The Hallmark Channel Movie Review: ‘When Love Springs’

Tropes. You can say that you hate tropes, but the reality is that there isn’t much today that isn’t built around some sort of trope. We’d all do better accepting that and stop trying to hate on what is.

The last movie in The Hallmark Channel’s Spring Into Love lineup is When Love Springs, and it’s definitely a good way to tie up the season.

Let’s break down all of the our thoughts on the movie.

It’s About This: The basics of When Love Springs? Well, so, The Richards family is celebrating the parents anniversary. They are heading back to the inn that the parents fell in love at. Rory (Rhiannon Fish) and her sister Cleo (Renee Herbert) are ready to spend a week there.

Rory is a junior publicist with a boss that makes satan look tame. Like she is just a biotch who needs a reality slap. So, Rory is way caught up in her job. She’s not thrilled that Rory is going on vacation and berates her. Rory thinks that in order to get the promotion that has been dangling over her head, she’s got to do what she’s told.

Noah (James O’Halloran) is the grandson of the founders of the inn. The inn is cute and quaint, but it’s really not going anywhere. He is in over his head and no one wants to stay there. He, however, believes that he can turn things about and keep his father from selling the Bed & Breakfast.

Noah and Rory are complete opposites, but they cute. Rory is way uptight (girl needs to invest in some comfy clothing, because contrary to her belief, an A-Line skirt is not practical in every situation. Hell, it’s not practical in most.

Enter Rory’s ex, Jason. He’s a quintessential douche bag. We’re talking like Wall Street level douche – who thinks that money and nice clothes are what define the man. He thinks everyone wants a life of living fast, travel, and spending all the money. Of course that means putting the job first.

When Rory finds herself reacting and saying shit she shouldn’t, she finds herself with a fake boyfriend and committing to helping Noah rebrand the bed and breakfast before a popular travel critic comes to visit. What could go wrong?

The correct answer is everything, my friends. EVERYTHING.

It Feels Like This: Lord, we love a fake boyfriend to falling in love story and here we are. Yes, When Love Springs Has it’s own Hallmark flare. So yes, it feels very Hallmark, but lets think about some other movies in this trope – The Proposal, The Perfect Date, To All The Boys I’ve Loved Before, etc…

It feels like all of the good fake dating trope movies and gives us so much joy, because it’s got it’s own Hallmark flare. And hey, you know we’re trash (urban dictionary definition, not webster’s) for a Hallmark movie.

It Made Us Think About This: Maybe it’s the fact that I watch an insane amount of television and movies, that I can find a lesson or a similarity in anything. After all, I remember TGIF and the days where television was a lesson. Maybe it’s the fact that as I write this I am on some pain killers for a herniated disc and I am an overthinker – but this movie made me think about what I want out of love.

And that’s exactly what this movie showed me. What I want. I want love to feel like home. I don’t want it be about things, I want it to be about feelings. I want it to be about someone seeing me and accepting the best and the worst parts of me.

So yes, it made me think about that.

But it also made me think about A-Line skirts. Like who the hell wants to be that uncomfortable? Like why are women in movies always wearing heels? There is literally nothing wrong with comfy shoes. If The Princess of Wales and The Duchess of Sussex can wear flats, so can you.

Standout Performance: We love to choose someone other than the main cast for this and this time, that was easy. Renee Herbert, who plays Cleo Richards, was everything. She was fun, optimistic, and the girl was prepared for everything. Gorgeous, gorgeous girls always pack a toaster. #TheMoreYouKnow

Who To Watch It With: We suggest watching with your besties and talking about all the tropes you love and who you would want to be your fake boyfriend with. Definitely order a pizza, gets some white cheddar popcorn, and pair it with a big glass of ice water and a Prosecco. Yes, we said water too, because we stay hydrated and you should too.

When To Watch (Or Not Watch): Personally, I have seen some people say that you should skip this movie, but I will be the first to tell you that it depends on the tropes that you love. I LOVE a fake love to love story. Not to mention the fact that Rhiannon Fish is a Hallmark actor that has made her way into being one of our favorites, and she shines with James O’Halloran. He’s definitely stolen our hearts too.

When Love Springs is definitely a Hallmark movie we suggest watching. We wouldn’t pass it up.

Overall Emotional Response: When you find your trope, you stick with it. You find it, you hold onto it and you love it with all that you are.

One thing that you can expect with Hallmark (to a point these days, because it is drastically changing), is a formula. But though, even I can recognize that is there it doesn’t mean that I love these movies any less.

I loved that in this movie, I didn’t for a second think that Rory would get back with her ex, instead, I found myself watching that these two – Rory and Noah find each other and find themselves in each other, all while never letting go of who they are. I think that it’s one of the greatest things about this movie – is that it shows you two characters that are struggling, but they aren’t giving up. Instead they are motivated to be more.

They call out the worst in each other, the things that they feel that the other could improve on, the things that motivate them to be better people. It’s interesting to watch a rom-com and think about the joys that life can give if we just realize our destiny. If we just realize what makes us feel at home.

And maybe that’s the best thing about the life that we live – finding the things that make us who we are, figuring out our goals, and making those goals something we can achieve. It doesn’t matter if your goals are some big job, some big dream, something that seems unattainable.

Sometimes we just need to live in the moment and in this movie Rory and Noah have to find the way to do just that – with each other. They find home.

And hey, isn’t that what we’re all supposed to be searching for?