards!
EDITED TO ADD: We have a name! I just got an email from Jonathan Wright, the director of “Love, Romance & Chocolate,” who kindly confirmed for me that the actor that portrayed Max is none other than Guillaume Dolmans. His IMdB needs to be updated (it is woefully lacking in information on him), but I’m so glad to finally have a name (and I didn’t have to wait nearly as long as I did to find out my Barilla Pasta Guy’s name). If iMdB won’t suffice, here is Guillaume’s Instagram.
Chemistry
LC and WK absolutely had chemistry together on-screen. They were well suited. LC also had great chemistry with the actor who played Max (I WILL find his name). But despite this, I can’t help but think that I may have preferred having Danica McKellar in this movie. Don’t get me wrong – Chabert is GREAT in Hallmark movies, but I really do think the character was more suited to McKellar versus Chabert. Now whether she’d have chemistry with Will Kemp I have no idea, but from a character perspective, this role screamed McKellar to me.
Feelgoods
Feelgoods abounded in this movie, but I think the scenery greatly helped lend itself to this. You can’t help but feel good about romantic boat rides on canals, and being surrounded by all that gorgeous architecture and history. Oh, and learning how to temper chocolate à la the pottery scene in “Ghost” doesn’t hurt either. But yes, even though you knew how it would all end up, it was still a sweet, romantic movie that was perfect for Valentine’s Day.
Tropes
Big scarves? Check! Struggling business? Check! Baking montages? Check check check! Royalty AND a ball? Check and check! They even managed to sneak a cup of hot cocoa into Lacey Chabert’s hand in one scene. CHECK! This was Hallmark leaning in heavy to their beloved tropes.
Did I Hear/See That Right?
A couple big ones for me.
How does Emma work on photo shoots as a food stylist and yet she doesn’t know how to use a camera properly? This happens a lot in movies – the characters clearly have a digital camera, and yet they hold it two feet away from their face AND stand really far away from their subject. And one snap and you’re done? No checking to make sure it is a clear photo? Clearly no one has heard of the “always take 3” rule when it comes to taking photos (is that just my rule? I’m not sure – but it’s a rule I follow faithfully).
So am I to understand that Luc – having barely met Emma in the first place – is going to allow her to come into his shop and work on perhaps the *most important* chocolate he has ever created in his life? I don’t think so.
Re-watchability
It was charming and fluffy and fun, as well as romantic. Definitely one to watch again!
Total side note – my husband and I traveled to Europe in 1999 for our second anniversary, and spent a day or two in Bruges. I can vouch for the fact that the town is LOVELY and has a fascinating history. I’ve always wanted to go back, and this movie has me thinking that someday I definitely will. And also? The sole chocolate we bought on our trip in 1999 was purchased in Bruges. They really DO make the best chocolate!
The Ranking
So where does it fit in the rankings? Solidly in third place when you look at just the 2019 movies, which is not a bad place to be at all.
- Winter Love Story (air date: January 19) – 725 pts – weighted score: 117.8 (77.2%)
- Mystery 101 (air date: January 27 (HMM)) – 514 pts – weighted score: 97.8 (75.2%)
- Love, Romance & Chocolate (air date: February 16) – 707 points – weighted score: 114.2 (74.9%)
- The Story of Us (air date: February 9) – 665 pts – weighted score: 104.3 (68.4%)
- One Winter Proposal (air date: January 12) – 635 pts – weighted score: 100.8 (66.1%)
- Ruby Herring: Silent Witness (air date: January 20 (HMM)) – 457 pts – weighted score: 85.4 (65.7%)
- Valentine in the Vineyard (air date: February 2) – 603 pts – weighted score: 94.5 (61.9%)
- The Winter Castle (air date: January 5) – 605 pts – weighted score: 92.4 (60.6%)
- Snowcoming (air date: January 26) – 565 pts – weighted score: 91.3 (59.8%)
- A Winter Princess (air date: January 18) – 540 pts – weighted score: 78.5 (51.5%)
To see where this movie lands in my entire ranking of Hallmark movies, visit my Hallmark Movie Rankings page!
What did you think of “Love Romance and Chocolate”?
