Love's Unending Legacy (2007)

Why so much hype?

Good movie but grossly overrated

Exactly the movie you think it is, but not the movie you want it to be.

Actress is magnificent and exudes a hypnotic screen presence in this affecting drama.

It's three years after Missie LaHaye lost her husband Willie shot in the line of duty as sheriff. She moves back east to her parents Marty Davis and Clark Davis with her young son Mattie. She takes the teaching job. She adopts bitter orphan Belinda who is the last without a home. Her little brother Jacob had been taken by the Pettises looking for a farm hand. Sheriff Zack Tyler falls for Missie.The adoption story is compelling. The overall feel is a bit disjointed especially at the beginning. The story improves as it concentrates more on Belinda and the adoption. That's the more dramatic part and a real tear jerker. This is a sincere faith-based movie. It's the fifth in the series. The TV movie does have its charms but also has its limitations.

What could have been a good TV movie was weakened by an overdone and unsuitable musical score. I found this was an annoyance during the first half of the movie. Performances overall were not that bad but the this mood music (that didn't seem to suit a western film) played over the actors as they spoke in many scenes and this became a real distraction.In one scene, which takes place in the church, a pastor is asking a congregation to volunteer to take care of homeless children lined up across the platform behind him. All the dialog in this scene is underscored by this deep emotional mood music which is unnecessary and distracting.

*might contain spoilers*When looking up this movie, I noticed another movie due out later this year. I wonder if they had to rush this one in some fashion given they had two so close together. This might explain the somewhat lackluster nature of the film in some respects.Still, I overall appreciated the film, though you saw what was happening a mile away. Missy was good here, the actress playing the role emotionally true. The foster daughter also was decent enough, a few very touching scenes. As to the locket mentioned, I do think that was handled a bit badly ... like just as a set-up device. The whole thing did seem a bit rushed/thin at spots, but overall, it still had some true heart. Given the number of films already out there, it still having such life is impressive.A word on the new mother ... the original obviously off the bigger things. She had some illness (maybe it was explained at some point, I didn't see all of the film or series). She also seemed to have a slight accent (Southern?) that the original didn't have. But, she did a good job in her role, fairly small, but a few important scenes.As to the hubby dying at the beginning, I didn't mind it ... as to the flashback bits, I think they did the job adequately enough. In real life in the late 19th century, life was perilous, and a sheriff is a risky job. Of course, we have a plot device and parallels to the original film in a fashion.I actually liked parts of this better than the past two, of which I had trouble getting into in some ways. Overall, a bit thin, surely, but worth a look for fans.

I wasn't really looking forward to seeing this latest addition to the "Love" series but curiosity got the better of me. I wasn't thrilled with this movie at all. Killing off the character of Willie LaHaye was a really dumb thing to do because his character does not die in the books! The scene where they show Willie getting killed was really poorly done. They sure didn't need to be showing that one over and over again. There was so much of the movie that didn't seem right. Like Missie and Zachs relationship was pretty much non-existent throughout the whole movie but at the end she ends up marrying him. They knew one another for what a month? I know in LCS Clark and Marty knew one another for like two days or whatever when they married but the whole Zach/Missie thing didn't seem right. He just kept popping up from out of nowhere - like the writers didn't know what to do with him.Missie losing her necklace was another rather stupid part. I know the necklace was originally given to her by Marty in Love Comes Softly but you'd think she would have treasured and guarded it with her whole heart being it was the last thing that Willie gave to her before he died. I am saying that because he bought it back for her at the end of LAJ. You'd think she would have looked a lot harder for the necklace then she did being it meant so much to her. What happened to Henry and Melinda or Cookie and Scottie? Where are Jeff and Aaron and Arnie Davis? The three of them aren't even mentioned once in the movie but are mentioned on hallmarkchannelpress.com as taking over Missie's ranch. The ranch isn't talked about once or even seen for that matter! Another annoying thing was Clark and Marty's house. When Clark, Missie, and Maddie all pulled up in the wagon I was like didn't they just leave there? The house is Missie and Willie's house with different windows and a porch stuck on the front of it. I was expecting the house to be like the one from LCS or LEP. Did they think fans wouldn't notice? What was up with Marty? There really was no explanation as to what her "condition" was. Was she supposed to be sick or pregnant? They never did say. We'll probably never really know what was/is wrong with her because the next movie Love's Unfolding Dream takes place quite a few years after Love's Unending Legacy.This movie was a lot better then Love's Abiding Joy but I was still disappointed with it. There were to many loose ends. I felt like I was watching an episode of Little House on the Prairie. I know that some things need to be changed to make the transition from book to movie possible but these movies are getting so out there.