The Battle Between Fate and Love Kick Off The Providence Falls Film Trilogy

Aug 3, 2025 - 09:50

0 0

The Battle Between Fate and Love Kick Off The Providence Falls Film Trilogy

Jude Deveraux is well-known for her romance novels, and her Providence Falls trilogy, which was co-written with Tara Sheets, was the ideal Hallmark Channel offering.

It fits the vein of the Hallmark original series, The Way Home, as it offered different perspectives of love, fate, and redemption, and alternated between 1844 in Ireland and modern-day Providence Falls.

The first film, Providence Falls: Chance of a Lifetime, showed that inner struggle between true love and destiny.

If you’ve read my work, you know how I feel about book-to-screen adaptations, and I was immediately intrigued by this film. It featured strong characters, romance, and even a murder mystery.

It was the ideal Hallmark film, and the cast sold it from beginning to end.

Terri Blackstock’s If I Run Review: Kat Graham & Evan Roderick Leave Us Hooked and Hanging
by Jasmine Blu
The Battle Between Fate and Love Kick Off The Providence Falls Film Trilogy
by Laura Nowak
As Resident Alien Nears the End, Everyone’s Letting Go in “Tunnel Vision”
by Carissa Pavlica

Providence Falls: The Chance of a Lifetime Showcased Strong Acting and Made Lachlan Quarmby a Leading Man

Providence Falls: Chance of a Lifetime introduced us to the main characters: Liam O’ Connor (Lachlan Quarmby), Cora McLeod (Katie Stevens), and Finn Walsh (Evan Roderick).

All three of them worked hard since sometimes they appeared in period flashbacks and modern scenes back-to-back, and it was challenging to learn an Irish accent and customs and then readjust to modern times.

While I’ve seen Evan Roderick and Katie Stevens lead shows before, Lachlan Quarmby was a pleasant surprise since I hadn’t watched any of his work before.

Lachlan Quarmby made Liam a rootable leading man. He played him with a vulnerability and awareness of his faults. Liam knew he was undeserving of a woman like Cora, but that only made you want him to win her heart more.

He sold every scene he was in, especially the romantic ones. It didn’t sound like a cheesy line when he professed his love for Cora, since Lachlan Quarmby and Katie Stevens possessed such sizzling chemistry.

It didn’t matter if they were exchanging steamy kisses in the past or longing looks in the present, Liam and Cora looked like they were in love.

Liam led this film in every scene, not just with Cora. He showed his mentoring skills while helping Dominic since he hoped the teen would have a better life than him.

He was hilarious as he learned from the meddling angels. In essence, he was the film’s MVP and I hope we see more of him.

Hallmark Believed in This Adaptation, and the Creators Sold It

While the Hallmark Channel has always featured romantic movies, lately the network has evolved to more angsty, layered material.

How The Summer I Turned Pretty Explores Girlhood and the Glorification of Self-Sacrifice
by Jasmine Blu
Soft Boys, Sad Boys & Bad Boys: What The Summer I Turned Pretty Reveals About the Perception of Masculinity
by Jasmine Blu
TV Taught Us How to Die. But It Never Taught Us How to Be Born.
by Carissa Pavlica

Providence Falls was one of the best book-to-screen adaptations I’ve watched, and the creators worked hard to achieve to craft a story of everlasting love.

It helped that Joanna Garcia Swisher (Sweet Magnolias) was one of the executive producers since she understood the importance of keeping the heart of the story intact.

Hallmark has done several films set in Ireland, and you could tell the cast filmed there with the grassy hills, the authentic castles, and the period costumes. It was like you traveled back in time, and Ireland was almost another character.

Both directors were Hallmark royalty, known for original series and films, which will help Providence Falls become a success.

Siobhan Devine has worked on When Calls the Heart and Chesapeake Shores, while Lucie Guest has directed original films, such as Christmas at the Chalet and Sealed With a List, also starring Evan Roderick.

Knowing one of the lead cast members always helps pave the way to form new relationships and make the project a winning success.

The Meddling Angels and Liam’s Humor Were One of The Film’s Highlights

The meddling angels were a much bigger part of the film than they were in the books. They explained Liam’s mission in the books, but they didn’t pop up as much, and they weren’t nearly as meddling or funny.

Keegan Connor Tracy played the head angel Samael beautifully. She was in charge and despised anything messing with fate, including Agon (Amitai Marmorstein) beginning to ship Liam and Cora.

As a newer angel, he saw Liam’s transformation and wanted him to have a second chance. Seeing him interact down on Earth with Liam as almost friends were some of the film’s most entertaining moments.

Why I’m Rooting for the “New Threats” After The Challenge Season 41 Premiere
by Paul Dailly
I’m Thrilled Al Calderon Will Be On Brilliant Minds, But Doubly Excited That Javi Isn’t Leaving Salem
by Jack Ori
When Late-Night Lost the Plot
by Carissa Pavlica

Technically, Providence Falls focuses on reincarnation, but it felt like time travel, especially when Liam landed in the present and is confused by everything like cars and phones.

Those scenes made me laugh because he has to act like a foreign traveler, who’s not used to the United States, but that only worked for so long.

Even in Ireland, they knew what cell phones were or that women had more rights. Then there was the pesky matter of constantly slipping and mentioning things about his and Cora’s past.

All eyes were on Liam, even when he didn’t want them to be.

The Liam, Cora, and Finn Love Triangle Differed From Traditional Ones

I love an entertaining love triangle, but I hate it when one character is the wrong choice. While the film hinted that Liam was Cora’s true love, it also teased that she was destined to end up with Finn.

While the film initially painted Liam as a rogue, he exhibited a heart of gold in the present day. He strived to help others, especially those less fortunate like him.

Finn was painted as proper and boring in 1844, and while he was still an awkward lawyer, he and Cora exhibited an easy camaraderie in Providence Falls.

Liam and Cora exhibited magnetic chemistry in each timeline, even though it wasn’t proper for Liam to date someone like Cora in 1844.

She was beyond his class, yet they had a lot in common. They both craved adventure and believed in philosophy and fate. Cora didn’t want to become just an extension of her husband or part of an arranged marriage.

She helped Liam become a better person, and ironically, that’s how he landed in this mess. If he hadn’t tried to return John Brady’s watch, he wouldn’t have been a murder suspect, and then they wouldn’t have been on the run.

Liam changed because of his love for Cora. In Ireland, he didn’t want to live without her. When he saw the same events repeating in present times, he agreed to help set her up with Finn because he loved her enough to let her go.

That’s pure romantic angst because Cora started to feel like they were destined to meet and liked Liam, but didn’t understand why he was so unpredictable.

While we haven’t seen it yet, I can’t imagine Cora McLeod being happy to be fixed up with someone else. She longed to be in control of her own life, even if Finn was more charming in the present day.

Initially, it seemed like Finn didn’t have much of a chance, which saddened me, because Evan Roderick played a charismatic and charming lawyer to the max.

Finn’s luck turned around somewhat at the police ball after Liam disappeared, and Finn and Cora danced, teasing her about all the debutantes he had danced with.

Their connection seemed easy and natural, like long-time friends experimenting with flirting. While Finn didn’t realize it, they had also known each other in 1844, which contributed to their familiarity.

You had to feel for the guy. Just as he poured his heart out, Cora ran to profess her feelings to Liam.