Stream It Or Skip It: ‘Big Sky River: The Bridal Path’ on the Hallmark Channel, A Scenic Sequel To 2022’s ‘Big Sky River’

The new Hallmark Channel romance Big Sky River: The Bridal Path is a sequel to the popular Big Sky River, reuniting two characters who met and fell in love in the original film, and throwing a few obstacles in their way as they head toward the aisle. While the film serves up generic romantic fare, there’s not much more to it that sets it apart or makes it shine.

BIG SKY RIVER: THE BRIDAL PATH: STREAM IT OR SKIP IT?

Opening Shot: Former New York City resident Tara chats on the phone with her boyfriend Boone. Tara’s back in New York so that her daughter Erin can attend her dad’s new wife’s baby shower. Meanwhile, Boone stayed back in Montana to hold down the fort and feed Tara’s pet chickens.

The Gist: Big Sky River: The Bridal Path is a continuation of the 2022 Hallmark hit Big Sky River, and it brings back the central couple from that film, Tara Kendall (Emmanuelle Vaugier) and Montana sheriff Boone Taylor (Kavan Smith), who are now in a fully committed relationship and still living next door to one another in their quaint mountain town of Parable, Montana.

The relationship is seemingly perfect, although Tara is disappointed that Boone seems to be dragging his feet on a proposal. During a romantic day at the fishing hole, he finally gets down on one knee, and while Tara is thrilled that the rugged man of her dreams finally popped the question, their kids are less thrilled. Tara’s daughter Erin (Cassidy Nugent) is going through a crisis with her dad who’s back in New York which is weighing on her heavily, while Boone’s boys, Griffin (JJ Miller) and Fletcher (Sawyer Fraser) are struggling with the idea of a new mom, since their mom passed away, and they don’t want to have to move.

With the kids acting out and not embracing the idea of marriage, and Boone handing over most (okay, all) of the wedding responsibilities to a frustrated Tara, the couple’s happy life together starts to fall apart.

Meanwhile, on the fancier side of town, in what feels like a completely different movie, country music star Casey Elder (Michelle Harrison) is putting together her new album with help from an old, flirty songwriting partner, Peter (Mark Hildreth), and the film is punctuated with several of their country duets that not only play up their own romance, but serve to punctuate life’s greatest duet which is MARRIAGE, which is ultimately how this film ends because OF COURSE Tara and Boone work their issues out and everyone, including Michelle and Peter, attend their pared down, intimate wedding (because that’s what they wanted this whole time).

What Movies Will It Remind You Of? If the music-filled ABC series Nashville were less of a dramatic (and often flawed but mostly great) soap opera and more of a gentle, vaguely Christian-forward Hallmark movie, you’d get Big Sky River: The Bridal Path.

Our Take: Once again, Hallmark has served up a film that is perfectly pleasant in every way, but one where the high stakes are never very high, nor do they last very long. Tara and Boone are just too likeable to stay mad at each other, so when their engagement seems threatened and Tara asks Boone for a break during the film’s climactic “they might break up!” moment, their break is… exactly the length of one commercial break, because these two just can’t stay mad at each other. It’s what you expect from this kind of romance with its inevitable happy ending, but it just feels unnecessary.

Vaugier and Smith have a charming Chip and Joanna Gaines quality to their relationship, and honestly, isn’t that kind of the perfect couple to emulate in a Hallmark movie? The comparison to the home renovation gurus is probably unintentional, but maybe subconsciously the filmmakers wanted to tap into that sort of modern but rugged, country-but-not-too-country vibe that makes me buy succulent terrariums from the Magnolia Home section at Target even though the rest of my house is covered in laundry and misplaced permission slips. As a couple, Tara and Boone (and Chip and Jo) are selling a dreamy country lifestyle that’s fun to escape too, the problem is that the story isn’t really all that compelling or satisfying.

Parting Shot: Tara in her wedding gown and Boone in his cowboy hat kiss at the altar as their kids and bridal party surround them and throw streamers. As we zoom out, a soaring country duet plays.

Performance Worth Watching: Vaugier is my favorite type of Hallmark heroine; sensible, smart, and pleasantly agreeable, without being an emblem of saccharine, bubbly cheer.

Memorable Dialogue: “Waking up every day knowing I get to be with you is pretty much my definition of a reason to live,” Boone tells Tara, like, just on a random day, not even in their wedding vows.

Our Call: SKIP IT. Sometimes it seems like the best thing these made-for-TV romances have going for them to fight off being too generic are the sweeping vistas, whether they take place in the mountains, by the ocean, or is a quaint and quirky small town. Big Sky River: The Bridal Path certainly makes a case for living out in Big Sky country, but as for the story itself, it’s not worth the trip.

Liz Kocan is a pop culture writer living in Massachusetts. Her biggest claim to fame is the time she won on the game show Chain Reaction.