When it comes to a Hallmark movie, this writer has spent a lot of her time watching them. I believe in the love that is shown in films, but I less believe in love in life. So watching movies about love really just fits for me.
It keeps my jaded heart open.
While part of the appeal of watching the movie is I love a good story, the bigger draw – I love movies that give us all the complexities of love. I love stories that show you how fast love can hit you, how wallowing in the pain of the past won’t get you anywhere, and how moving forward in life is one of the most important things that we can do.
The Wedding Veil Trilogy stars Autumn Reeser, Alison Sweeney and Lacey Chabert. The three part series is about three college friends who share a 19th-century wedding veil said to bring whoever possesses it, true love.
This is the second party and it’s absolutely beautiful. I will be the first to admit that I don’t think that Autumn Reeser can ever do much wrong. She’s the quintessential Hallmark actress, along with Chabert. Sorry Alison Sweeney, you’re just always going to be Sammy Brady to me.
In this installment, it takes place a few months after Avery’s (Chabert) wedding, Chicago-based professor Emma (Reeser) travels to Italy to teach the history of American art. While there, she uses her free time to research the provenance of the veil, which leads her to the colorful island town of Burano, famed for its exquisitely handcrafted lace. On her way to the island she encounters a handsome man (Bernardini) who offers help but Emma – still processing the end of a long-distance relationship – declines. Her search leads to the oldest shop on the island, where the owner responds exuberantly to the veil. Emma doesn’t understand Italian but thankfully, the man she met earlier shows up and can translate. She learns his name is Paolo and his grandmother is the shop owner. He explains that the veil shares a special connection to his family, who had thought it destroyed. Paolo and Emma decide to work together to unravel the century-old mystery of how the long-lost veil made its way from Italy to a shop in San Francisco. As they spend time together and Paolo helps Emma to let go and embrace the beauty of Italy, they begin falling for each other. As Emma prepares to return to Chicago, she isn’t sure she can handle another long-distance relationship, but the veil and its legend may have other plans.
Emma is in Italy and it leads her to taking a trip Verona, where apparently there are a lot of lace shops. On her way there, she’s having trouble and keeps running into the same Italian dreamboat Paolo. He’s charismatic and if we’re being completely blunt, he’s hot too.
She keeps running into Paolo all over the island and you would think he’s following her, but I refuse to believe bad things about Paolo, so we’ll not allow ourselves to believe it’s true.
Her search for information about the veil leads her to the oldest lace shop on the island, where the lace maker recognizes it instantly. They had thought that the veil had burned in a fire.
And it just so turns out that Paolo’s family owns that shop. Isn’t it funny how the veil brings people together? After all, that is the legend.
Paolo’s grandmother is in shock seeing the veil. He wants to make his family happy so he offers to buy it back from her, but Emma is like somethings aren’t for sale. And she doesn’t meant that in a bad way. More of a she and her friends would never take money for it.
Paolo and Emma embark on a journey of discovery about the veil. They are able to figure out how the veil made its way to the United States and the shop in San Francisco, but you’ll have to watch the movie to learn everything about that story. It’s a good one.
But if we’re being honest, the greatest of the movie is that story, but is also the way that you watch Emma and Paolo fall for each other. Every moment, the two find themselves letting walls down and allowing love into their life.
And hey, it’s not easy for Emma, because she lives in fear of getting her heart broken again. But as she falls for Paolo, she realizes that she deserves love, light and someone to lift her up, even in her fear.
The reason that this movie works is that Paolo Bernardini and Autumn Reeser have a great chemistry together. They both fall into their characters, making it feel as if you’re really watching two people fall in love. Their characters grace, charm, passion, and love for Italy, the veil, and each other is so convincing and electric that you find yourself engrossed in the film and praying the the legends are true.
Paolo Bernardini and Autumn Reeser are what makes this movie work. Overall, The Wedding Veil Unveiled, is an excellent Hallmark Film. It’s heartwarming and beautiful.
Definitely a Hallmark movie must watch.
