January Jones is Missie Davis. As a young girl, she balked when her new step-mom taught her how to read.
These days, she dreams of being in the scenes she reads about. And she teaches school.
But her family is headed for crisis. Her father Clark Davis (Dale Midkiff) is badly injured chopping wound.
And the accident occurs just before a planting season that will determine whether the Davis family can hang onto their homestead.
That leaves the farm work to Missie and her mom, Marty (Katherine Heigl).
Enter a handsome stranger who says his name is Nate. He’s the same stranger who found Clark Davis injured and rushed him back to home for treatment.
While Nate agrees to work for Clark through planting season, Missie is being courted by Grant Thomas, a surveyor for the railroad.
Turns out, he’s the son of the owner of that railroad, a man who could make all those scenes in the books Missie reads come true.
Meanwhile, Nate reveals his true identity. His real name is Willie Nathan LaHaye. As a young boy, he lived near the Davis family. Heck, he used to pull ribbons from Missie’s hair.
But he ran away from home when tragedy struck his family. Now he’s back, hoping to mend old wounds.
Logan Bartholomew as Willie ‘Nate’ LaHaye, returning home to mend old wounds in Love’s Enduring Promise (2004)
January Jones as Missie Davis, a young woman torn between two admirers in Love’s Enduring Promise (2004)
Review:
Yep, that’s Katherine Heigl on the DVD cover. She’s the actress whose superb performance made the the first film in the “Love” series — “Love Comes Softly” (2003) — so endearing.
But don’t be fooled. She’s pushed way into the background here. This is the story of Missie’s coming of age.
And while the film will pull softly on your heartstrings now and then, scenes fall flat just as often. Bottom line: It’s not nearly as entertaining.
Logan Bartholomew would return to his role for the next two films in the series; January Jones would not.
Coincidentally, she’s actually older than Heigl, who plays her stepmother in this film. If you’d like to see January in a much better, grittier Western, check out Sweetwater (2013).
Dale Midkiff as Clark Davis, a father badly injured just as planting season arrives in Love’s Enduring Promise (2004)
Katherine Heigl as Marty Davis, trying to hold her family together after her husband is badly injured in Love’s Enduring Promise (2004)
Directed by:
Michael Landon Jr.
Cast:
January Jones … Missie Davis
Logan Bartholomew … Nate / Willie LaHaye
Katherine Heigl … Marty Claridge
Dale Midkiff … Clark Davis
Kesun Loder … Aaron Davis
Logan Areena … Arnie Davis
Mackenzie Astin … Grant Thomas
Cliff De Young … Zeke
Matthew Peters … Brian Murphy
Michael Bartel … Willie at 15
Dominic Scott Key … Mattie
Blaine Pate … Sam
Cara DeLizia … Annie Walker
Robert F. Lyons … Doc Watkins
Douglas Fisher … Edward Trumball
E.J. Callahna … Asa
Katia Coe … Clara
Runtime: 88 min.
Mackenzie Astin as Grant Thomas, the rich railroad man who takes a liking to Missie in Love’s Enduring Promise (2004)
Cliff De Young as Zeke LaHaye, abandoned by his wife and oldest son in Love’s Enduring Promise (2004)
Memorable lines:
Nate to Missie: “Til I tell you how to braid your hair, don’t tell me how to plow a field.”
Clark Davis: “Never despise meager beginnings.”
Nate, coming across a bee hive and approaching with a burning stick: “I’ve done this plenty of times. Smoke puts them to sleep. We’ll surprise your momma with some honey.”
Smoke rolls into the bee hive. Nate reaches in to retrieve the honey.
Nate, jerking back: “Ouch. Hey, ouch.”
Missie Davis, smiling: “What’s the matter? Isn’t one of the bees sleepy?”
Nate: “When tragedy happens, a real family pulls together. Mine ripped apart.”
Grant Thomas: “Missie, you don’t want to say ‘no’ to a man who’s saving you from a life of adversity.”
January Jones as Missie Davis, bringing water to Nate as he works in her family’s field in Love’s Enduring Promise (2004)
Kesun Loder as Aaron Davis, the eldest son of Clark and Marty Davis in Love’s Enduring Promise (2004)
Logan Areena as Arnie Davis, the youngest son of Clark and Marty Davis in Love’s Enduring Promise (2004)
Logan Bartholomew as Willie Nate LaHaye and January Jones as Missie Dave in Love’s Enduring Promise (2004)
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