User reviews

I enjoyed watching A Splash of Love. And I'm pretty sure this was the first Hallmark movie to feature orcas (and people say Hallmark movies are all the same).

Another reviewer asked about the lovely musical score. It's by Mario Vaira.

This was my first exposure to Rhiannon Fish as a lead (her parents must have really liked Fleetwood Mac). Rhiannon's performance as Chloe reminded me a little bit of Hailee Steinfeld, but I can see why some may have been put off a bit by the somewhat childish (I'd call it endearing) way that Chloe acts at times.

There's a great review here by Jfenn53058 in which she mentions Chloe's "school girl glee" and her voice which she describes as "nearly a squeal with delight", but adds that she has "a relative who is also a wildlife scientist and she reacts the same way." I have also known women who occasionally "squeal with delight" and exude excitement about some aspect of their career or about something important to them. I find it charming and infectious. Some don't.

I know Ben Hollingsworth, who played Ben, mostly from Virgin River. In that show, he made me hate his character, but then he made me reassess that same character. Here, his character was a likeable, credible match for Chloe. Loved the "What's up Doc?" Bugs Bunny reference.

I do have a few questions though.

Why is Chloe, supposedly the "first choice for the program" (or anyone in Miami) being offered a last minute opportunity to use a research grant to study orca whale migration in the Pacific Northwest with just a week's notice? And for just one week? That's something that should have been set up months in advance. The last minute plane ticket alone would have been twice as expensive. Hallmark loves last minute opportunities and ridiculously unrealistic fake deadlines.

Why would a pretty young woman get in a car with a total stranger in the middle of nowhere, but then initially reject his offers of help in town?

Was that guy in the inflatable boat deliberately trying to get Chloe wet? He literally made 2 runs by her boat that seemed unrelated to any other objective.

And how did she even get access to that little skiff minutes after her check in? And not know the bow from the stern despite living in Miami and studying ocean whales?

I get that Chloe was there thanks to grant money, but did that include the cost of a spacious and nicely appointed oceanside cottage that looked like it would cost $500/night (or more)? I'd love to stay there.

And how about Mary's response to Chloe's "what do I owe you?" Is Mary independently wealthy?

Is Mary (warmly played by Laura Soltis) the only employee at her very large B&B (she works the front desk, delivers tea in the rain, takes orders as a waitress, and made a comment about needing to drop food into the fryer). It sure seemed like she was a one woman show, and on the big Dock Party dinner night, the only people who seemed to be helping were Ben, Chloe and the fishing boat couple.

And were those four going to eat their 4 fish and chip dinners on the couches where they ordered those dinners?

What's the likelihood of the "only road" into town washing out after a few hours of rain and then taking so long to open up that guests and supplies couldn't get through?

"Abandon ship"? In response to a mechanical failure?

And what was the point of having the exes show up? It's possible to make a good romance movie without having the exes show up. I'm getting REALLY tired of the "unexpected appearance of the boyfriend" trope, especially when, as here, he travels a long distance (Miami to Squamish??) and has the worst timing (right before Chloe is due to fly back?). And here, his reaction to Chloe's response was literally unbelievable. I've seen guys get more upset when a girl says "no" to "can I buy you a drink?"

As for Ben's ex, telling us she left town was enough; we didn't need some manufactured reason for her to also suddenly appear. I would have preferred keeping the focus on Ben, Chloe, the locals and the whales. That, and the conflict about how to make it work between 2 people who live 3,000 miles apart, was more than enough conflict to work with. Too often, Hallmark movies add unnecessary conflict to drive the story. That's lazy writing.

But even my favorite Hallmark movies have things I don't like. And yet I love them anyway and grade them on a curve. This one was good and well worth watching.

If it wasn't for the incredible scenery of this being filmed in Squamish, and the beautiful Orcas, I would have rated this lower than I did. IMDB didn't give any indication where the filming took place so I googled it and discovered it was in Squamish. I've been near there and I loved the country, the water, the geography, there's not much to not like there.

Oh yea, the movie. Where was the director directing the lead female. She was horrible. I commented almost from the beginning how bad she was. She seemed to be just reading the words off the script, didn't see much acting. I do like the lead male, but he couldn't do much to make this palatable.

So many HM movies are set in cities other than British Columbia, but the filming is done IN BC. They finally got it right, filmed in Canada.

In too many of this genre of movies, the two romantic leads end up sparring with each other until the second half of the movie. In this one, however, they display kindness and genuine fondness for each other. It was a refreshing change! I hope to see more of the same going forward because I don't think anyone watches this stuff to see couples acting like oil and water.

Some of the side shows and B-plots were rough around the edges, the science wasn't all correct, and I could see some bits irritating viewers, but overall I think this comes across as cute and charming. There was a realism to the relationship circumstances that I think many of us could relate to.

The actors of any production, regardless of type, have a script they must comply with and deliver. A-listers, like Tom Cruise or Meryl Streep, are the only actors able to demand or ask for changes to a script or location or direction in film or stage. To blame any actor for poor lines, and his/her interpretation of those lines, especially an actress who earned rave reviews in an earlier show, is "shooting the messenger," and should rather blame the WRITER and/or the DIRECTOR.

5.8 stars.

The only redeeming qualities of this movie are some of the whale shots, maybe some of the ocean scenes, and the supporting cast (except for the boyfriend at university). There are a few genius lines in the script that held my attention temporarily. The characters are not too shallow, however the female lead is not right for the part. She would be best suited for any role other than a Ph. D student, because she seems incapable of portraying an intelligent person. The male lead performs satisfactorily in his role, although his character is a bit too desperate for her affection and it makes him appear subordinate and soft. The end product leaves us with a subservient, feeble man and a dimwitted, skittish female. On that facet alone we have a film doomed for failure, and it went down swinging.

It might not be the best written storyline. But the scenery is breathtaking and the chemistry between the characters feel real. It's refreshing to see a new storyline besides the typical chef, struggling business owner, or royalty. Hallmark is going in the right direction. Almost a big hit, just don't rush on the research of the characters professions next time.

I tried to get past how stupid the female lead character was, but I couldn't. Here was a student studying for her PhD who totally lacked common sense. I guess the writer needed a cute meet set up which I could get overlook, but the character continued to act like an idiot. I really wanted to see this movie for the location and subject matter, but making the female lead an idiot was not for me. I may fast forward through it to make it watchable or just watch a nature program.

I liked this movie for entertainment value though it didn't require much brain power on the plot or outcomes. The leads had good chemistry. I like Orcas and the Squamish/Britannia, BC area where this was filmed, so the scenery made it enjoyable.

I might have thought she was overacting a bit in her school girl glee; reactions in a couple of scenes, except that I have a relative who is also a wildlife scientist and she reacts the same way.

Female lead's voice is at times low and has the start of a smoker's rasp, and then it becomes nearly a squeal with delight which takes the audience along in the emotion - nice acting, gestures, facial gestures. The male lead was laid back and steady...nice couple to watch onscreen.

This is one of those movies that demonstrates why we watch Hallmark movies; nice acting, great scenery, clean dialogue and story, and all story lines get wrapped neatly in a bow in the last 3 minutes of the film.

An entertaining way to spend a quiet Saturday night at home...

What no one has mentioned is that the lead character is a "PhD" student specializing in whales, yet doesn't seem to understand that while Orcas are called killer whales, they are actually dolphins. I just couldn't get past that during the entire movie.

The acting was fine in my book and the chemistry was good between the lead characters. The common interest in the orcas was nice. I thought that the exes showing up was abrupt and didn't add anything to the story line.

For a channel that uses women in executive roles, doing intelligent jobs, Hallmark seems to have no concept that women can be intelligent. I didn't make it though more than 15 minutes of this movie before having to turn it off due to the simpering, moronic lead female character! Hiding behind a map (that she obviously has no idea how to read) to avoid getting splashed by a car, squealing in a piercingly high voice at the sight of a sea lion (which she erroneously called a seal) and her overall idiocy makes this movie a definite no for me. Too bad as I was really looking forward to it. Hallmark always used the same basic formula but the movies were light, sweet and entertaining. They have been seriously going downhill the last year or so.

Not only is this movie incredible, I've learned more about whales tonight than I have in over 50 years. Hallmark is making first rate movies and I love them. This movie is worth watching just for the scenery. Really happy about this film!

I think the plot of this movie had promise. Hallmark always takes liberties but what they are calling a Bed and Breakfast is a fancy hotel. The cabins, fancy small houses. I really loved the environment, scenery and the wildlife. The lead actress Rhiannon Fish was difficult to watch. She had childlike, animated, silly mannerisms. I am pretty sure she had Botox in her lips cause her mouth barely moved. The leading actor is usually good but he made his character seem too needy, goofy playing off his leading lady. He praised her so much, so often too. I tried. It was sweet that they had so much in common they could share, the Orcas and all. Will never watch this one again.

I was really looking forward to this movie since my husband and I recently went on a whale-watching excursion during our Alaskan Cruise. Not enough Whale encounters to salvage this one! A Marine Biology PhD student "afraid" of the cold ocean water? No knowledge of how to scientifically collect water samples? During the first 10 minutes the female lead got lost using a paper map and was repeatedly doused by a motorized rubber boat doing donuts too close to shore. The male lead who ran a whale watching excursion business was "surprised" to discover whales in a certain place where they should have been anyway. The obligatory Aurora Borealis sky views at night. I agree with everyone who was irritated by the OMG teenage squealing of the female lead which continued throughout the movie. OMG is right!!!

I'm a Floridian, a PhD, and a geological oceanographer. On all counts, the movie had too many errors and plot holes to even be enjoyable., and I almost always like Hallmark movies.

First, she's from Miami Central College? I understand that the writers want to use a fictional name, but in FL, a school with that name is a community college, which not only don't have PhD programs, they don't even have grad students. And if they wanted to set the original location, why not use the Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science, a world famous oceanography school that's part of UMiami? Do you really think that RSMAS would object to playing a part in a movie? Well, considering this one, maybe.

Next, the main character herself. My 1st thought was, "great, they're featuring an oceanography student! Good press for our field!" Then I find they have someone completely unrealistically unprepared in any way. Squealing at the ickyness of a crab (that's clearly fake, btw)? Having NO idea how to do ANYTHING in a boat, not even knowing which direction is the bow? Has she never observed her chosen subjects in the field from Miami? Plus (as another person notes) not knowing anything about orcas when she arrives there? Whining when her feet get cold?

I know this isn't a documentary and that I can't expect rigorous scientific reality from a Hallmark movie, but for crying out loud, y'all could have hired SOMEONE to prevent this from being so embarrassingly bad.

I enjoyed seeing places in the movie I've actually been to although in typical Hallmark fashion, they film mainly in British Columbia while taking some shots in the US. There is a Cable Cove Inn in Tofino, BC, which is on the wet coast (west side) of Vancouver Island facing the Pacific Ocean. I would guess they're using this really nice city as their base station. They mention the Salish Sea, which is more or less everything east of the strait between Vancouver Island and the tip of Washington State. This includes the Puget Sound, which is where the Orca pods are actually located. The also mention Deception Pass, which is a narrow strait of water between Fidalgo Island and Whidbey Island with a beautiful old bridge and parks on both sides. Great salmon fishing beach. During tide changes the water can move around 8-10 knots through the strait, which makes it difficult for normal, small fishing boats but of course we have jet boat tours to go through. Other whales use this passage as well since the Skagit River delta drains into the Deception Pass area. The Skagit River is used by all five species of Pacific salmon for spawning. There already are regulations of how close you can get to Orca and our recreational salmon fishing is adjusted to make sure the Orca have enough food to eat. One issue I have with the movie deals with harvesting crabs and oysters. There are strict fishing/shellfish regulations in WA so the shellfish feed they had might be legal in BC but probably not in WA depending on recreational and commercial fishing seasons. Regardless, I enjoyed seeing the Orca, which aren't always easy to see up close even on whale watching trips. The Puget Sound in WA does not have the snow covered mountain peaks as close to the water as in the movie. I see those as being on the west coast of of British Columbia in the passage between the Island and mainland. It wouldn't surprise me if they used the Bowen Island area again. I'll end up watching it again to try and figure out where that map shows they are.

Besides some beautiful landscapes, this film gets a good score for its chemistry between the two leads---Rhiannon Fish who plays Chloe Turner and Benjamin Hollingsworth who plays Ben Winters.

This Hallmark romance follows the formula for most, with the woman finding her true love unexpectedly and in a new locale. The Pacific Northwest is a good backdrop for a relationship that develops surrounded by nature.

I liked the enthusiasm of Ms. Fish. But what blows me away is that she played the role of Ontari on "The 100". That is range.

Within the first five minutes I was convinced that it would be scripted that the female lead whom is a PhD candidate is also neurodivergent. That never happened, so that was highly disappointing- because she's just annoying. Her voice and behaving like a child for the entirety of the film was rather pathetic. She's a know it all that can't take care of herself. Hallmark was sooooo much better prior to GAC. Not every female character has to be scripted as strong, but this was next level ridiculousness. We don't all need to be rescued by prince charming bc we lack the common sense to put on a life jacket when hopping into a boat we don't know how to operate. Cringe.

I look forward to new movies, the setting was top notch, the movie, less than satisfying.

The female lead gave me a headache with her squealing, high pitched voice and shallow acting. The male lead handled his part nicely. Two for two, the new movies from Hallmark, this one was shallow and insipid. The Penavega movie was just irritating. I did love the locations for this one it was lovely and the whales were magnificent.

I watch Hallmark movies maybe more than I should willingly admit. There are some that are so cliche and cheesy that they are a pain to get through. Then there are some that are actually delightful and a joy to watch.

This was the later.

It did have some of the typical Hallmark storyline bits that you can expect in nearly every one of their movies: main character starts off in an awkward, mismatched relationship with a dislikable character and then meets someone they click with who makes them realize what they've been missing. Yada yada.

However, I enjoyed that the new romance blossomed more naturally than in other Hallmark movies. It never felt forced or rushed, and it didn't take away from the rest of the storyline about the orca research.

I don't understand what other reviewers are complaining about with the characters and actors. I enjoyed the female lead. Is her character bubbly in a way that may annoy some people? Sure. But I actually found it adorable. I prefer the bubbly to the stuck up know-it-all that most scripts would've gone for in a PHD candidate. I liked that she didn't have it all together and had some fumbles figuring out her research methods. She was new to it. It made sense. It made her seem more realistic and humble.

The male lead's character was extremely likable. He seemed like a regular guy with a good heart.

And their chemistry together? It was some of the most natural and organic chemistry I've ever witnessed in a Hallmark movie. It was believable and beautiful.

Most Hallmark movies are a one-off for me. But this one I'd watch again in a heartbeat if it showed up on my tv.

A bad script just spoils a movie and it did it here. It's an interesting subject, but between the bad script, poor dialog and Rhiannon Fish's acting, it didn't work for me. Ben Hollingsworth is a trained actor, I've see him in other movies and series and he's very good, but the lead female is always the star in Hallmark films and Rhiannon didn't pull it off. The locations are beautiful and the rest of the cast is good, but they can't make up for a bad script and a bad lead. A beautiful actress or handsome actor doesn't mean they can act, they just look good in front of a camera.

I recorded this movie and just got the opportunity to watch it. I don't understand some of these reviews at all. They are harsh and not accurate. Don't let them hold you back from a great find! The characters captured my heart from the beginning and reminded me of people i know and care about. They felt real and I connected to them right away. I loved the story, the scenery and the hometown feel. I cried and laughed. And I smiled at the end which is the true sign that they delivered exactly what I look for when I watch these sweet heartwarming movies. Well done!!! Thank you!! I look forward to a great season of Hallmark. My weekends wouldn't be the same without them!!

Rhiannon Fish's almost incessant screeching & rapid speech ruined the movie for me. Her actions were more like a hyperactive 5 year old rather than a PhD student researcher. Whoever directed her to that performance made a huge mistake. I'm surprised my ears didn't bleed. The whales were wonderful to watch & the scenery was gorgeous. What a waste,

Cute story, though a bit far-fetched with the science. Love Ben Hollingsworth in Virgin River so it was nice to see him in a Hallmark movie. The female lead's voice was piercing ti day the least. I fast forwarded through some of it just yo avoid heating her screech. I don't get it. Why is she trying to sound like a bratty child?

Pass on this one unless you enjoy nails on a chalkboard.