This month, the Hallmark Channel is debuting a new mini-franchise called Hearts Around The Table. The films revolve around a family of foster siblings who have all grown up, but reconvene every week at their foster mother’s home for Sunday dinner and catch each other up on their lives. The first of those films, arriving this week, is Hearts Around The Table: Jenna’s First Love, about one of the siblings, an event planner named Jenna played by Ashley Newbrough, revealing that her new work colleague is actually her old high school boyfriend. While her siblings object to her getting involved with him after he dumped and ghosted Jenna when they went to college, it turns out that sometimes people can turn over a new leaf after all.
HEARTS AROUND THE TABLE: JENNA’S FIRST LOVE: STREAM IT OR SKIP IT?
Opening Shot: Jenna Whittaker (Ashley Newbrough) walks down the street in Washington D.C. engaged in a phone conversation with her foster sister and explaining, “Shari, this is D.C. If a client wants me to work Sunday, I work Sunday. The meeting’s with a tech icon who’s famous for working 24/7.” This already sounds terrible!
The Gist: Jenna is an “event guru” hired to work for a billionaire named Tom Redlands to manage a charity event he’s throwing. When she arrives to Tom’s office, the first person she meets is an old boyfriend, Andrew (Steve Lund). The two dated in high school and went their separate ways, but now, Andrew is a consultant for Tom and Jenna is working with them, and it’s stirring up some old feelings of resentment for Jenna, whose heart was broken.
Jenna was raised by Angie (Mindy Cohn), a foster mom who took in several other kids: Kiki (Kathryn Davis), Shari (Mishael Morgan), and Josh (Jake Epstein), who are all adults, and now, teenage Rory (Justice James), a newcomer to her home who’s struggling to adapt. Every week, they have an elaborate Sunday meal (hence the name of the film, which is the first in a series with each one focusing on a different sibling) where they catch up, and when Jenna sees her adoptive family, they all groan at the idea that Andrew is back in her life, especially Jenna’s protective sister Shari.
It’s obvious that Andrew still has feelings for Jenna, but the twist is that Tom, Andrew’s billionaire boss, also starts to crush on Jenna, too. This causes Andrew to jump to all sorts of conclusions, assuming Jenna is also in love with Tom and pulling away from her, until he finally realizes she’s what he’s wanted all along and he should express his feelings like a normal adult. And in the end, Jenna realizes that Andrew has always been a good guy and that ultimately, timing is everything.
Our Take: Though I really enjoyed the premise of this foster family that comes together to support each other every week and a series of movies that branch out to offer a look at each of their personal lives, unfortunately the romance in Jenna’s First Love diminished whatever else this movie had going for it. Andrew broke up with Jenna when they were young and spends much of the movie either pining for her and lamenting his youthful decision, or grumpily resenting the fact that Jenna and Tom have been seeing each other (ultimately this ends when Tom enthusiastically tells Jenna on their second date that he wants to spend the rest of his life with her and, well, that would put just about anyone off). Point is, even though Andrew does have a redemption arc – it turns out his snooty mom made him break up with Jenna and he’s actually a nice guy! – he is pretty unlikable for so much of the movie that it’s hard to care about whether he and Jenna get back together. (Jenna’s sister Shari is our stand-in, directing her ire and annoyance at Andrew throughout.)
Jenna, on the other hand, seems to have her life together; the entire point of her character is that she overcame the odds as a kid in the foster system and not only did something great with her life, and she wants to spread some joyful benevolence in the world. This is especially obvious when she shares a moment with her foster brother Rory, who attempts to run away from home. As Jenna talks him down from a crisis, it’s clear that the heart of these movies is this family. While Andrew represents the archetypal privileged white guy, Jenna and her family help him realize that his cold, WASPy upbringing where love and emotions were withheld actually lacked more than what it provided.
Parting Shot: Jenna, Andrew, Andrew’s mom and the rest of Jenna’s family sit around the table at Angie’s house enjoying a weekly Sunday supper. “You are all my dear hearts and I love you,” Angie tells them, adding, “And I’m hopeful we can keep this tradition going no matter what.”
Performance Worth Watching: Mindy Cohn – Natalie from The Facts of Life! – exudes a warmth that makes her role as a loving foster mom to this group believable and compassionate. She’s like the kind mom in your friend group who always made you feel welcome and safe in their home.
Memorable Dialogue: “Great view!” Jenn says as she looks out the window of the office she’ll be working out of when she takes the job for Tom. “It sure is,” Andrew responds, gazing at…Jenna. It’s so corny, but I laughed.
Our Call: While I really like the groundwork this film lays for the Hearts Around The Table franchise – there’s a great warmth to the foster siblings’ dynamic – the romantic story line and chemistry here feels pretty generic. Though the romance is lackluster, there’s still a very sweet and rewarding film here about the importance of chosen family, and I look forward to seeing what’s in store for the next three films in the series. STREAM IT!
Liz Kocan is a pop culture writer living in Massachusetts. Her biggest claim to fame is the time she won on the game show Chain Reaction.
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