Hallmark Christmas Movies Worth Watching

By: Ava Niedermyer, Emily Perez, Megan Mancuso

"The Christmas House” Review

by: Megan Mancuso

Released November of 2020, “The Christmas House” is a heartwarming story that ties three stories into one.

There is the famous TV star who is reconnecting with his high school crush, Hallmark’s first gay lead couple who are anxiously waiting to hear if the adoption for their first child went through, and a struggling couple trying to keep Christmas family traditions and memories alive.

I’ll break it down a bit. Mike Mitchell- the TV star- wraps up another season of his show “Handsome Justice”. He receives a call from his parents (Phyllis and Bill) with news that this Christmas will be unlike any of his recent Christmases, because they are bringing back the tradition of “the Christmas House”- a tradition which they stopped doing 20 years ago. Mike will soon find out that this might be the last Christmas House ever. The Christmas House was a huge procedure that in the past took them a whole month to set up. They would empty out the entire house, and turn it into a floor to ceiling winter wonderland. Phyllis and Bill, who are normally great planners, tell Mike of this plan only two weeks before Christmas. This whole operation including Mike, his parents, his brother Brandon, and Brandon’s husband Jake will take hours and hours of work. Also helping out is Mike’s high school crush (and former magic partner) Andi, who moved back in next door with her mom aer her divorce.

Besides this main plot of seing up the Christmas House, there is a lot going on behind the scenes for the main characters. With the help of many flashback scenes, it allows us to piece together the conflicts of these characters. One of the conflicts is that Brandon and Jake are keeping the adoption a secret. They don’t want to get the family’s hopes up in case the adoption falls through again. They spend a lot of time going to the side and whispering to stay under the radar of the family while they work through this situation. Mike, who I view as the main protagonist of the story, picks up on this. He also picks up on the fact that his parents are acting strange, and ruminates on a lot of hints that were dropped by Phyllis and Bill. Sharon Lawrence- who played Phyllis- was a particularly strong actress, serving as an emotional character who adds some weight to the film. Before her inner struggles are revealed, you can tell that there is something going on with her, and that draws you in. Additionally, Mike has the conflict of finding out that his show is geing canceled, and his agent trying to work with him to get it back. Mike is torn because he realizes that there might be more for him back at home than in show business.

There were many aspects of this movie that made it touching and heartwarming. One was how adamant Phyllis was about the importance of family. It was clear that family was something that she valued the most, and she would work her hardest and do anything to keep her family happy. Another thing that was deeply touching was the representation in this movie. Brandon and Jake are Hallmark’s first lead gay couple, struggling with having their adoption go through. Having them as leads was great representation for the LGBTQ+ community, especially for Hallmark. In past Hallmark movies, gay characters were supporting roles- “the best friend”. The way Hallmark delivered their storyline is truly touching, and will serve as a great impact for future generations of queer kids. There is also Latinx representation in this movie. The family goes to Andi’s house, and they make tamales and buñelos. This diverse cast helps portray different groups of people who might not get much aention in film. One last thing that I found touching was how Mike was always there for Andi’s son,

Noah. His biological father was never on scene for this film, and was not mentioned much. That is what makes Mike and Noah’s bond so special and heartwarming.

Going into it, I was not expecting much from this movie because Hallmark oen has repetitive and predictable storylines. This movie le me pleasantly surprised though, and I think the triple storyline helped out with that. Because of the way the movie was structured, no one story was drawn out too much, so you were able to stay interested and engaged. I would definitely recommend this movie to anyone who is looking for a cute and new Christmas movie to watch.

“Coming home for Christmas” Review

by: Ava Niedermyer

Coming home for Christmas”, released in November of 2017 was a very upliing and heartwarming movie.

This story's focus is on Lizzie who has a bright, bubbly, sunshine like personality and Robert who's grumpy and closed off. We first find out that Lizzie has lost her job because her company closed down, causing her to feel a lile down but that doesnt last long. Lizzie realized that she wasn’t happy at her job and wanted a new career. Her sister offers her a job to be the manager of a large estate that she's selling, Lizzie takes the job but has no idea what's in store for her.

When she gets to the house she is greeted by the kind butler but also the unpleasant grandmother. Lizzie sees that she has her work cut out for her. When she and Robert met it was strictly for business, however there was a spark there from the start. Lizzie sees how this family is in desperate need of some Christmas spirit. Lizzie soon finds out it is her job to plan the final Christmas Eve Gala. Robert's brother Kip, compared to his brother, he's more upliing and spontaneous, he seems to be drawn to Lizzie from the moment he laid his eyes on her. He makes dinner reservations for a tasting to make the menu for the gala Lizzie has to plan, it's supposed to be strictly professional but it's seen as a date in Kip’s eyes. Although the two have much in common there’s something missing in Lizzies eyes.

Lizzie keeps trying to bring christmas spirit into this house while trying to melt the grandmother's cold exterior. When Robert's sister Sloane comes home Lizzie sees that this family just needs a lile help to be brought back together. She fills the house with all things Christmas and has an impact on everyone in the house, especially the two brothers. They both see something special in Lizzie, sparking a lile feud between them. I thought this love triangle added a good amount of excitement and had you contemplating which brother she will pick.

Lizzie has a way of bringing so much joy and spirit into a house that was lacking it so much. She was able to touch the grandmother's heart along with Roberts allowing them both to be more open and cheerful. She planned ways for the family to connect and brought them together. Lizzie’s planning for the gala didn’t go unnoticed, it was a success. She found a new passion but not only that, she found herself. During the gala Robert overheard a conversation between Lizzie and Kip, he jumped to conclusions and le the gala without saying a word. Though the miscommunication could’ve been easily avoided I think it added to the story and showed how much Robert cared for Lizzie and vice versa.

This movie showed how important family is and how people who are very different could be the perfect match. Although it was a bit cliche I think it was still a good movie. It’s perfect to watch around the holidays to li your spirits and put you in the Christmas mood.

“The Christmas secret” Review

by: Emily Perez

Released November 23rd, 2014, “The Christmas secret” is a touching and feel good movie about Christine, played by Bethany Joy Lenz, also known as Haley Sco from “One Tree Hill”. Christine is basically just going through it. She loses her job, is about to get evicted, has to deal with financial issues and struggles, and the fight to keep her kids from her baby daddy’s constant disappearing act is a tough bale for her legally and mentally. Boom line, she’s not doing so great.

To summarize, one morning while heading out to work Christine encounters a car accident which leaves an old woman passed out in the front seat suffering a heart attack. Christine calls 911 and performs CPR on the old woman, saving her life in the process. Because of the accident Christine is late to work and gets fired from her job but at a bakery, owned by a kind old woman, close by she gains another job in the next hour. The son, Jason and husband of the old lady she saved goes looking for Christine and aempts to find the woman who saved her life. Christine on multiple occasions meets Jason but uses an alias name and begins to form a connection with him. In order to not spoil the movie what occurs following is The miss placement of a meaningful item which soon gets uncovered along with a shocking revelation, and along with this comes some good and merry luck for Christine. Along with, of course, romance.

I think this movie was surprisingly good and worth a try. Out of a lot of other hallmark movies this one is by far one of the most decent and non-cringe like. When I sat down to watch the movie I was dreading doing so but I was surprised by the realism, and shock factor it brought to its story. I chose this movie specially because it sticks with the same format of a hallmark Christmas movie but derives in acting, nature, and overall tone. Bethany Joy Lenz was by far the highlight of the movie by delivering a compelling performance as a struggling single mother trying her hardest to navigate life, children, work, and her overall struggles. Her emotion was on point and delivered on every note. The children were believable unlike others on hallmark. They had a character and storyline that fit and wasn’t just a placement or placeholder. It also had a festive feel and felt like a Christmas movie.

Overall this is a good movie and isn’t one to skip. Even though it might be a hallmark movie, it still has a presence and connecting storylines that make sense. And if we want to talk about making sense in film, Netflix hasn’t been making many of those with the same boring and cringey rom-coms no one asked for. Besides that this movie was worth watching and isn’t a waste of tim