BORROWED HEARTS

REVIEWED BY CHARITY BISHOP

Our rating: 4 out of 5

Because of: mild language

Rated:

This utterly charming made-for-television film has enchanted audiences of all ages. It's a wonderful story of romance and friendship, but most of all it's about a man finding his heart. Sam Field (Eric McCormack) is a top executive and businessman with an easy lifestyle and model-perfect girlfriends. He has no clue what family life is all about, which will become pivotal in a business venture he's willing to make. In order to close a profitable transaction with Senor Del Campo (Hector Elizondo), he must convince his guest that he's a family man with a beautiful wife and child. Unfortunately, their search only turns up lemons and leaves them with very little time in which to either call off Del Campo's stay at his magnificent home, or make up some far-fetched story. 

Meanwhile, Kathleen Russell (Roma Downey) is a single, working mother with an overactive little girl named Zoey (Sarah Rosen Fruitman), and an ex-husband who never calls or writes. Zoey has a fascination for angels, especially when her babysitter tells her the secret to finding them... "if you hear music but no one is there, it's an angel." Hoping to get her daddy back, Zoey promises she'll be a good little girl if she can have a family for Christmas. An unusual twist of fate brings employee and employer together, with Zoey in the middle as "the perfect family." Only persuaded by the extravagant amount of money involved if they pull it off, Kathleen reluctantly agrees to model the perfect wife the week of Del Campo's visit, and the threesome become a somewhat muddled and unusual family. 

Zoey fits in right off, making herself at home, but Kathleen's persistent meddling in the orders of the house is getting on Sam's nerves, and the pair can't seem to keep their stories straight when Del Campo does arrive. Things are going quite different than Sam expected. He may find that family life stinks and isn't for him... or he may discover Kathleen and Zoey could heal his wounded heart forever... with a little angelic intervention. Kathleen's moral views are much higher than Sam's. When a humorous plot throws them together for the night, she insists he can't sleep in the same room. After a brief quarrel, he takes one of his pillows and retires to the closet floor... a practice played out numerous times the next few days. He's portrayed as a playboy early on, licking chocolate syrup from a busty blonde's fingertips over Thanksgiving dinner, but overcomes this weakness and shows surprising virtue when tempted by a girl at the local skating rink.

Many movies give us an unabashed playboy and the "good girl next door." None of them leave us feeling entirely satisfied. What's to say the guy isn't going to return to his philandering ways after the wedding bells are rung? But Borrowed Hearts reveals Sam's endless search for women is only to fill an emptiness in his heart. When faced with Kathleen, everything changes for the better. We have no doubt they'll be a perfect family. He's even willing to ruin the entire ruse just to make his "borrowed daughter" happy for Christmas. There are a few mild abuses of deity, but for the most part this is a wonderful family friend. Mixing the sweet "make-believe" romance of the While You Were Sleeping style with a touch of angel dust and just the right amount of conflict, it makes for an excellent watch on a winter's night. The storyline is charming, and leaves everyone with a smile, while proving good family entertainment.