If you're not a fan or if this is your introduction to the show the movie it'd be a brutal thing to sit through I imagine. The story and plot are copied from much better movies. So it'd play like a bad remake.
I'm a big fan of the series. I'm surprised critics say it's typical Disney Channel garbage. For me, it's Bewitched for the 90s, especially the first three seasons.
This was fun enough to watch if you like the series. I said this about "Sabrina Goes to Rom" movie, and I'll say it about this one. It feels awkward at times to see Sabrina without her Aunts or Harvey.
This TV movie was broadcast on September 26, 1999 right after Season 4's 1st episode (aired on September 24, 1999).
If you're watching the series chronologically according to air date, it's weird.
The 1st episode of Season 4, had the departure of both Valerie and Libby. "Libby has gone to a private school, and Valerie has moved to Alaska with her parents".
Lindsay Sloane's (as Valerie) last episode appearance was the Season 3 finale. So it's strange to have her removed from the show's main cast and then have her as a completely different character in the movie (as Fin). Nevertheless, it works surprisingly well, and it's kind of nice. The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask did a similar thing when they used the same character's as Ocarina of Time in different roles.
In fact, it makes you feel more comfortable accepting this as a completely "parallel universe": I had a big problem with this when watching Sabrina Goes to Rome.
It's nice to Tara Strong reprises her role as Gwen (from Sabrina Goes to Rome) . While Sabrina Goes to Rome wasn't that good for familiarity reasons it's comforting to see her again.
The storyline and plot here are a lot more believable even though it's wacky. It's also funny. I laughed quite a few times. It's generally mindless fun for fans of the series. It isn't Shakespeare by any stretch. The story and plot were done much better in the original movies that used them (Free Willy, The Little Mermaid, etc.). Even so, the character interactions don't feel forced or unnatural.
If you're a fan of the series you should enjoy it. Especially when the majority of Season 4 episodes were so bad.
Rating: 6.5/10