Cupid & Cate

If you think this movie is supposed to be a romance, you'll miss the point -- this may be billed as romance, but really it's deeper than than, it's about what happens with the fire of love, which is what Eros (Greek)/Cupid(roman) is actually about as a foundational god of the cosmos. That's the thread we see throughout the movie with Mary Louise Parker deftly at the center of it, yet all the characters are dealing with love, and loss and fires burning within them, lots of hurt/griefs in relationships that all build to a climax at yet another family dinner. It's a great cast which handle the tensions, humor, anger, pain. Lashing out. Caring and tending to one another well. There's a power of love that unifies, and gets people together in unexpected ways, while seeming to break apart. I think that must be what drew so many great actors to this piece, it's not just another romance, it's nitty gritty love when it hurts and is hard.

Another reviewer said that those searching for a romantic comedy would only be half satisfied. From what I saw, no one will be satisfied that this is a romantic comedy, not even halfway. This is a family story. There is a very quick rivalry for the lead woman between two men, along with an equally quick whirlwind romance. I'm not sure why the writers bothered with the rivalry. The romance was to enhance other elements that followed. There are at least two intense plot lines. As that other reviewer also said, one is never completely resolved. The other is probably the more significant one and it is family drama. There are some ugly moments in the family. The apparent resolution was abrupt. In fact, it is unlikely that the resolution shown at the end of the movie would last. It could, but there would need to be more work and more healing. Both of the big plot lines would need more healing after the final credits. The acting is good. The dialogue is good. The story is fast paced and has a lot of elements. I think the script tried to do too much. I would like to have seen some of the minor elements dropped and more effort put into the conclusion including building up to it.

This is the type of movie that you can just enjoy. The lead actress is quirky and independent yet allows a man that really doesn't love her for the right reasons become her fiancé. After she meets and falls in love with the right guy, she quickly realizes what she must do. She also must deal with and try to mend the broken relationship with her father. Overall, the movie is a winner and definitely worth watching.

I don't like the abrupt ending, but the movie is very touching as it deals with alcoholism, disfunctional family, love, disease, and communication. Not great but ok. James Welch Henderson Arkansas 4/17/21.

I like this movie because everyone in life sometime could relate to it. It's a typical story about being with someone you're trying to tolerate versus being with someone who's more alive(like her sister in the movie quoted). I can relate being in a relationship where the parents didn't think I was good enough either because I wasn't prosperous or I couldn't do anything for them, and this is what Cate went through with Philip. He was okay but kind of starchy, but Harry comes along and make everything better. With all happy relationships there's adversities, which is what happens with Harry. A good film which makes your heart go out to them both. A little slow in the beginning, and it could have had a better ending but how much can you expect from a tv movie?

This film is a grabber for the extreme attractiveness and likeability of the cast--Mary Louise Parker and Peter Gallagher in particular--but, sadly, fails to live up to its initial promise. The first half is strong, with good establishing scenes and dialogue. The viewer is drawn into the dilemma of lead character Cate--a beautiful young woman with a pleasant but clueless fiance--who is debating her future when a handsome lawyer comes into her life. Unfortunately, the plot loses its way later on, with dialogue and a plotline that seem so random you're unsure what the next odd turn will be. Still, Parker is a winning heroine and makes this mishmash almost worth watching.

Besides having an irrelevant title, this Hallmark television movie suffers from bad structure. In the beginning, it feels like the traditional Hallmark romance story. Mary-Louise Parker plays Cate DeAngelo, a likable owner of a vintage clothing shop. Her committed relationship seems to be headed nowhere, so we expect this film will be about her journey to find real love. But the story splinters into a few offshoots that concern more serious issues, effectively leaving the viewer with a narrative chaos. Worst of all, there are sudden transitions and jarring changes in story that suggest bad editing. Unfortunately, this undermines some good acting. It feels like the integrity of the film was destroyed by some bad choices in post production. Perhaps these were made to reduce the running time, but the final version is no better than average.