'Love at First Bark' is the first 2017 Spring Fever film, a quite brief seasonal blocking that year. Any film that has at least one dog in it already appeals. As does the always watchable Kevin McGarry, he has been in a fair share of misfires and had roles well beneath him but he is nearly always one of the redeeming merits. Am more mixed on Jana Kramer, whose performances always depend on how her character is written. The concept didn't excite me massively either.
There is not much that is special about the execution for 'Love at First Bark'. It does have its good things, not many Hallmark films are completely irredeemable, but on the whole it did feel pretty lacklustre and not a particularly good or promising start to the 2017 Spring Fever block. Redeemed by a good male lead performance and the dog, but unbalanced badly by the female lead character being so unappealing and not being particularly interesting.
As said, 'Love at First Bark' has good things. The scenery is beautiful and complemented very nicely by the photography. Another thing that stands out in a good way is McGarry, who is quietly confident and easy going as the one likeable and interesting character.
Furthermore, the dog is truly adorable and impossible to resist. The best chemistry was also with any interaction with the dog too. There generally wasn't enough charm or heart, but there were moments.
However, a lot doesn't work in 'Love at First Bark'. Kramer's character is incredibly unappealing, too snarky and pushy and that McGarry's character saw any appeal in her later on, considering how she treats him, is a mystery. Kramer does try and has moments of charm, but to me she did over-compensate. She and McGarry have little chemistry together, the relationship is not developed enough and they are not a good match together due to such a big clash in personality and acting styles. Not to mention what was said above about not finding the appeal of her later on believable and actually a bit of a stretch. The supporting cast are competent and try their best, but are not particularly memorable and are a bit too subdued. The music likewise.
When it comes to the characters, only McGarry's (and the dog's if we are including animals) is interesting or likeable. The others are not developed enough and come over as Hallmark cliche ciphers, while Kramer's suffers from character flaws being exaggerated. The chemistry didn't connect enough. The story never really came to life for me, it is too slight (especially early on), is dully paced and does nothing new with a familiar scenario. The contrived and too easy final act, culminating in a pat ending, is particularly true to this. The charm and heart are really lacking and the film takes itself too seriously generally. The script is banal throughout, forced later on and has too many stilted moments.
In summary, lacklustre but not a complete miss. 4/10.
