Continuing to be part of the Mysterious Island experience provides a small respite for Emilia Priestly (Elizabeth Henstridge), a psychiatrist working for the London police force. Her workday is a reality, but creating puzzles and mysteries for this experience helps her find a little more balance. It also helps that her good friend Jane Alcott (Kezia Burrows), a wealthy woman, is part of the business. There's also Jason Trent (Charlie Weber), a detective with the island's local police force with whom Emilia co-creates these immersive experiences.
Their latest client is a VIP renting the retreat for a corporate event—a guest who turns out to be Emilia's ex-fiancé! Tensions and complications arise when one of their guests is found murdered.
Director: Steven R. Monroe
Writer: John Christian Plummer
Stars: Kezia Burrows, Ben McKeown, Nisha Aaliya
Back for a third installment, the Mysterious Island films are very interesting. Their pacing is slower than other Hallmark-branded mystery franchises, but I enjoyed them. I know it's not a popular feeling, but I love that they break away from the "normal" pattern of the network's "safe" mysteries. Also, for Hallmark, the two leads aren't the typical stars we see all the time. From a marketing perspective, I understand casting the same characters, but I think the new stars and faces bring new energy to the production, and this shouldn't be underestimated.
Mystery Island: Play for Keeps falls into the same clichés as many others, with the return of the ex, but the setting helps, as does the fact that Jason and Emilia aren't "together." These movies also start off very funny. They begin as if we're already in the mystery, when in reality, it's the creators of the murder game who pose their new puzzle. Although I may be one of the few who enjoys them, I can say that I had a lot of fun watching them. The experience is always fun, and while I doubt they'll make it, if more were produced (a fourth film has already been filmed), I'd be curious to see what the future holds for this trio of detectives.
There's a risky new mystery game on Mystery Island, and it comes with a serious problem! Mystery Island's director of operations, Baroness Jane Alcott (Kezia Burrows), breaks the news to her friend and psychiatrist employee, Dr. Emilia Priestly (Elizabeth Henstridge), that her next client is a VIP party hosted by wealthy married couple Ainsley (Emily Eaton-Plowright) and Franklin Trask (Kris Mochrie). The awkward thing, however, is that Franklin is Emilia's ex-fiancé, and as much as she wants to escape this situation, Ainsley has specifically requested that Emilia be present for the entire duration of their group's stay. Detective Jason Trent (Charlie Weber), Emilia's coworker and screenwriter, says Ainsley is probably feeling insecure and wants to make sure Franklin isn't still in love with Emilia. He seems like a really fun person Emilia could be stuck on an island with!
Unfortunately for Emilia, she's in no position to turn this down due to the high-profile nature of Trask's party. Franklin runs the wealthy hedge fund Trask Global Management, while his wife, Ainsley, to whom he's been married for a year, is an influential corporate lawyer and member of Trask Global's board of directors. Rounding out the VIP group... The group consists of Viveca Bentley (Victoria Bolt), Franklin's right-hand woman and Trask Global's chief operating officer; Spencer Trask (John MacDonald), a former NFL tight end and former vice president of Trask Global; Patricia Collacello (Nisha Aaliya), Spencer's "model girlfriend" (whom they later call his wife?); and Mickey Carlyle (Barney White), the schoolteacher, childhood best friend, and high school crush who became her friend-zone reunion. Jane and Jason also crash the party to dress up as part of their murder-mystery game plan.
Tensions immediately flare with Trask's arrival. Upon arriving on the island, Ainsley is brusque and confrontational with Emilia, while Franklin is overly friendly. Ainsley ends up solving the mystery on her own in just one day, with a verdict reached so quickly that Emilia immediately suspects he's cheating. Franklin finds himself alone with Emilia and confesses that he's still in love with her, something Ainsley overhears before furiously suing him for a divorce.
The next day, Ainsley and one of her purses go missing, and Ainsley is found dead with a severed carotid artery and an "S" written in blood near her body. Her missing purse is later found (with wads of cash inside) in the room of Mystery Island employee Simons (Ben McKeown), making him a possible suspect.
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