Hallmark is taking viewers on a pilgrimage from the comforts of home this month with their new romance, Journey to You. The film stars Erin Cahill as a workaholic named Monica who reluctantly embarks on a trip to walk the Camino de Santiago in Spain after some convincing by her mother. But along the way, Monica learns fresh lessons about life, faith, and love with the help of handsome single father Luis (Erik Valdez). Is their tale worth investing your time in, or should you tell this title to take a hike? Keep reading to find out!
The Gist: Monica Miller (Erin Cahill) is seriously dedicated to her job as a nurse practitioner at Boston Bay Hospital. The tightly-wound workaholic hasn’t taken any vacation in four years, and she hasn’t engaged in a hobby for even longer. But after losing out on a promotion at work, Monica suddenly feels lost as she wonders what all of that devotion was for if she didn’t “make it” like she always aspired to.
After sharing the unfortunate news with her mother, Olivia (Yvette Filanc), the older woman shows her support while also encouraging her daughter to take a vacation to walk the Camino de Santiago. Olivia reminds Monica that it was on this pilgrimage she met Monica’s beloved late father, and this could be a chance for Monica to meet the man of her dreams, too, or at the very least, to get a new outlook on life. After some reflection and prayer, Monica agrees to take the plunge and heads to Spain to begin her journey, accompanied by just an extremely heavy backpack and a devotional left for her by her father.
Although things get off to a bit of a bumpy start as Monica tries and fails to start the trail on her own while waiting for her tour group to arrive, she eventually relents to staying with the group led by the sassy and affable guide, Consuelo (Isabelle Bres). She has been leading divorced psychologist Luis (Erik Valdez), Luis’s slightly gruff father Ernesto (Pep Tosar), and Luis’s disinterested teenage son Mateo (Solal Bellaiche).
Monica has always liked to do things on her own and feels embarrassed asking others for help, but she comes to find that the unpredictable and winding road of life just might be easier to manage and more enjoyable when she slows down to appreciate the view and relies on those around her. In turn, Luis begins to see that he doesn’t need to stretch himself thin trying to be everything that he thinks the people around him want him to be, and that instead, he just needs to cherish the little moments with those who matter most with no posturing or pressure. As Monica and Luis embark on this journey to find themselves, is there room for unearthing true love, too?
What Movies Will It Remind You Of?: Journey to You may remind some viewers a little bit of the 2010 Martin Sheen-led film The Way, which also features some bonding and heartfelt moments while walking the Camino de Santiago. The movie is also reminiscent of other Hallmark titles like Happy Howlidays and Holiday Hotline, since the former has a workaholic leading lady, and the latter has a single father male lead.
Performance Worth Watching: Isabelle Bres and Pep Tosar stand out as Consuelo and Ernesto thanks to their easy likability and charm. Especially for a Hallmark movie, I thought that they both delivered pretty natural performances, and I especially enjoyed the chemistry between them that was quite apparent from the start.
Memorable Dialogue: The following exchange between Monica and Luis is definitely about more than just a cumbersome backpack (could it even be… the movie’s main message?!):
“No, I like a challenge.”
“Challenge yourself to accept a little help then, huh? You don’t have to always carry everything on your own.”
Sex and Skin: None whatsoever.
Our Take: I think that the highlight of this movie was undoubtedly the gorgeous setting. While Journey to You may not have been filmed on the actual Camino de Santiago, the locations they shot in Spain provided some of the most vibrant and impressive visuals that I’ve seen in any Hallmark film thus far.
Beyond that, though, there isn’t much else that sets Journey to You apart from other Hallmark titles, except perhaps the slightly excessive mentions of God and prayer, which were more than I’ve seen in most Hallmark Christmas movies (and this isn’t even an Easter movie). I guess I should’ve expected some religious allusions in a film where the main location translates to the Way of St. James in English and leads to a literal cathedral, but even then, it was more than I would have expected. So if you like a secular romance, this is definitely not it.
Speaking of the romance, it almost felt unnecessary, as the movie probably would have been more powerful and engrossing if it were just about Monica finding herself and a greater connection with her roots by walking in her late father’s steps on the pilgrimage. Sure, there were some sweet moments of connection between Monica and Luis, but they were overshadowed, or at least weighed down, by heavy-handed and overtly cheesy dialogue.
At a certain point, the conversations started to feel too on-the-nose and like they were mere instruments to inject spirituality and life lessons. If anything, the better and more natural romance was between Conseulo and Ernesto—now that was some chemistry I could feel from the start! But unfortunately, even that pair couldn’t escape this film, and the characters’ ultimate fate of being a bit too over-the-top cheesy to be a success.
Our Call: Journey to You might just be a bit too lacking in nuance and slightly too saccharine to make this a voyage worth your time. It’s not terrible, but it’s certainly no walk to remember. SKIP IT.
