The Dog Lover's Guide to Dating

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.

This was a light hearted movie shot in a beautiful city. I found out that it was shot in Newfoundland Canada, although US flags are scene through the movie.

The title name was spot on and it was a good enjoyable movie. Main actors kept the pace going. Daddy issues with main character could of had a rewrite. The Blonde in the movie, where did she come from? Never seen her before but they saved the movie including more scenes of her at the end. It's Hallmark, plots are similar but it's simple and refreshing for the Holidays. I'm glad I can sit down with my kids and watch a decent movie, we all need that.

I was looking forward to seeing this. Rated it an 8 out of 10. This is a low budget movie. Not much in the way of costumes or expensive sets. The premise was funny and the main actors were very good. The female lead was gorgeous, witty and articulate. The male lead was funny, but I had trouble understanding him in a few places because his voice was so low. The secondary actors were just okay. The dogs could have stolen the show but they were just props. I watched it twice just to make sure that I was being fair with my review. I am. One last thought, the lady the main male character is pursuing to date plays an outstanding self oriented, selfish designer who does a great job of being in love with herself.

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.

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.