Of all the 2015 Hallmark seasonal blocks, the Fall Harvest one was the only one where for me all the films in it were above decent while not being great. Whereas the Countdown to Valentine's Day and June Weddings blocks had one misfire each and the Christmas output was very hit and miss. Hallmark did have some mediocre or less Fall Harvest films, but most are above average and more. Have liked Jessy Schram and Jesse Hutch in other things, with more familiarity with the always watchable Schram.
'Harvest Moon' is on the whole a pretty good effort. Is it a great film? Not quite, actually an easy film to criticise if one is particularly not familiar with Hallmark's output, which is quite more of the same and very up and down in all its own. Is 'Harvest Moon' worth watching and does it have a lot of good things? Yes, and as far as Hallmark's 2015 output that had been aired already goes it's one of the solid middle ones but also among their better ones overall that year in a typically variable year for them.
It is far from perfect. It is formulaic and doesn't have many surprises, almost everything is obvious well before it happens (and it is not just the neatly wrapped up ending).
As well as the too neat and convenient ending, the whole final act is rushed and contrived. Also didn't like the too constant and over loud music, not uncommon with Hallmark.
On the other hand, there are a lot of good things. Both Schram and Hutch, especially Schram, are good, and their chemistry connects well and is suitably romantic. The supporting cast are solid. It is a good looking film, especially the scenery. While not a script that will win awards, the script is light-hearted and witty, clearly knowing what it was trying to be and clearly understood the genre the film fits under. Doing so without trying to throw in too much tonally or adding anything unnecessary.
Story is not original, but is full of charm and never takes itself too seriously, while also treating the subject with maturity. The pace never felt dull while not being rushed. The supporting cast are solid.
Also felt that the characters weren't too stereotypical and were more than just typical Hallmark cliches that is seen too often with Hallmark. Also cared for them, with them being true to life with personality traits that appealed with situations worth relating to.
Nice film overall. 7/10.
