The movie's neither hopeful in contrived ways, nor hopeless in different contrived ways. Somehow it manages to be wonderful

Ok... Let's be honest. It cannot be the best movie but is quite enjoyable. The movie has the potential to develop a great plot for future movies

Exactly the movie you think it is, but not the movie you want it to be.

The movie really just wants to entertain people.

Decent story with a couple of minor flaws. 1) I was thinking most of the time that Reena and John were forgetting someone. 2) Obviously Bo had his reasons, but the movie never sold me on why Reena shouldn't have totally spurned Bo for being a creepy stalker much less fall in love with him. I really would have like to see more time spent on Reena and Bo falling in love. On the positive side, there was good suspense while you wondered when the next fire was going to spring up and how were they going to catch the arsonist.Alicia Witt was at times great. She does a great job as the woman in love and you envy the boyfriend. She plays a really likable person most of the time. Her voice over at the beginning was good, but for a second I was thinking "this woman is the pyro here". But there were a couple of times her character was contradictory and I didn't think she sold it as to why. For one thing she goes from being the tough no-fear cop to being the little girl who can't do a thing. Maybe it almost makes sense, but I didn't buy her presentation of it. If her flashbacks are incapacitating her that much, I see at least two problems. 1) Others would notice it and intervene. 2) She never should have passed her initial fire test. Another time was in the hospital when Hugh dies. She spent almost no time grieving. And the scene chasing Joe with the gun looked ridiculous and if I saw a real cop chasing someone like that, I would be real worried about the gun going off randomly. Scott Bacula was steady as the parental mentor and friend.

The somewhat unconventionally beautiful Alicia Witt gives a good performance as an arson investigator who, with the help of her older partner (Scott Bakula), tries to track down a mysterious arsonist who seems to target any person she loves for extinction. I'm not familiar with Nora Roberts' books; Witt is the main reason I decided to check this film out, and she does seem to have put a lot of effort into her part. The film is professionally made and acted all around, with realistic depictions of fire (though there is one computerized explosion that looks very fake). The problem is that the story does not contain any major twists, and there are a couple of points where it cheats the viewer (without going into heavy spoilers, I'm referring particularly to the circumstances of Josh's death). It's an OK way to spend 90 minutes, but don't expect much more than that. (**)

I like Nora Roberts' books, but this movie was terrible. The main character is so very unrealistic, but since I didn't read the book, I don't know if this is just an awful book made into a movie or it's just the movie.The story is very predictable. The main character is so cheesy, so depressed and brooding, suspicious of everything and then suddenly happy-go-lucky, not a care in the world. She refers to herself as a cop, but then plays the part of an arson investigator with the fire department.In my opinion, this movie would be great for someone who loves to watch made-for-TV movies, or the typical Lifetime original movie. Otherwise, don't waste your time.

I had my doubts, but was surprised and pleased that Blue Smoke was much better than my expectations.Using flashbacks was a more effective way of presenting Reena's past and present in the movie. It helped create the picture of who she had become and why. I could understand many of the changes made to accommodate the transition from book to film. In some cases preferred the movie version (the book had a LOT of graphic violence).Alica Witt did a very believable strong, fierce Reena, showing how she had grown to deal with the tragedies that had made her feel, understandably, vulnerable and fragile. Scott Bakula ... ah ... he just gets better and more seasoned with every new role he takes on: compassionate and kind, but stern and demanding when needed.The relationships before she met Bo were as heartbreaking in the movie as in the book. Though I couldn't decide if the one she had with Hugh was even sadder than the original version. Was it worse that she was gun-shy and only on the brink of a new, deeper relationship as in the book, or taking the chance of accepting a marriage proposal as in the film? I honestly didn't think I'd like Matthew Settle as Bo, but he convinced me with his scene in the backyard when he *finally* got to meet his dream girl.The strong sense of family, and how their love and respect for each other also helped form Reena into such a determined, focused woman was carried through in both versions. Personally, I thought how the movie dealt with the villain(s) was a nice twist and fitting ending.Leaves me champing at the bit to see Carolina Moon.