Ed's Review Dot Com

The Hallmark Channel,

Bonnie Somerville, Brennan Elliott, Madison Brydges, Precious Chong, Richard Waugh, Graham Scott Fleming, Sadie LeBlanc, Andre Richards, Miku Graham, Derek Scott

Maddie Duncan (Bonnie Somerville) is a high powered east coast executive who is afraid to fly. She is invited to her biggest client’s wedding in Colorado, but fortunately is able to get her brother’s classic car to make the drive to Colorado in time. But unfortunately the car breaks down in the little mid-west town of Christmas Valley which is the most Christmas loving town of the century, much to Maddie’s chagrin. But as the problems pile up, she meets a really kind family who work hard to change her disdain for the Holidays.

This is another Hallmark Christmas movie for 2017. This one appeared during their Christmas in July celebration last summer. This is a very derivative, but exceeding sweet Christmas story that has it all. The town is called Christmas Valley as the founder’s last name was Christmas, but the citizens of this little town really embrace the season. This has the semi-gruff marketing executive who doesn’t belive in Christmas with the broken down car, stranded in a town full of Christmas Spirit. It has the Christmas loving Boarding House lady and the eclectic boarders. Most of all there’s the lovely family with a single Dad, Kevin (Brennan Elliott) and his extremely cute daughter who pushes her Dad into finding her a new Mom. Yes, this is the most common Christmas story of all, but it’s very well done with really fabulous acting, and so it’s a nearly perfect holiday film. They are all true to the genre, and it moves along like frosted egg nog and a slice or two of pumpkin pie in front of a crackling fire. Fortunately for us, cars never break down in a dirty smoky city with people who hate the holidays. Of course I guess this would be a horrible movie. Anyway, there’s nothing new here, but it’s still perfectly delightful, so who cares?

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Hallmark Channel,

Alicia Witt, Gabriel Hogan, Wallace Shawn, T.J. McGibbon, Linda Kash, Gabrielle Miller, Jayne Eastwood, Ron Lea, Miku Graham, Marsha Regis

Nikki (Alicia Witt) is a single Mom with an 8 year old daughter, and badly in need of a job for Christmas. She heard that Cartwright’s department store was hiring some Christmas help, but things didn’t go so well in her audition, when mysteriously the elevator stops on the wrong floor and she is lead by a kind old Christmas Specialist to the store Santa’s dressing room. Everyone mistakes her for the newly hired store Santa, so she lowers her voice, puts on a brave face and sets off to face the kids.

This was really a pretty nice little new Christmas story. This is the story of the poor angel trying to help out the mortal who needs him while everything seems to go wrong. Yeah, it’s been done before; haven’t they all? But Alicia Witt is really very charming and plays this role as well as anyone else I’ve seen pull it off. You really care that she finally gets what she deserves as the more evil people get their comeuppance as well. She has a really great 8 year old daughter who helps pull off the story, and there’s a romance story too, naturally, as the big oaf doesn’t realize she’s there until it’s too late. But the real kicker in this movie is Wallace Shawn, from The Princess Bride who is “inconceivable” as the elfish angel who’s trying to make things right. He steals every scene he’s in. All in all, I thought this one of the nicest of the new films this year, and one you will probably want to catch on the Hallmark Channel if you have a soft place for romantic and comedic Christmas stories.

[Click Here for the Hallmark Channel Home Page for this film]

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