I was enjoying this movie at first until the part where Kate got mad when he revealed his bet with his best friend. I don't understand why she was mad. She was lying to him as well. Why didn't she confessed to him after he confessed to her? She tried to ruin his career and reputation because of a bet he made not to sleep with her. Is that really anything to ruin a man's reputation and career over. That is just wrong. The nerve of her. I love the secretary. She stole every scene that she was in. Her quick wit was hilarious. I need to find more movies that she is in so that I can see more of work.
4 Reviews
I enjoyed it
tlharrison-5954628 May 2021
Valerie Bertinelli portrays scathing hypocrite
BrettErikJohnson1 November 2017
Warning: Spoilers
This starts out as typical made-for-television fluff from the '80s. Valerie Bertinelli plays Kate, a magazine writer who is given an assignment to pose as a mail order bride and spend 2 weeks with an unsuspecting guy.
Ted Wass plays Robert, a successful West Coast attorney who has a law partner (Joe) who has been corresponding with Kate through the mail. Joe and Robert make a wager... Robert must wine and dine Kate for 2 weeks but not go to bed with her. If he does, then he has to give his expensive car to Joe. If he abstains from sex for those 2 weeks, he gets Joe's boat.
We all know what happens next. Of course, Robert and Kate fall in love. Robert comes clean about the wager he made with his partner before she arrived. He has fallen in love and wants to be honest with Kate. He lets her know everything before it gets too late. What happens? Kate goes absolutely ballistic! She flies into a fury and storms off back to Chicago to write a nasty, spiteful magazine article trying to ruin Robert's personal and professional life. Wow! You would think she would be more understanding considering the fact that she was a journalist and was manipulating Robert's feelings just so she could write an article. Nope. Evidently she is an angel and he is garbage. It was disturbing seeing the story play out in that fashion.
Typically I would not be too concerned with the sexual politics of some silly TV movie from 1982 but it was shocking seeing her character be so unapologetically nasty. We are supposed to revel in the "happy" ending when he chases after her and they profess their love for each other. It made me hope they were not planning on having kids considering how scornful Kate was. The only highlight of the film was a wonderful scene stealing performance by Karen Morrow as the attorneys' secretary.
Ted Wass plays Robert, a successful West Coast attorney who has a law partner (Joe) who has been corresponding with Kate through the mail. Joe and Robert make a wager... Robert must wine and dine Kate for 2 weeks but not go to bed with her. If he does, then he has to give his expensive car to Joe. If he abstains from sex for those 2 weeks, he gets Joe's boat.
We all know what happens next. Of course, Robert and Kate fall in love. Robert comes clean about the wager he made with his partner before she arrived. He has fallen in love and wants to be honest with Kate. He lets her know everything before it gets too late. What happens? Kate goes absolutely ballistic! She flies into a fury and storms off back to Chicago to write a nasty, spiteful magazine article trying to ruin Robert's personal and professional life. Wow! You would think she would be more understanding considering the fact that she was a journalist and was manipulating Robert's feelings just so she could write an article. Nope. Evidently she is an angel and he is garbage. It was disturbing seeing the story play out in that fashion.
Typically I would not be too concerned with the sexual politics of some silly TV movie from 1982 but it was shocking seeing her character be so unapologetically nasty. We are supposed to revel in the "happy" ending when he chases after her and they profess their love for each other. It made me hope they were not planning on having kids considering how scornful Kate was. The only highlight of the film was a wonderful scene stealing performance by Karen Morrow as the attorneys' secretary.
Love Boat-y Extended Play
rovinnomire-6261912 March 2023
Two attractive, single twenty-somethings, each with a hidden agenda, thrust together under the guise of potentially finding a mate.
The year was '82, Valerie Bertinelli was a hot commodity, and the tv gurus were eager to cash in. There's no denying she was adorable and personable, and worthy of lead roles.
That being said, this vehicle quickly skidded off the rails. The feeble writing and wince-inducing attempts at humor - and heart-felt moments - never gave it much of a chance. Add to it that Ted Wass was totally wrong for the 'romantic' role opposite Valerie. He came across as an aloof, arrogant and clueless twit, resulting in zero chemistry between the two. And I do mean zero. Nada. Nothing here will convince you that these two would fall for each other. And yet, onward we trod.
Bless her heart, Valerie tries to make the mess she's forced to deal with work. But nothing here makes a bit of sense, or is capable of holding a thinking person's interest for very long. And I'm wondering if Wass was just contractually obligated to play this role, because he couldnt have possibly come across as less interested.
This gets 3/10 only because Valerie did what she could with what she was given to work with. But the further it went, the messier it became. I guess the joke was on me for enduring this one to the very end.
The year was '82, Valerie Bertinelli was a hot commodity, and the tv gurus were eager to cash in. There's no denying she was adorable and personable, and worthy of lead roles.
That being said, this vehicle quickly skidded off the rails. The feeble writing and wince-inducing attempts at humor - and heart-felt moments - never gave it much of a chance. Add to it that Ted Wass was totally wrong for the 'romantic' role opposite Valerie. He came across as an aloof, arrogant and clueless twit, resulting in zero chemistry between the two. And I do mean zero. Nada. Nothing here will convince you that these two would fall for each other. And yet, onward we trod.
Bless her heart, Valerie tries to make the mess she's forced to deal with work. But nothing here makes a bit of sense, or is capable of holding a thinking person's interest for very long. And I'm wondering if Wass was just contractually obligated to play this role, because he couldnt have possibly come across as less interested.
This gets 3/10 only because Valerie did what she could with what she was given to work with. But the further it went, the messier it became. I guess the joke was on me for enduring this one to the very end.
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