IR TV Review: HAUNTED HARMONY MYSTERIES - MURDER IN G MAJOR [Hallmark]
The aspect of Hallmark mystery movies is to make a kind of gumshoe throwback to something like "Murder She Wrote" with a bit of romance thrown in. The aspect of "Haunted Harmony Mysteries" with an installment called "Murder In G Major" takes place in Ireland following orchestra conductor/lead Gethsemane Brown (played by Tamera Mowry-Housley) as she comes to town as a new hire. She tries to connect with her students as the new music teacher but finds herself ensconced in a mystery because she is able to see ghosts. The delivery is of course much less dark than it would seem to need to be. She encouters a slain musician who used to teach at the school: Eamon McCarthy (Risteard Cooper). Her goal then becomes to find out if he and his wife were murdered, if it was a murder/suicide, or if there were other aspects at play without really thinking of her own safety (which would be most people's first thought). There are many different characters with their own objectives from local burgulars to interested detectives to fan club members to possible co-teacher love interests.
The script inetgrates most of them with enough fanfare but not enough to show which ones might be responsible for what happened to the musician and his wife but give just enough clues as to who might be the right suspect. Brown and the ghost McCarthy retrace his steps. There are light comedic moments and the back country gardens and lanes of County Wicklow are nicely captured as well as the small town pub with continual pints being poured. As the story progresses, the world becomes a little smaller as Mowry-Housley begins seeing cracks in different characters facades with the help of her resident ghost. But it is the texture of music is what brings her clues: a ringtone, a musical interlude for her class or the way a note simply distracts a certain character in an essential moment. Like many Hallmark movies, it does wrap it up in a nice little bow, brings the bad guys somewhat to justice, provides a little bit of romantic intrigue and sets up our hero to fight another day with her specific set of skills. "Murder In G Major" works well as a stand alone mystery with passable acting but a certain expectation. In this way, it allows for a progression of new stories with characters both empathetic and sweet. B
By Tim Wassberg
