In the new Hallmark Channel movie The Love Heist, Lyndsy Fonseca plays Kayli, an assistant to a fashion stylist who gets tangled up in some trouble when a priceless dress that her celebrity client is supposed to wear to a gala is stolen. Luckily, the head of security at her hotel, Mills (Peter Porte) – who is strapping and handsome and looks like he could play Gaston at Disney World if he ever needs another job – is on the case and the two team up to find the dress and get a little flirty while they’re at it.
The Gist: Kayli (Fonseca) is the assistant to a world-famous stylist, Celine Lang, and the two have arrived in Chicago to style Celine’s client, Rini-Jean (Rihanna Jagpal) – in this universe, she is a very famous celebrity – who is attending the Cosmo Gala, a top-tier fashion ball that’s the final event in a week filled with fashion shows and glamorous parties. When Celine’s son reveals he’s eloping in Paris, Celine unexpectedly leave, handing all creative fashion control to Kayli. (Kayli does not see this as an opportunity, however, as she’s got some stylist PTSD after a particularly bad experience working with a different celeb, who is also attending the gala.)
Rini-Jean is scheduled to wear a priceless vintage dress to the gala, a gown Elizabeth Taylor once wore which is now on loan to Kayli and being stored in her hotel suite. The hotel’s head of security, Mills (Porte) takes his job very seriously and advises Kayli to follow all sorts of protocols to ensure the gown’s safety, but despite her best efforts the gown is stolen. While Kayli has to spent the week re-outfitting her fickle client Rini-Jean, creating new looks for every party she’s planning to attend, she also has to team up with Mills to search for the gown (and several other vintage pieces that are being stolen by what seems to be a serial thief with excellent style). Though Mills initially seems a little too stuffy and there’s not a single pop culture reference he seems to get, he and Kayli hit it off during their investigation into the missing items.
What Movies Will It Remind You Of? The Love Heist reminds me of another fun fashion-based mystery on Hallmark, Crimes of Fashion: Killer Clutch.
Performance Worth Watching: One of the best things about watching Hallmark movies is that there are rarely unlikeable characters; the network works hard to turn certain stereotypes on their head. Rhianna Jagpal, who plays celebrity starlet Rini-Jean, is meant to be a major star, one would assume that she’s going to be a high-maintenance nightmare, but instead, she’s almost like the hero of the story as Kayli’s creative muse and supportive friend.
Sex and Skin: None.
Our Take: I’m of the opinion that Hallmark mysteries (whether they’re officially programmed on the Hallmark Mystery channel or not) are some of the strongest Hallmark movies being made. This is mostly because they lean into the cozy crime-solver genre in a way that’s perfectly suited to Hallmark’s whole vibe, but they also tend to be really well-written and are often very funny. The Love Heist is not technically a Hallmark mystery (in that it’s not part of any of the channel’s mystery franchises or mystery programming stunts) but I would lump it in with the best Hallmark mysteries, as it plays up all the romance, humor, and, true to it’s title, the heist of it all, to great success.
While the mystery of the stolen dress is at the core of the film, there’s much more to the story than that – both Kayli and Mills find each other while at a career crossroads and wondering where their paths should take them. Thanks to some terrific supporting characters who nudge them toward one another and toward their goals, they realize that, once they solve this crime, they’ve got some life decisions to make. With this being Hallmark, you know that somehow they’ll find a way to not only follow their dreams but also their hearts, but despite the predictability, the way the story reunites them in the end feels especially satisfying.
Our Call: The Love Heist has a great cast and ticks all the boxes for an ideal romantic comedy that goes above and beyond. STREAM IT!
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.