Mar 1

Mar 1 Hallmark Channel movie review: 'Bad Date Chronicles'

More "rom-com" than the typical Hallmark movie, the dating disaster “Bad Date Chronicles” (premiering on the Hallmark Channel Feb. 29) flick is more "com" hijinks than “rom” charm.

In short: After rival bloggers Leigh (Merritt Patterson, “Picture a Perfect Christmas”) and Conner (Justin Kelly) have a terrible first date, they agree to go on three more dates, to see which one of them is the "bad dater." Lanie McAuley, Giles Panton, Gina Holden and Matt Bellefleur also star.

Unfortunately the main couple are a pair of vaguely defined characters relegated to the background, while the supporting characters hijack the story. For virtually the entire first half, Leigh and Conner are merely pawns in a proxy war between their meddling rival bosses, who were former co-workers turned publishing rivals. Leigh and Conner are just thrown through the ringer of terrible first date tropes - while the movie gives their scheming bosses control of the plot.

While all movies are some balance of character-driven and plot-driven, "Bad Dates" is (for better and for worse) almost completely plot-driven - with only the bare minimum attachment to Leigh and Conner. Their relationship is subordinate to a secondary plot: adversarial publishers competing for clicks and website traffic. This is a double-edged sword for "Bad Dates." On one hand, watching the bosses try to sabotage Leigh and Conner makes for some fun moments - but it comes at the cost of getting the audience invested at all in Leigh and Conner's relationship. It's only about halfway through "Bad Dates" that the movie even gives the audience any sense of who Leigh and Conner are as characters. Up to this point, they're just a pair of likable people going on some awkward dates.

The characters with the most at stake aren't Leigh and Conner - it's their crazy bosses who have the most to gain or lose as the movie rolls along, and their actions direct most of the story. Their choices drive the movie. Leigh and Conner are pretty much just along for the ride. For their part, Holden and Bellefleur add some devilish spark as the mischievous publishers who have a lot more to gain from Leigh and Conner dating woes than their dating success.

Pushing the apparent main characters to the back-burner ultimately undermines its ideas on romance. The whole third act is focused on proving how right they are for each other. For a story that begins so cynically, it ends rather sweetly. "Bad Dates" gives renewed hope for real love to a pair of characters skeptical that they will ever find true love again. The movie's ending and its sentiments would be much stronger if "Bad Dates" invested more time and energy into Leigh and Conner as characters.

This is no relaxing trip back home or a wanderlust tale aboard: "Bad Dates" is a high-concept plot powered by some exceptional pacing that adds some pop to the crazy plot. The movie's sharp editing keeps "Bad Dates" energized and constantly moving, with barely a lull in the story at all.

Final verdict: "Bad Dates" is nice light fun, but it never feels completely committed to its co-leads or their relationship. The film’s breeziness and fun schemes just can’t make up for the fact that the main romance is buried under a lot of b-plots and ulterior motives.