The Dog Lover's Guide to Dating

After being underwhelmed by Hallmark Christmas movies this year, I wasn't expecting much out of their first post-Christmas movie. I was wrong. Very wrong. This movie was well written, acted, and directed. It was thoughtful and never over the top and kept my attention for two hours. I thought the lead actress, Rebecca Dalton, did an especially good job in this very likable movie. Come to find out, she is the wife of one of my favorite Indy Car drivers, James Hinchcliffe. I think it was a very watchable movie that any dog lover will find enjoyment. Hallmark really did a nice job on this movie and I look forward to other new movies in 2023.

We've liked both leads in other movies, and we've been dog owners for close to 40 years, so The Dog Lover's Guide to Dating had a double draw for us.

Early on was a line that knocked off a star for me. "I don't train people. I train dogs". That's actually not the focus of dog training. While you DO train dogs, you also train people how to control and interact with their dogs. If you just train a dog and hand it back to a clueless owner, all the training is wasted.

So it would be nice if writers knew something about dog training before writing about dogs and dog training. They did get one thing right. Reward a dog for good behavior.

The romance itself started out as antithetical but they moved past that VERY quickly, to two people attracted to each other and unable to admit it. It made for a compelling story, and one we enjoyed.

I like almost all decent Hallmark movies and I am almost always grading on the "Hallmark curve" not expecting perfection but a nice watch. But, I do expect the movie to not insult the audience with childish slapstick and stupid lines. I only watched half because I just couldn't take it anymore so take that confession for what it's worth. It is exceedingly rare for me not to finish a Hallmark flick.

As usual I blame the writing and not the actors who are just doing their job with that they are given. The leads were fine, I have no issues with their performances, but by trying to be way too cute, obvious and bland the writers ruined the story.

Listen, I'll be honest and say the previews for this movie did not excite me; however, both my husband and I ended up loving it! It premiered on January 1st, and was fun, playful, lighthearted, had great banter and chemistry between the leads, was energetic and entertaining, and was the perfect movie to jump start the new year. I don't typically enjoy dog training movies, but this one worked for me.

At one point, it looked like it was about to go deep into some family drama, but they only used that information to explain a reaction to something else, and kept it moving. It did not bring down the mood of the movie, which often times can happen.

I would say this movie is best to watch when you are needing a break from the heaviness of life.

It was such a wonderful pick-me-up!

I really like watching Rebecca Dalton and this is a good role for her. She is always upbeat. She is very easy to look at. She and Corey Sevier have decent chemistry if not sparkling.

One of the first scenes is Sevier's Simon chasing Simon the dog as the dog wrecks havoc with picnics in the park. Sevier tries to channel Dick Van Dyke's comedy by clumsiness and does an ok job.

Simon is rather a sad excuse and needs Dalton's Alex to show him to man up in life both with dogs and girlfriends. Meanwhile Alex is obsessed with her father's abandonment to the point to hiding in her dog world. As so often the case in rom/coms, the two romantic leads help each other change their lives.

Throw in a charity gala to save the dog rescue center (didn't I just watch that movie before Countdown to Christmas or that was probably another channel). Meanwhile the obviously appealing Alex has attracted the attention of a local veterinarian who helps with the gala. Things progress about how you'd expect. No great highs or lows or surprises. One aspect that might set these characters apart is how directly they confront each other with honest evaluations, but only in terms of degree.

This was a nice break from Christmas movies, but other than Dalton's charm, nothing to stand out.