Frequently, Christmas movies that heavily feature dogs are the worst Christmas movies out there. I’m not sure why. It can’t possibly be the fault of the dogs, right? Well, Hallmark is giving us another dog Christmas movie with The Finnish Line. Cross your paws that this will be better.
Anya (Kim Matula) learned dog sled racing from her father. After he passed, she decides to participate in the 40th annual Joulurauha race in Finland. When her lead dog gets injured in the qualifying race, she borrows a dog from dog-sled-racer-turned-reporter Cole (Beau Mirchoff). As if that isn’t bad enough, she also has to face her father’s racing rival, Monty (Páll Sigþór Pálsson). Will she be able to pull through and win the race or will she bring shame to her family?
So this movie isn’t really about the dogs. The dogs are there and they do take up some of the scenes but they aren’t really the focus. While I wished the movie was about the dogs more, I suppose it is a good thing it’s not because this movie wasn’t half bad. Sure, they completely botched the rules of dog sled racing (the racers don’t leave all at once…they are staggered starts and the winner is determined by time) but unless you are into dog sled racing, you wouldn’t know any different. Having them start at the same time heightens the stakes between Anya and Monty.
And while the romance between Anya and Cole is fine, I think the romance between Anya’s friend, Elyse (Nichole Sakura), and Anya’s cousin, Lavi (Benedikt Karl Gröndal), was much more interesting. They actually had a real conflict that stood in the way of their relationship. And I’m glad that it was secondary in the plot so we could really focus on Anya’s personal journey.
Rating: Can I pet that dog?