Ed's Review Dot Com

Team 2 Entertainment,

Joey Lauren Adams, William Shockley, Benjamin Stockham, Illeana Douglas, Mikey Post, Trace Adkins, Jay DeMarcus, Caitlin Carmichael, Kevin Pollak, Abraham Benrubi

Politician Max Schmucker (Kevin Pollak) has a hatred for Christmas and has set in motion a plan to ban Christmas. Meanwhile Santa has been tapped inside a barn of two little kids due to fact that people no longer believe in him and he’s losing his powers. The kids set out on a plan to save Santa.

this new 2013 Christmas movie is a hodge-podge of a number of different things. On one side, it appears to be a harmless kids movie in the style of the old 60’s campy films, but it has some features that really anger some folks. Santa uses his special powers in a way that he’s not supposed to in order to heal someone, which really makes the Christians mad. The guy who play santa (Abraham Benrubi) is actually a really good 60′ style Santa. All in all I was not overly impressed by this movie. As a 2013 film, it has the feel of something really old fashioned, and did not really keep my attention. I suppose younger kids might enjoy it, but by the same token, I think there a lot of other movies that they would like much more than this. However I hesitate to really bash this film, as some people really enjoy it, so maybe it depends on your state of mind when you watch it. For me, it was not interesting enough, and was a lot too campy to work. I can’t really recommend it, but if you really like it, help me understand why. I didn’t get it.

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British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC),

Rowan Atkinson, Tony Robinson, Miranda Richardson, Stephen Fry, Hugh Laurie, Robbie Coltrane, Miriam Margolyes, Jim Broadbent, Denis Lill, Pauline Melville

Ebenezer Backadder, aka. Edmund Blackadder (Rowan Atkinson) is a Victorian shopkeeper, visited by several ghosts on Christmas Eve who showed him his past ancestors as well as his future heirs, and in the process turned the gentle Mr. Blackadder into a miserable old miser after teaching him the evils of being kind and generous. But he soon learns that being mean has it’s own problems.

Many of us remember Rowan Atkinson’s “Mr. Bean” series of TV shows and movies, but Blackadder or Black Adder is his “other” series. This TV special is a twist on the Dickens “A Christmas Carol” with the ghosts changing a kind and gentle shopkeeper into a mean old miser. This is given the Atkinson treatment. Although I don’t think this is anywhere near as funny as Mr. Bean was, it’s hard to develop another character as special as Mr. Bean. Blackadder is perhaps an effort to do too much, spanning too much history, and not nearly as funny as hilarious as the other series. However, this is a cute twist on the story. I don’t think I’ve ever seen a reverse Christmas Carol, and perhaps it has its place in history for that simple fact alone. It’s definitely vintage Rowan Atkinson, and it is, after all, a TV movie, not a feature release. Fans of Mr. Bean may find this pretty funny, as Blackadder fans certainly will. For me, I expected it to be a lot funnier, and I was fairly disappointed in this version of the Scrooge story. I always said I never saw “A Christmas Carol” that I didn’t like, but perhaps this is the first!

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Let it snow productions,

Candace Cameron Bure, Jesse Hutch,Alan Thicke, Gabrielle Rose, Dan Willmott

Ted Beck (Alan Thicke) is a real estate developer of luxury resorts. Daughter Stephanie (Candace Cameron Bure) works for him, but is always concerned about letting him down. The company has just purchased a quaint little lodge that has been owned by the Lewis family for generations. Ted sends Stephanie out to check out the place, and to develop a plan to level the place and build a huge resort. But when Stephanie arrives, she finds the place has a unique family atmosphere and if full every year through the whole holiday season. This place does Christmas to the max, and the same loyal customers come back year after year. As Stephanie becomes closer to the guests and the previous owners, she begins to question why she never experienced a Christmas like this since her Mother died years before.

This is just about the perfect Christmas movie! It’s a Hallmark premier for 2013, and Candace Cameron Bure sure knows how to do Christmas movies. She’s excellent in this film, as is Jesse Hutch as the son of the former owners, and Candace’s love interest in this film. It’s also very nice to see Candace and Alan back together as Father/Daughter just like in the Growing Pains series that they were in for so many years. Alan doesn’t have a big part, but he’s certainly key to the story. But certainly the star of this film is the location. This lodge will make you want to be there for Christmas I guarantee. There’s absolutely no doubt that it’s a beautiful place, and the Christmas spirit is everywhere. This is one of those films that warms your heart and keeps a smile on your face from start to finish. Certainly a great addition to the holiday films, and very much worth searching for. I haven’t seen a better one this year, I suspect. I really enjoyed this and highly recommend it for you seasonal viewing!

[Click here for the Hallmark Channel page for this film]

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Marquis Productions,

Haylie Duff, Nicholas Gonzalez, C. Thomas Howell, Mark Famiglietti, Sheree J. Wilson

Belle (Haylie Duff) works for her slave master Dad, and he sends her out on a job just before Christmas. They are selling the Lowell Mansion which was inherited by Hunter Lowell (Nicholas Gonzalesz). Belle is warned by the locals that Hunter is a hard one to deal with, and they weren’t kidding. He’s extremely rude and downright mean, but as Belle contines her work of documenting the house and all it’s contents, including an extremely valuable library collection, Hunter starts to soften up a bit. But when Belle’s finance arrives the sparks really begin to fly!

This new ION TV Christmas Movie premier for 2013 is a nice romantic comedy with some interesting events going on. I’m not a big fan of the Duff sisters, but there’s no doubt that Halie is the better of the two, and she does an admirable job of holding down the lead in this film. The townsfolk add some color, and the romantic struggles are fun to watch. The ending, especially, though predictable, is really interesting. It’s a nice little holiday film that has the house itself as one of the major stars. This house is very beautiful. The movie is light and fun, and is a nice little holiday diversion. ION has done a good job this year of bringing us some really good holiday premier films.

[Click here for the ION Television page for this film. There is a preview on this page.]

Fogwood Films, Walt Disney Television,

Julie Harris, Trini Alvarado, Andrew McCarthy

Richard Reilly (Andrew McCarthy) is the head gardener for Manhattan’s Rockefeller Center, and responsible to find the perfect Christmas tree for the probably the most well known Christmas see in the world at Rockefeller Center. He can’t seem to find one from the their supplier when he accidentally spots the perfect tree growing in a meadow. Upon seeking the owner of the tree, he finds it was planted decades ago by Sister Anthony (Jule Harris) who planted it when she was a lonely silent orphan taken in by the sisters. She calls the tree “Tree” and it’s been a part of her life and she can’t bear having the tree torn down and taken to New York City. As Richard tries to find out why she has such an attachment to the tree, Sister Anthony tells the story of her childhood and the hardships she faced, and that tree helped her to endure.

Sally Field directed this very sentimental Christmas story. Some people will dismiss it because it’s too sappy and far too “feel good” a movie, but it’s actually a very sentimental, but important Christmas story. Sister Anthony spent her life trying to understand why she was abandoned by everyone, and she’s seeking something to grasp onto, even in her old age. It seems every child has a need to be wanted and taken care of, and sadly for her it was a blank page to her. It’s a very good story, and the story is the key. The movie itself is very simple, in fact, as simple as the story itself, but it doesn’t need stunning effects and lots of action to tell a good story. I had never heard of this film before, even though it’s over 15 years old. I was deeply touched by this little story, and the performance of Julie Harris was really special. She did a wonderful job carrying this film. This is one that may be tough to locate, but one that’s very well worth seeking out, especially if you have a sentimental side.

Below is a scene from this charming movie:

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