Jodi Lyn O'Keefe is either a bad actress or the part called for a gloomy, no-personality character. Except for the interaction with her son, 'Kylie' just frowned and was glum throughout the entire movie. In every interview she spoke too fast and with no expression. No chemistry at all between Kylie and Whitt. None!
Not a movie I would recommend, except for the boy who played her son and Justin Bruening.
I could have written your post. That's exactly the way I felt after watching this movie.
shareI remember her from She's All That, and character was a snob. Also an episode of 2 1/2 Men, she played an Elvira-type. Then this. I've never seen her play a soft role.
Gus:I have never been so motivated to make money
Hardison: Yeah, if Godzilla's a gecko
I agree, totally. O'Keefe couldn't have been a worse actress. Her face was expressionless, her hair lank and limp, and her voice mostly monotone except for emphasizing the wrong words regularly. Sandra Bullock has played this kind of part before, but with a lot more life , so that the viewer cared.
shareI'll have to disagree with all the other posters here. I quite enjoyed it. I do agree that she could have done a little better but she's playing a woman who's had a pretty awful background. I thought she nailed it in that respect and it could have been a bit of the script that didn't give a lot of opportunity for happy, laughy Kylie.
Anyway, I thought she and JB has some pretty good chemistry. It ranks pretty high on my list of fave Hallmark movies. They've had others that were real stinkers.
But, to each their own.
i agree i think jodi did a wonderful job considering most of roles she played ..snobby bully in high school, sex-kitten, etc etc...so i think she did a wonderful job playing a mother struggling to find a job that would allow her to take care of her son...I think she and JB had a very good chemistry as well..this is also one of my fave Hallmark movies-- I also love Elevator Girl, The Nanny Express,just recently watched A Family Thanksgiving w/Daphne Zuniga(it was very good btw) and The Good Witch movies...there are a few others i liked too...This movie is realistic a lot of ppl are going thru w/Jodi's character went thru as far as having a sick child and trying to hold onto a job that allows you to take care of a child who is always sick..I really liked it a lot.
shareI agree, she was good, not necessarily great, but just fine for making the role she was given believable.
shareYou're absolutely on target, Lily-32! I can't remember seeing Jodi O'Keefe in other roles, but here she is totally believable as a woman who's struggled against the system her entire life and always got the short end of the stick. When she tries to fight for herself and her son, she keeps getting slapped down, and she's lost all hope. Wonder how much smiling and laughing all those other posters would be able to enjoy if they found themselves in a similar existence.
The telling scenes that present her greater emotional range begin when she has to tell Whitt (Bruenning) that she's completely failed her son, then later when he steps in to help her overcome what had seemed like the worst barriers in a life that's been nothing but an endless obstacle course for Kylie and her son. Then there's the last scene when everybody's finally hopeful that the future is brighter than they ever thought it could be. Now, that is joy!
In peace,
Debbie Jordan
Author: THE WORLD I IMAGINE; LION'S PRIDE; Peace Blogger