Actors Tyler Hynes and Katherine Barrell star in the new Hallmark romantic comedy “Shifting Gears,” which premiered on March 23.
This marks the directorial debut of Yan-Kay Crystal Lowe.
In this movie, Motor City mechanic Jess Barro (Kat Barrell) and her father Ray (James Burke) run their family-owned automotive garage but money’s getting tight thanks to competition from a big auto repair shop chain in town.
Her passion is auto restoration and when Jess gets the chance to compete on an auto restoration show, she reluctantly agrees as the prize money would go a long way toward keeping their shop afloat.
Jess is shocked to discover one of the competitors is Luke (Tyler Hynes), her former boyfriend and the son of her dad’s former business partner who cut him out, leading Jess to break things off with Luke.
The show’s participants face off in a series of increasingly difficult challenges to showcase their personal style leading to the final round of repainting a classic car. As the competition revs up, Jess and Luke’s personal rivalry becomes a big hit with the audience and producers alike.
After a few misfires, they work through their former relationship and start to bond again over their shared love of classic cars. As they speed toward the finish line, Luke has a disastrous painting mishap that threatens to ruin Jess’ chances of winning.
When she learns his dad plans to buy her family’s garage, she suspects the painting disaster was sabotage rather than an accident.
Will their relationship break down again and be beyond repair, or will they be able to restore it and jump start their romance once again?
Without giving too much away, this is a rom-com that is worth more than just a passing glance.
The Verdict
Overall, “Shifting Gears” is a heartfelt and adventurous film that is uplifting and entertaining.
Tyler Hynes and Katherine Barrell deliver effervescent performances, and they have great chemistry together, as well as some witty and clever lines. It is filled with morals that many viewers will find warm, relevant, and relatable; moreover, it is feel-good escapism.
The car analogies are spot on. While this is the first movie for Crystal Lowe as a director, judging from the quality and her vision, one could never tell (and would think that she is a seasoned professional director).
Plus, one can never go wrong with casting Tyler Hynes as the male lead. Hopefully, Hynes and Barrell can do more acting projects together in the future.
“Shifting Gears” garners 4.5 out of 5 stars. Well done.
