Aahana Swrup
Hallmark’s film ‘An Unexpected Valentine’ presents a journey through all things romantic as it follows a budding love story that unravels aboard a car-bound adventure. After one too many bad experiences, Hannah becomes tired of the dating scene. However, that doesn’t mean she still isn’t a hopeless romantic who wants to fight for love. Therefore, when she finds an engagement ring box in the backseat of her cab driver, Finn’s car, she realizes she has no choice but to get it back to its rightful owner in time for the big proposal. As a result, Finn—who is usually cynical in matters of the heart—finds himself roped into embarking on a grand mission through the streets of New York in search of the hopefully soon-to-be happy engaged couple. Hannah and Finn’s love story builds itself upon an intriguing premise that ends up bringing them to unexpected stops. SPOILERS AHEAD!
An Unexpected Valentine Takes the Audience on a Love-Struck Voyage
‘An Unexpected Valentine’ has all the ingredients for an ideal Hallmark rom-com for the season of love. The story finds a solid foundation in its happy-go-lucky protagonist with a whimsically fascinating job and the jaded love interest who realizes he isn’t above sappy grand romantic gestures in pursuit of true love. Hannah and Finn’s characters seamlessly complement each other, balancing each other’s eternal optimism and cynicism in equal measures. Since most of the film centers around this duo and their interpersonal chemistry, their engaging characterizations become one of the most crucial aspects of the tale. Fortunately, the pair has an excellent adventure mapped out for them that highlights this easy charm between them.
From flower shops to heart-shaped balloons and romantic dates, Hannah and Finn inadvertently stumble their way into everything that represents the kitschy aesthetic of Valentine’s Day. Yet, as their bond grows during the in-between car rides, these stereotypical stops begin to gain more meaning, becoming sentimental landmarks in their story. Similarly, the supporting characters—although underused in favor of a central focus on the leads—embody various stages of love from an early start to an older connection that has aged like fine wine. Therefore, the characters and their journeys remain captivating. Yet, as the plot progresses, some of the grounded drama cracks, resulting in a climactic build-up that may feel forced. Still, the conclusion brings the story back to its roots, highlighting the genuine connection between two individuals who find love in all the right places.
An Unexpected Valentine Plot Summary
Hannah, the product designer at Alonette Chocolate, comes up with the perfect line for Valentine’s Day: What’s in Her Purse, a campaign promoting their unique chocolate purse merchandise. Since the product is predicted to be a big hit at the upcoming brand event, the marketing head convinces Hannah to attend the event for her presentation. Although this ruins her plans to stay home in her pajamas for a laid-back Valentine’s, she eventually relents. Yet, little does she know the universe has a wild ride planned for the chocolate developer.
Once Hannah leaves work early in the afternoon, she books a cab, which ends up being a ride-share. This poses a small problem for her on account of her slight carsickness. Nonetheless, it opens up the perfect excuse for her to be shotgun beside the charming driver, Finn. After the other drops have been made, much to her surprise, Hannah uncovers an engagement ring box buried in the car seat. Upon realizing that one of Finn’s passengers, who is planning on proposing later, likely left the box behind, Hannh quickly makes up her mind and assigns herself—and, by proximity, Finn—the task of returning the box to the owner.
Even though it takes some convincing—and the agreement to help him out with his deliveries for the day—Finn eventually comes around, setting the pair up on their personal Valentine’s adventure. Thus, after a brief pitstop at a flower shop, he takes Hannah to a cooking class he remembers one of his passengers mentioning. Nonetheless, those passengers—Nadine and Mikey—end up being a fairly new couple who are nowhere near the engagement step in their relationship. Their next pitstop—at a club where Finn dropped off Gabby—reaps similar results. Still, this only ensures the pair has more time to spend in each other’s company as they continue driving from one place to another. Inevitably, the journey becomes a great way for Hannah and Finn to get to know each other better.
For the same reason, it’s bittersweet when even their final stop—at a figure drawing class—doesn’t unveil the ring owner’s identity. However, Hannah and Finn find another excuse to extend their adventure when a work emergency compels the former to drive down to a bakery on wheels. The universe further pushes them together when they’re forced to overtake the shop in light of an emergency momentarily. Therefore, as the night nears their 9 P.M. deadline before both of them have events to attend, things begin to look bleak for the mystery of the engagement ring.
An Unexpected Valentine Ending: Do Hannah and Finn Find the Ring’s Owner?
From the get-go, the story sets up a few characters whom the ring could belong to. Finn has a habit of cleaning his car every day, which means only passengers he has picked up earlier could be the possible owners of the ring. As such, he and Hannah find their three suspects and embark on their adventure with three destinations—and a few stops along the way—planned. Nonetheless, one after the other, these people deny ownership of the ring. Therefore, despite the fantastic time the duo have had together, their spirits dampen a bit toward the end. That is until Finn finally remembers a crucial detail.
As it turns out, Finn had almost picked up another passenger earlier in the day: Gavin. Gavin was a frantic man who had accidentally got into Finn’s car while on the phone, mistaking it for his own cab. In the time that it took for the man to realize his mistake, he dropped the engagement ring box in the backseat, leaving it for Hannah to find later. Thus, as the time nears for her to attend her event and Finn to show up for his art gallery showing, the pair realize they have one final shot to save someone’s big day. Fortunately for Gavin, they decide to take the gamble and venture into the final escapade for the night.
Thanks to Finn’s tendency to pay attention to his passenger’s chatter, he concludes that Gavin must be at the restaurant Bartholomew’s, an ideal location for a romantic proposal. Even though he and Hannah run into more troubles—an out-of-order elevator and a rooftop destination—they refuse to give up. Gavin has realized he has lost the ring by then, but he still decides to go through with the proposal, knowing that the show of commitment is more important than any piece of jewelry. Yet, the duo manages to arrive and catch Gavin’s attention in the nick of time. Thus, they manage to ultimately ensure he has a magical and perfect proposal, complete with fireworks and a pretty diamond ring.
Do Hannah and Finn End Up Together?
Even after Hannah and Finn ensure a happy ending to someone else’s tale, their own love story remains unpredictably dubious. It’s evident that the pair have mutual feelings for one another, which almost make themselves known during their slow dance by the roadside. Nonetheless, both of them are too scared by their past demons to dive headfirst into the brewing chemistry between them. Finn’s last relationship ended in tatters, compelling him to question his own approach to dating. Meanwhile, Hannah has been on one bad date after the other, which has made her pessimistic about dating. Therefore, both of them are reluctant to act on their feelings, especially when they have the excuse of bouncing away from their pre-planned events.
Yet, Hannah comes to the realization that she has to take a chance—especially on a connection as special as the one she shares with Finn. Likewise, the photographer also reminds himself that professed love is always better than love left unsaid. Thus, long after midnight, the pair decide to finally run towards their own happily ever after. This ends up being more literal for Finn, who has to run down multiple blocks after his car gets a ticket. Ultimately, Hannah is waiting on the other side for him, prepared to make her own way to him. In the end, the couple confess their feelings for one another, establishing the foundation for their relationship.
Read More: Best Romantic Movies on Hallmark Plus
