Movie Review: Signed, Sealed, Delivered - One in a Million

Stars: 3 out of 5

Pros: Acting, usual good resolution

Cons: Weaknesses along the way

The Bottom Line:

Retrieving letter

As mailboxes are robbed

Not franchise’s best

The Middle Lets Down the Rest

It took until the sixth movie in the Signed, Sealed, Delivered series, but it has finally happened.  I finally found a movie that I didn’t particularly care for.  Don’t get me wrong, there were aspects of One in a Million that I enjoyed.  But there were parts of I didn’t, especially the middle.

This movie opens on a Monday.  But not just any Monday.  It’s the Monday after Oliver and Shane (Eric Mabius and Kristin Booth) finally went on their big date.  Or was it a date?  Either way, it was awkward at best and a disaster at worst, and that’s carrying over to this work day as things are getting off to an awkward start.

Then Oliver is called into a meeting.  It seems that someone has been stealing the mail from various mailboxes around town and leaving weird clues behind.  The POstables are being called on to try to figure out who is responsible.  Meanwhile, the waitress from their date/non-date has shown up and asked Shane if she can intercept the letter she mailed over the weekend before it gets delivered.  Oh, and Rita and Norman (Crystal Lowe and Geoff Gustafson) have a misunderstanding in their relationship.

There were a couple of things that went wrong for me in this movie.  The first was Oliver and Shane’s relationship.  I sure thought it was pretty clear at the end of the last movie that they were going out on a date.  And yet, that wasn’t clear to Oliver (who did the asking) in this movie.  It felt like a manufactured misunderstanding just to drag out the romantic tension.  And Rita and Norman’s subplot felt like it was there just to give them a storyline.

Then there’s the storyline of the guy stealing the mail.  About half way through, Oliver and his dad (Gregory Harrison) figure out who it is, and then we get some scenes that are supposed to be funny.  I get what they were going for.  But they just had me rolling my eyes, thanks in large part of Lane Edwards’ Lester.  Now, don’t get me wrong, it isn’t the performance.  It’s the way the character is written.

So, what did I like?  The storyline with the waitress turned out to be very sweet.  In fact, despite my complaining, I did like how all the various storylines were resolved.  They were all handled with the usual realistic optimism the series is known for.

And the acting continues to be great.  The four main cast members are so great at bringing their characters to life.

I’m disappointed in One in a Million, but I’m still looking forward to finishing out this long running series.  I love the characters, and every franchise has an entry or two that don’t quite work.  I’m sure the next one will be back to Signed, Sealed, Delivered’s usual standards.

This movie is part of the Signed, Sealed, Delivered Collection Movies 5-8