'Countdown to Summer' movie review: 'From Friend to Fiancé'

Despite the fact that the plot is summed up by the title, "From Friend to Fiancé" (airing May 25 as part of the Hallmark Channel's Countdown to Summer) is a charmer with plenty of twists and a delightful lead performance.

In short: When Ted (Ryan Paevey) asks his childhood best friend Jess (Jocelyn Hudon) to help plan his wedding to their high school mean girl Kimberly (Kelly Kruger), Jess must come to terms with her true feelings for Ted.

Jocelyn Hudon absolutely puts this movie on her back and carries it with adorkable appeal. She radiates awkward charm and sheer likability while she grapples with her conflicted feelings for her lifelong best friend. Jess is utterly at ease anytime she's with Ted - but her best moments are when she grits her teeth and urges her best friend to marry another woman ... even when it's clear it kills Jess inside. She's in love with Ted - the audience knows it and she knows it -- and "From Friend" makes the great decision to explore the genuine feeling she denies to everyone (including herself).

The movie's ace-in-the-hole is Jess's confidante Patrick (Derek McGrath), a retired gentlemen who lends his ear to Jess and offers his wisdom. Although Jess has a bestie her own age who sees the sparks between Jess and Ted, Patrick isn't just another one of a dozen characters who tries to "ship" Jess and Ted -- he actually presses Jess to really get to the root of her conflicted feelings. The scooter-riding retiree brings genuine warmth and some unexpected laughs to "From Friend."

Perhaps the movie's most refreshing choice is to not reduce Kimberly as some one-dimensional mean girl -- she's a fully realized character with her own inner conflict. Kimberly could easily have been a ridiculous caricature of a former "mean girl" who is clearly wrong for Ted, while being effortlessly snide to Jess -- but "From Friend" goes in the opposite direction. Kimberly's not just an obstacle between Jess and Ted - she's an empathetic third wheel earnestly trying to manage her own cold feet and contend with the intimate bond between her fiance and his best friend. In many ways, Kimberly's story parallels Jess's story -- and making Kimberly a fleshed-out character, and not merely some antagonist, actually strengthens Jess's story too.

It's plainly obvious Jess and Ted belong together -- and the movie doesn't go more than a few scenes without someone chiming in with a "I always thought you two would get married." Beating the audience over the head head with that sentiment just isn't needed because Ted and Jess are perfect together. And the movie doesn't act like they aren't the ideal couple -- instead, "From Friend" leans into the fact that Jess, Ted and Kimberly push forward with a wedding that, deep down, none of them are 100-percent convinced should happen.

Final verdict: Wonderful characters that keep the story engaging and surprisingly unexpected, and a sparkling performance from Jocelyn Hudon makes "From Friend" one of the year's best Hallmark Channel movies.

Score: 5-spring-blossoms-out-of-5

"From Friend to Fiancé" is rated TV-G and has a running time of 90 minutes. The movie premieres on The Hallmark Channel on May 25.