Love at First Dance

Because Tobin did well in this movie especially the other lead their chemistry was magical with the added hallmark cliches

Niall Matter. He is the key for the feeling to see a little different Hallmark than you expect. Because he has the opportunity to confirm his beautiful skills, remarkable in others films of genre , obvious in this movie, to sustain, in strong and fair manner, romantic story not in sketches of acting but in real, serious sense. The second virtue - the dance and the music and the dance in Central Park and the dialogue between Adriana and Eric about the fall of idea of wedding. So, different Hallmark for the smart nuances of familiar story.

I love most Hallmark movies - especially the holiday-centric ones - and accept that the 2-dimensional male/female relationships often saturate the stories. This one breaks the mold - which makes it one of my favorites. The 'other woman' is not a witch from whom the male lead needs to escape. Instead, this story is about people I can relate to, realizing that they care for each other, but are not a perfect match for marriage. Add to this that I really don't like dance. It's okay - fun to do - but I would never buy tickets to see a dance show. Even so, the dance metaphor and sweet dance scenes are delightful. I love this movie, and the stars in it.

While Becca Tobin never jumps off the screen, there is still chemistry between her and Niall Matter. I haven't paid enough attention to Matter in the past, but I realized he is a solid half of the ... Father Christmas set of movies. And he does a great job in this one. You could see Eric grow in confidence as the story goes on, and underneath it he's falling in love.

Tobin is a steady presence throughout. I couldn't decide if she was a little too reserved, or just right, but you can understand easily how Eric could fall in love with Hope.

The third part of the triangle, Adriana, is no villain and compared to her Hope is downright giddy, but Adriana is supposed to be an unemotional rock.

Supporting characters are adequate if not great

I think the outline of the story could have been written by the viewer as soon as the background was established. These movies don't necessarily need surprises. But that means that one of the things this one had to do right was put the leads together as much as possible, and it did.

I usually don't like musical interludes that are often just there to avoid writing more plot, but in this case it was a nice dance interlude.

First time seeing Niall Matter in real romance. I think the chemistry was great, enhanced by the dance scenes which were excellent. Friendship believable and meaningful. Nothing new except, this one hit the formulas perfectly.