capone666 Love Comes SoftlyMarriages lasted so long in the Old West because men had access to whorehouses.Regrettably, the husband in this drama won't live long enough to experience one.Pregnant pioneer Marty (Katherine Heigl) must fend for herself when her husband dies en route to their new life out West. Unable to endure, she marries a widower, Clarke (Dale Midkiff), who asks that she keep house and care for his daughter Missie (Skye McCole Bartusiak) in exchange for room and board.Although it is a sham marriage, over the winter months Marty not only warms up to her unlikely husband but also his steadfast faith in Him.Based on the Christian book series, and the first installment in the 11-part franchise, this Hallmark made-for-TV movie cleverly keeps its pious undertones hidden behind an awkward romance and other frontier tomfoolery.Mind you, back then the good book was predominantly used for squashing rattlesnakes.Yellow Lightvidiotreviews.blogspot.ca

ltlacey I am not the best to judge a predictable and sappy movie, but I decided to give this Hallmark classic a try since I have liked the work of the main characters. What a disappointment. The scenery, for the most part, was nice, but that was about it. What I found interesting was the scene, early on, when Marty is being offered the deal from Clark and through her wet blouse you can clearly see a modern bra strap. The fish out of water (city girl in fancy duds trying to learn how to do basic chores around a farm) was ridiculous. Here she was, newly married and heading west and they dump food along the trail but not books? And Clark's line about how only a man SO in love with his headstrong wife would do such a thing. Try again. And they have basically only books. I did not see any tools in that wagon in the beginning, so how did these city folk think they were going to build a cabin and barn? And she "tames" the wild daughter and falls in love with the guy in the end. Zzzzzzzz.

spj-4 About half a lifetime ago, I was much impressed by a book & documentary about grief & death by a lady named Kubler-Ross. Though long deceased, she made a great deal of sense in her insightful & wise comments! A few years ago, on a web-site about prayers for the grieving, I found a beautiful comment from a widow who clearly loved her deceased husband, from her heart!!! She wrote of her lover a comment like "with every breath, I am brought one breath closer to you!" This movie, "Love Comes Softly", is a welcomed surprise I'd never previously heard of, that brought me closer to God & man or woman!!! … But selectively!!! For that is how it comes, softly, be it a lover downtrodden by circumstance, or a lover emerging out of the wilderness! Layers of necessity!!! It could have been a typical cowboy western I generally don't like, but "Love Comes Softly" brought the 'wild west' alive without bloodshed! But not without portraying the hardships of the portrayed or the downtrodden in their circumstance - lover, lover, beloved daughter, even creature or incidental character, not oblivious to the perspectives of the grief-striken or their loosely connected dimensions of further wisdom! Beyond that, this movie did it with LOVE!!! Fairness & justice & trust & truth were its integrity!!!Bravery & love were at its heart early on! Friendship & despair & desperate prayer but still LOVE were at its core later on! I am disturbed though at the narrowminded contributions in some reviews, that I none the less generally approved of & supported with my votes in their favour with reservations. Yet their conclusions seemed to be as if public decency & Christianity are to be only for narrowminded puritans! To them it seems, sex & violence are necessarily EVIL words in movies! Do not be discouraged from this fine movie on such comments! I am a Christian!!! I LOVE Jesus & His integrity!!! I love God as Creator!!! I love the concept of the Holy Spirit - dynamic in His role – across time & place - though I have OFTEN seen Him abused by supposed 'faithful' in church!!! As if the critics have never heard of "The Good Samaritan" robbed & unjustly passed by, via those who surely should have cared, or an old lady who gave all of her wealth in a couple of insignificant coins in the eyes of others watching, or the "Gentile" woman by the well Jesus loved, or heard the prayers of the man seeking forgiveness as against a proud rabbi in the same temple!!! So I despise hierarchies of bigoted snakes wherever they are found!!! Too often, sadly, among supposed 'Christians'! I found NONE of that in this beautiful movie!!!I haven't read the book! I don't know if it is good or better than this cinematic portrayal some viewers have accordingly taken exception to! I do know this tele-movie is touching & inspiring & worthy of WHOLEHEARTED recommendation for those who have eyes to see & ears to hear, whether they are "family" or "born again" or not!!! The "wild west" is CERTAINLY NOT the only place where the truer message of this superb movie was / is / will be NEEDED!!! But this movie is a good place to start!!!!

belangelc I respect and admire Dale Midkiff very much. I have seen a lot of his movies but this one really moved me. He was so kind, patient and played his charicter so well. I especially loved this movie because it was a family movie you didn't have to be afraid to watch for the bad language.He is a great actor and highly under rated. I would love to see his movies begin to take a turn for the better and prayer that he will get the recognition he deserves. I think if he start getting some roles in better movies this will happen for him. Besides his incredible good looks can't hurt, as a matter of fact I'm surprised he isn't at the top already due to his looks and magnetic personality!