LOVE BEGINS

LOVE BEGINS opens with a classic western chase where two young men are being chased by a what appears to be posse. Cut to the Barlow Ranch where Ellen and her younger sister, Cassie, are trying to keep the ranch going after the death of their father. The mother died 12 years earlier when Cassie was born.

Back in town, the two young men, who are heading to the gold fields of California, try to pick up some of the prim and proper young women in Millie’s tea Parlor and Restaurant. They get into a fight with two local men and get arrested by Sheriff Holden. One of them, Daniel Whitaker, is destined for trouble and breaks out of the jail when the deputy is sleeping, but the other, Clark Davis, pleads guilty and says he’ll work off his punishment. He stays in jail in spite of the fact that the jail is wide open.

Sheriff Holden brings Clark to the Barlow Ranch to work as a ranch hand so he can pay off Millie for the broken window, door, and table. Ellen is sullen about Clark because her childhood crush, Jake, headed off to the gold fields, and she doesn’t want to fall for a handsome young man who’s a fortune hunter. Clark, on the other hand, works extra hard to pay off his debt and be responsible. His weakness is that he won’t come to church with Ellen and Cassie. Just when it looks like Clark and Ellen might have a future, Jake shows up, having become fabulously rich in the California gold fields. Tragedy, hope, and humor lead to a wonderful conclusion.

LOVE BEGINS is a great western romance. It’s one of the best directed episodes of the LOVE COMES SOFTLY Saga written by Janette Oke. The acting is good, the music is great, and everything works together really well.

Furthermore, it’s also one of the most faithful. Clark has given up on faith because of his own history, and Ellen as well as Millie, Cassie, and Millie’s daughter Rose witness to him in word and deed. For instance, he says that worship is not very constructive, and Ellen tells him worship is the most constructive thing you can do. She also explains faith in God. The Bible is also lifted up, compassion is extolled, forgiveness is practiced, and biblical economics are commended.

LOVE BEGINS is a good television movie worth watching again and again.