Eric Jay Beck, Erin Bethea Candace Cameron Bure, Burgess Jenkins, Gary Moore, jeanne Neilson, George Newbern
Megan (Candace Cameron Bure) is a very busy lady. Struggling, like most of us, with a schedule that’s too busy and there’s no time for anything but work, hauling kids around, and supporting her husband who is trying to work and go to school at the same time. Her son shows up wearing a costume, and Megan realizes it is Halloween. She takes her son out to a nearby neighborhood for trick or treat and finds the neighborhood setting up for Christmas in October. She is given a card with a blog site on it, and a warning that “It will change your life”. As she begins reading the story of the Locke family she becomes involved in the true story of the Locke family. Their son Dax developed a very rare form of leukemia at 13 months, and the families life has been turned upside down. With a positive attitude and faith they are doing everything they can to help their son. As Megan reads the day to day blog about the family’s struggles, she gains an appreciation for the blessing she has.
The Locke family story has touched millions of lives around the world. This new film in 2011 has premiered on the the GMC channel and will be run throughout the season. There will eventually be a DVD if you are unable to get the movie. But there is a web site for the blog: http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/daxlocke. This is a heartbreaking true story of a whole community coming together. Featuring the music from Matthew West’s “The Heart of Christmas” CD, this is an excellent story.
As for the film. It’s very well done. The actors are really good. The story is very good. It is very heartbreaking, but sometimes it takes adversity to build character. I would recommend this to you if there is anyway you can get a chance to see it. What a remarkable story.
Chad Michael Murray, Ashley Benson, Christina Milian, Ryan Sypek, Burgess Jenkins, Cara Mantella, Reagan Michelle, Christie Maher, Jackee Harry, Patrick Johnson, Sharon Morris, Justin Smith
Christina Milian is Sloane Spencer, beautiful, fashionable, public relations representative and her first big client is a challenge. Ashley Benson is Caitlin Quinn, superstar bad girl who keeps getting into one jam after another which Sloane has to get her out of. On Christmas Eve she takes off on a boat and, drunk as usual, falls over the side and dies. But Sloane keeps seeing her. She’s come back as her personal ghost of Christmas past, present, and future. Sloane has to learn first hand the things she has to change to be truly happy.
I am typically a big fan of Christmas Carol stories, and I enjoy them all from Scott to Stewart to Grammer, to Murray, to the Muppets, to Mickey Mouse, to Mr. Magoo, and everywhere in between. But this is so loosely based on the story that it doesn’t hardly resemble it at all. This is about whether or not she dumped the wrong sweetheart, hence the title. Christina Milian is cute and ambitious in this role, but the script is really weak. Caitlin tries to play a Lindsey-Paris type superstar, which she’s not bad at, but when she’s a ghost, she has few redeeming qualities. Everything is jokes and crack ups and teasing the poor living folks that can see them. Plus the ghosts are not ghosts but alternate images of living people. I never thought I’d ever find a Christmas Carol I didn’t like, but there’s a first time for everything. She found true love and made up with her family and friends, but I don’t know that it matters much. I hope she got what she wanted. I’m going to switch over to “Barbie’s Christmas Carol” instead.
