Of the two leads, there is more familiarity with Emily Kinney from watching 'The Walking Dead' in its early seasons (back when it was great) when her character Beth was on the show. Am one of not many who didn't dislike her, despite her there being far more interesting and plausibly developed characters. Have not seen enough of John Reardon's work, but in what has been seen of him has not stood out that much. Watched 'Love on the Sidelines' primarily as someone who has been watching Hallmark films for a while now.
'Love on the Sidelines' impressed me on the whole and it is one of the better faring Winterfest films. It isn't a great film and is not exempt from flaws, but there are a lot of good things as well and it is a nice effort generally. As far as Hallmark films from that year go, 'Love on the Sidelines' is not one of the best. And it is also not one of the worst. Instead one of the solid middle efforts, which is not too bad a position to be in when seeing how variable that year was for Hallmark.
It isn't perfect. There is absolutely no doubt how everything is going to map out or end, the Winterfest films are quite samey structurally and 'Love on the Sidelines' follows the formulaic structure to the letter pretty much. Making it predictable too many times, especially in the final third, and pretty much all the standard Hallmark cliches are here.
Would have liked more spark from Reardon's performance, with him coming over as a little bland at times. The ending is also too convenient for my liking.
There is however a lot to like, with 'Love on the Sidelines' being especially worth watching for Kinney. Who is a real charmer in her role and brings a lot of energy and charm, this is a role that suits her well and it helps that the character is a likeable one. The supporting cast are solid and Kinney and Reardon do work well together, understated but not disconnected and the affection is felt.
It is a good looking film visually, regardless of the lack of authenticity/accuracy the scenery is gorgeous and taken full advantage of in the photography. The music has been known to be overdone and intrusive in Hallmark, it is pleasantly festive here. The script is playfully light-hearted and has a good deal of heart without being sentimental. The story is far from perfect, but it was clear what it was trying to do and wanted to be and it is very charmingly cute and heart-warming.
Overall, nice film. 7/10.
