OK, so the plot is formulaic. There is nothing new here, really. Or is there? I have seen this movie a few times, and always liked it. I think it's the acting and dialog.

The acting is a cut above what you would expect from the movie. The female lead is a prima donna. I felt like her complex human emotions at times were fairly believable. Sometimes she's bitchy. Sometimes confused. Sometimes you like her.

The male lead is perhaps not quite as good. But they did not fall into the pattern of simply making him another dumb jock. In a scene where they have both had too much to drink, I felt he reacted in a very realistic way. He delivers this great line in the movie to her after she insists he button the top button of his costume. Something to the effect of 'if buttoning that button made the difference between a long happy life and a painful death, he would not give her the satisfaction.' It was a perfectly acted scene, IMO.

The dialog was much better than expected in this type of movie. There's some pretty funny lines. And some generally great exchanged between the actors that are far less dull than you would expect. If I put this into the category of sports movies, I would say it really rates well partly due to dialog.

OK, so you can predict the plot. Obviously, it's a formulaic movie. But along the way, they throw in a few curves, and the characters react in many ways like normal humans would in the same situation, at least in my opinion.

If you like the love/hate romance movies, and triumphant sporting movies, I think this is up your alley.

p.s. chick flicks are not my favored genre, so the fact I liked this movie, says something I think (because it's a bit of a chick flick at times.)

I like this movie. First off, you have underrated actors DB Sweeney and Moira Kelly showing their stuff. It is probably their best film they have made. The chemistry is great between the two. You can tell that when they fly insults at each other. The whole cast does a good job and the scenery is nice. I usually don't like films that use Canada as a backdrop for a US city, but in this case, It does a good job as a replacement for Minnesota and suburban New England.

My favorite scene is where they are ready to skate their first performance together. Doug goes backstage and lets out some of his bodily fluids. He goes back to explain to Kate that he always had two helmets and it usually took him 10 minutes to warm up for a game. Kate reminds him that their program is only 2 1/2 minutes. He stares blankly at her and says, "So eight minutes afterward, I'll be okay" LOL. I always think of that line when I am nervous and going into something major.

There are a few cameos by other skating personalities such as Robin Cousins (who also was the technical advisor) and Jo Jo Starbuck. There aren't many ice skating films out there and there are a few that are good. This is one of the few. TOEPICK!!!

It's the 1988 Winter Olympics at Calgary. Doug Dorsey (D.B. Sweeney) is a promising hockey player, but his career is cut short by an eye injury. Kate Moseley (Moira Kelly) is a spoiled temperamental pairs figure skater who goes through every partner. Then 2 years later, Moseley still can't find a partner, and Dorsey can't find a team. Her coach Anton Pamchenko decides to put them together despite their combative relationship.

They have good chemistry together. Their combative nature is the perfect heat for a relationship. It is a fundamental building block to a good rom-com. That's what we have here. Two perfectly match solid actors doing a good rom-com. Moira Kelly has the perfect indignant pout, and Sweeney has a great sly smirk.