A Paris Proposal

I won't lie, this is a Hallmark romance that grew on me. The reluctant ad campaign team of Anna Bowman and Sebastian Laurent are sent to Paris to win the Durant diamond company's advertising contract for their expansion into the American market, by their boss. The boss was hoping that Sebastian would help Anna get back some of her creativity ("color with all the colors in the box") and that Anna would help Sebastian learn to "color inside the lines". Their styles couldn't be more different, but after a misunderstanding in front of their new potential clients the two have to pretend to be married...even to Sebastian's estranged French family. The Paris backdrop is truly lovely and the costumes were wonderful! I particularly liked the black and white striped dress worn by Anna in Paris. I thought her friend in Paris was unnecessary, but I did really enjoy the glass of water scene. This was surprisingly romantic and really grew on me, as initially I wasn't sure about the lead...but I really warmed to their chemistry and highly recommend this slow burn romance. I particularly enjoyed the end as a romantic.

7.4 stars. We are very familiar with this plot, two people are acquainted, co-workers, or friends etc... they pretend to be dating, engaged, or married etc... "A Paris Proposal" happens to take place in a city in France, can't quite remember the name....the two subjects are co-workers with polar opposite personalities. They work for an American company, although he is French, artistic and worldly, whereas she is American, analytical and perfectionistic. Match made in heaven. He has a very strong accent, but it's polished enough that he is understandable. They fly to Paris and are in the middle of a sales pitch with a major jeweler, when a slight coincidence leads them down a rabbit hole of lies. In the spur of the moment they make the best of a difficult situation, but are now stuck pretending to be married in order to score the deal. Are they capable of fooling everyone, including the antagonist? As the stakes get higher, the ruse begins to unravel. The leads have sufficient chemistry to make this an interesting film. It is somewhat entertaining, and the background is picturesque with the incomparable cityscape of Paris. Some of the dialogue is lost in translation; you can detect many innuendos and interactions being studded with French influence. That aside, "A Paris Proposal" is charming and delightful. The allure of PenaVega wearing a $23 Million dollar pink diamond and a fashionable dress was reason enough to stick around. Unfortunately, something intangible is missing.

This Hallmark romance begins with a familiar situation: coworkers who go together like oil and water. Anna (Alexa PennVega) and Sebastian (Nicholas Bishop) work for a New York ad agency. When they are sent to Paris to sell an important new French client, a small mistake results in the impression that they are married. To their consternation, their charade snowballs, until it threatens everything, including personal relationships. PennVega and Bishop work well together. Others in the cast have their moments---especially Elie Kaempfen as Andre the hotel clerk who adds some moments of light comedy. The conflict in the film resolves fairly quickly, but the final scenes are satisfying.

Favorite Scene with Anna Bowman (Alexa PenaVega) - Trying on Dresses for the Gala and her First Kiss with Sebastian. WOW!!! Very, Very Passionate!!! Alexa PenaVega is one of my Favorite Hallmark Channel Heroines Ever!!! BTW, I Loved this Movie! I Love, Love, Love Hate/Love Relationships!!! The Chemistry between Anna and Sebastian was HOT, HOT, HOT and Very, Very Passionate!!! WOW!!! I was So Dang Excited when Anna told Sebastian that she is from Ohio!!! Although I was Raised in California, my Roots are in (Columbus) Ohio - I was Born there and Lived there until I was 3, spent almost all of my Summers there, and went to The Ohio State University. Go Buckeyes!!! Set in New York and France.

I'm truly surprised that there are negative reviews here about this romantic movie. I just loved it. The dialogue is smart and natural. The acting is some of the best I've seen, and the writers were able to take an oft-used, fairly hackneyed Hallmark theme - pretending to be married - and make it feel fresh. I admit, I got some heavy "French Kiss" vibes from this - and that is one of my favorite "modern" (which, for me, means post-1950s,) movies of all time. A couple of negative reviews stated there was no chemistry, but to me the chemistry was so strong it made me worry for Penavega's marriage! (Kidding... I think.) She is such a classic beauty, and the male lead, Nicholas Bishop, has an achingly-attractive charisma and is excellent in the role. Also, I rarely laugh out loud at the humor in a Hallmark movie, but a couple of his lines (especially the one referencing "Legally Blonde,") caused a burst of laughter. The disdain-to-love relationship between these two develops very naturally, and the first kiss sneaks up on the viewer and was - to me, at least - pretty thrilling! One reviewer commented that she threw a glass of wine at him after he accidentally spilled some on her. I pictured him spilling a small amount of red wine on her, then her throwing a full glass of red wine on him in anger, and expected one of those horrible romantic movies that is ridiculous and embarrassing. No! In fact, in that scene they are standing outdoors admiring the view, and beginning to open up to each other. He has just mimicked a fake proposal to her, showing her how he would propose - if he ever did - so they are both nervous as a result of this play acting!! (This film is proposal focused because they're an ad team working on an ad for diamond engagement rings.) As he's rising from his "down on one knee" position, he accidentally jostles her and spills a little white wine on her. She then playfully tosses the small amount of white wine that's left in the bottom of her glass on his sweater. He says, "You did not just do that." She (who is the "buttoned up," reserved one to his creative free spirit in this movie,) says, "I did. I did," while nervously laughing, surprised at her own spontaneous move. It's a playful moment, not an angry one. By the way, the director (et al,) did a pretty good job of bringing the feel of Paris to this movie, although the filming took place in Bulgaria. The only bit I found questionable was that the owners of a $23M rose diamond ring would allow a relative stranger to wear it to a gala. That was the real "stretch" for me, but it was the only one. That part could have been left out of the film and no one would have missed it. So - spoiler! - they get together in the end. This is such a romantic, heartfelt, beautiful movie, with a terrific cast of supporting characters, too. I hope those who read these reviews will choose to watch it - and enjoy it as I did.