This one started out strongly . I liked Kimberley Sue Murray in Love Upstream. There's something about curly red hair.... and she was very funny and likable. The hero I wasn't familiar with, but I liked his down to earth normal guy looks. It appeared that it was going to go out of the box a bit as there was a bit of a very subtle Christian theme, and the heroine is seen getting alarming dizzy spells and popping prescription pills. Hmmmm... this might be interesting.

Vanessa (Murray) is an artist who is gets commissions to paint murals on hospital walls that she doesn't charge for. She is famous and acclaimed and travels all over the country. She is working on a mural for a children's wing that Nate designed and she overhears him saying he isn't sure it fits in with his vision. OOh them's fightin' words. She spunkily tells him the mural is not for him but for the sick children. Good one, Vanessa! Of course he apologizes and they make up and and the love story commences. We learn through flashbacks that she had cancer and was very close with another cancer patient who died. The dead one is her "guardian angel" and she also left Vanessa a trust fund and a list of activities (take tango lessons, go rock climbing, go scuba diving, take a cooking class, fall in love, get married, stuff like that) to live life to the fullest. She shows him the list and he innocently calls it a bucket list. She freezes up. This is the first in a long line of her giving him the cold shoulder over something she takes offense to or some innocent infraction of her precious privacy.

Things go down hill from there, for me. Despite feeling the attraction and connection (whenever she is by herself she swans around and simpers with happiness at the thought of him) she often acts standoffish and demanding when with him. She will not share and is so closed off and secretive about her past that he thinks she is dying rather than recovering from an illness. He himself is just recovering from a divorce because his wife cheated on him. So he is vulnerable and not into secrets. When he finds her passed out on the floor, a side effect of her medication, he begs her to open herself up and let him in. She states petulantly that she is not ready and says something along the lines of it is her prerogative and her life to live as she pleases. When he replies, "Well I'll leave you to it then," and leaves, I almost cheered. She sees she went a little too far with her mess and apologizes.

Her nonsensical hot and cold behavior continues until it all comes to a head. He finds out his ex-wife, who refused to have children with him, is pregnant. He is hurt and angry and leaves town to take care of a building emergency in Boston. Finally sick and tired of Vanessa's predilection to take offence at every little thing and lack of openness, trust, and honesty, he cuts her off. Meanwhile she learns she has a clean bill of health and accepts another commission in Vermont. He comes back, and she is sulky about his treatment of her (even though she tells his mother she doesn't blame him) and he APOLOGIZES AGAIN. I swear, he is a glutton for punishment because she "forgives" him (after torturing him some more) and they get married. At the end I positively hated her which is why I gave this a failing grade despite it's strong points. Shout out to Kelly Bishop of the Gilmore girls who played Nate's mother, the misguided matchmaker.

Really did want to like 'Art of Falling in Love'. It has a cute title that isn't too corny. The concept was quite intriguing and wasn't a more of the same sort of one considering who made it, though one of those could go either way ones. My biggest reason though for watching was Kelly Bishop, absolutely loved her in 'Gilmore Girls' (my summer binge watch of it a few years ago was one of not many high points of a difficult year) and have liked her a lot ever since regardless of the state of the rest of the film etc she's in.

'Art of Falling in Love' is not a terrible film and has its good things that made it just about tolerable. One can definitely do with a lot worse, as well as a lot better. It just felt like a rather big missed opportunity and would have worked to a degree if the character writing wasn't so flawed, which turned out to a major problem and affected the premise badly. 'Art of Falling in Love' was not watched with any preconceived bias or intent to immediately rag on it, the potential was there. The execution was not.

There are things that did work. The acting is better than average, with committed performances from Kimberly-Sue Murray (despite her character being a significant reason as to why the film didn't work) and Josh Dean and a classy, zesty turn from Bishop as the character that interested me the most and frustrated the least. It does start off with a lot of promise, with a good deal of light hearted charm.

Furthermore, 'Art of Falling in Love' looks attractive enough with nice scenery. While the music isn't exceptional, it didn't come over as over constant, over loud or repetitive.

However, the promise shown in the first quarter or so sadly isn't maintained throughout the rest of the film. The thinner the story got, the draggier it got too and the tone shifts quite abruptly from light hearted charm to truly depressing gloominess and actually found it on the mean spirited side too. While Murray and Dean are committed individually, they don't ignite as a couple with the romance being underdeveloped and very bland.

It really doesn't help that 'Art of Falling in Love' is unbalanced badly by the excessive unlikeability of Murray's character, to the point of detesting her. Far too cold, self absorbed and selfish with no real signs of growth or learning from mistakes, to the extent that it is really hard to believe what Dean's character saw in her. Speaking of his character, he was a lot more likeable and had charm but the latter stages really overdid his naivety and neediness, was literally shouting grow a backbone. The dialogue is awkward and has too much corn and schmaltz, while the conflict is very overwritten and contrived. Was not satisfied by the ending, which was too pat and implausibly so (one of those ones that felt unearned).

Overall, tolerable but didn't come together. 5/10.

I liked the concept of the movie and really wanted to like it but this girl constantly eye rolled at the guy and overreacted to everything. Her fake positive attitude was exhausting. She overly acted being happy and positive then in less than a second she throws a fit when he asks her about her health. The guy should not be apologizing at all. He was not wrong about his ex pregnant wife who lied, cheated, and wronged him. The girl is throwing a fit over things she didn't need to, completely overlooked actual health scares she should be worrying about, and what are these magical pills she's on that causes her to be completed cured?! Cannot stand this girl!! The guy is saying sorry to you and you are rolling your dumb eyes. I would give this a one star but the guy saved it and his acting was so much better. A different actress would make this story a lot better. I also don't think the bunny would live that long and probably send this girl into deep depression. This girl did not open up to him, she avoids all conversations, but mumbles Samantha constantly like a ghost! It's not a secret she's treating it to be. She didn't even thank him for saving her when she passed out and basically looked dead. So no he does not need to say sorry for anything. Run from this girl. This is a sad life to live. I wouldn't be able to watch her poor acting in this movie again.