Countdown to Christmas 2024

[Notabug]

40 minutes ago, EtheltoTillie said:

So much to keep up with as usual—to weed the wheat from the chaff. 
I’m not feeling The 5 Year Christmas Party.  Turning it off. Anyone else?  

The general consensus was that people liked the overall premise and the actors.  However, the leads had no romantic chemistry which made it easy to see why it took them five years to hook up but hard to care.

2 hours ago, Orcinus orca said:

Fell asleep a quarter of the way through.  What a snooze.

Very underwhelming.  The leads were two tried and true Hallmark vets but the story was implausible and the repeated near misses unbelievable.  The story of the daughter and her boyfriend was superfluous and could've been dropped entirely.  I take it we are supposed to think that 45 year old Nikki DeLoach is too young to have an adult child, so she was the stepmom instead; but it seemed like a lot of effort for nothing.

[DanaMB]

11 hours ago, ECM1231 said:

Just finished watching Carol for Two tonight. Wow, I think this is my favorite Christmas movie of the season so far. What talents! 

Same! It was so good. Lots of humor, the leads had chemistry and were very talented. Will definitely watch again. 

[EtheltoTillie]

I'm catching an oldie (from 2013), which I'd never seen.  A Very Merry Mixup.  Couple meets cute during auto accident and girl goes to meet wrong prospective inlaws.  True love ensues.  It's really good. Also funny. The real mother-in-law to be is a character! The best Hallmark Christmas movies are the funny ones. 

Edited November 3 by EtheltoTillie

[Irlandesa]

6 hours ago, Notabug said:

I take it we are supposed to think that 45 year old Nikki DeLoach is too young to have an adult child, so she was the stepmom instead; but it seemed like a lot of effort for nothing.

That might have been part of it but I also think they made her the stepmother so they could use the same actors for the current scenes and the 'how we met' scenes.  If they had both actors be the parents, then the 'how we met' scenes would have taken place approximately 25 years ago and they likely would have felt a need to use younger actors.

4 minutes ago, EtheltoTillie said:

I'm catching an oldie (from 2013), which I'd never seen.  A Very Merry Mixup.  Couple meets cute during auto accident and girl goes to meet wrong prospective inlaws.  True love ensues.  It's really good. 

That's a gem. 

[EtheltoTillie]

.deleting duplicate. 

Edited November 4 by EtheltoTillie

[EtheltoTillie]

Carol for Two is very good.  The two leads have great voices and have both been in Wicked.  I really liked Ginna Clare in Heidelberg Holiday last year. I agree the cousin was too annoying. Oh yeah someone else just reminded me she was in the Rockettes movie too. I loved that one.  The final song, “Who Knew,” really has the makings of a hit song. Very catchy. 

Edited November 4 by EtheltoTillie

[Irlandesa]

If you were a fan of Sabrina: The Teenaged Witch you might like the reunion of the women who played her aunts in The Holiday Mismatch. 

I didn't watch the sitcom, but I found myself really enjoying tonight's movie.  The promos I saw for the movie hid the fact that it used some of my favorite tropes.  The kids agree to fake dating to keep their respective mothers from continuously trying to set each other up.  And then the women, who considered themselves enemies, decide to join forces to break their kids up and they end up becoming friends...a bit of a play on the enemies to lovers trope or the trope where two people who are exes of another couple try to break the new couple up so they can get their exes back only to fall in love with one another.

Except this time, it's one part love story and another part friend story.  And the gay couple got lines in this movie so...yay?

 

 

[EtheltoTillie]

6 hours ago, Irlandesa said:

If you were a fan of Sabrina: The Teenaged Witch you might like the reunion of the women who played her aunts in The Holiday Mismatch. 

I didn't watch the sitcom, but I found myself really enjoying tonight's movie.  The promos I saw for the movie hid the fact that it used some of my favorite tropes.  The kids agree to fake dating to keep their respective mothers from continuously trying to set each other up.  And then the women, who considered themselves enemies, decide to join forces to break their kids up and they end up becoming friends...a bit of a play on the enemies to lovers trope or the trope where two people who are exes of another couple try to break the new couple up so they can get their exes back only to fall in love with one another.

Except this time, it's one part love story and another part friend story.  And the gay couple got lines in this movie so...yay?

 

 

I'm looking forward to this.  I set it to record. I used to watch the sitcom.

Edited November 4 by EtheltoTillie

[bankerchick]

On 11/2/2024 at 10:53 PM, Irlandesa said:

A publication said if there was one holiday movie to watch this weekend, it should be Our Holiday Story.  I have to say that I disagree.  I really like Nikki Loache and Warren Christie, but that was one boring "Here's How We Met" story. 

Major dud.  No fan of Nikki DeLoach and she did nothing to change my mind in this movie.  I have no opinion on Warren Christie one way or the other.

Not to mention, their story and their almost-meetings weren't even interesting or fun.  I got so bored I never did figure out what was going on with the festival and the daughter and her boyfriend were cringe.  'I love him, I want to say I Love You but I fear he'll say it, what do I do?  Oh, I know, I'll freak out and run away.'  (I could be wrong about how this came about due to aforementioned boredom.)

[Notabug]

1 hour ago, bankerchick said:

Major dud.  No fan of Nikki DeLoach and she did nothing to change my mind in this movie.  I have no opinion on Warren Christie one way or the other.

Not to mention, their story and their almost-meetings weren't even interesting or fun.  I got so bored I never did figure out what was going on with the festival and the daughter and her boyfriend were cringe.  'I love him, I want to say I Love You but I fear he'll say it, what do I do?  Oh, I know, I'll freak out and run away.'  (I could be wrong about how this came about due to aforementioned boredom.)

Your summary of the daughter's thoughts is pretty accurate.  And it sounds even more stupid in writing.  There is nothing cute or interesting about being in a supposedly serious relationship with another person, and to be afraid to tell one's partner that they're just not ready for the next step.

The father, stepmother relationship drama was equally dopey.  They happen to run into each other on the way to important business meetings and he wants her number so he can call her later.  Except his phone is dead or he forgot it or something.  And, apparently, neither one has a pen and a piece of paper.  And all the people working and wandering around the Christmas market they're in don't have them  either.  Because, although Nikki seemingly has her phone with her; he cannot possibly enter his number into her phone or text his phone with her number.  Because, of course, Nikki, being the girl, is not allowed to contact the boy first.  And sending a text from her phone to his is way too risque.  Or something.

Edited November 4 by Notabug

[Acmeproducts]

I loved Sabrina the teenaged witch. Will check out the aunts’ movie.

[Dimity]

I am halfway through this one right now and enjoying it.  It's a cut above the usual IMO, sure there are the tropes we've all come to expect (I have never seen so many adults drinking hot chocolate at the drop of a Christmas cookie!) but it's very well done.  The highlight being Caroline Rhea and Beth Broderick.  I hope they use this pairing again in the future.

ON a shallow note I looked up their ages and was a little surprised.  If anything they look older than their ages - or at least older by Hollywood standards.  Very refreshing!

[Kaoteek]

Gotta say I didn't care much for A Carol for Two. I don't know, I care about Broadway and carol singing about as much as I do about the tough, harsh world of aspiring playwrights & wannabe actors (in 5-year Christmas Party), the cousin was grating, and I must say that, although they've got great voices, both leads felt kinda bland to me. Eh.

[One4Sorrow2TooBad]

I muddled through it somehow, mainly because I'm such a Kate Findley fan. You're 100% right , that storyline sucked for taking so long to even resemble a romantic connection. 

[EtheltoTillie]

The Holiday Mismatch turned out to be an okay watch.  Not an all time favorite, but definitely watchable.  I'm a crocheter, so I was hoping that Caroline Rea was going to give Beth Broderick her own granny square sweater at the end. 

[Kaoteek]

I liked Our Holiday Story... until I didn't. I like the main couple, and it was fine for a while, but then, it dawned on me that it was all really just the same old "he's a manly single-dad small town woodworker who believes in fate and is messy, she's a rational, numbers-oriented careerwoman who recently came back in town, yadda yadda yadda", only wrapped into that How I met your mother schtick of telling it all in a fractured way...

So overall, meh. Might have worked better without all the unlikely plot contrivances, but then, it wouldn't have lasted 90 minutes.

[Kaoteek]

On 11/5/2024 at 2:15 PM, EtheltoTillie said:

The Holiday Mismatch turned out to be an okay watch.  Not an all time favorite, but definitely watchable.  I'm a crocheter, so I was hoping that Caroline Rea was going to give Beth Broderick her own granny square sweater at the end. 

Same. I have absolutely no nostalgia for Sabrina the Teenage Witch, and one of the two aunts fared a lot better here than the other, but it was perfectly watchable, and despite some initial doubts, I ended up really liking the young couple. Nothing groundbreaking, but an enjoyable watch.

[absnow54]

I wanted to line the Christmas Trivia movie because I usually love the found family ones but the main character was so unlikable! I couldn’t imagine what the football coach saw in her. There’s a way to make Type-A charming and endearing (see Taylor Townsend and Andie McPhee) and this wasn’t it. 

[Orcinus orca]

Christmas Trivia didn't pass the Fifteen Minutes - On or Off test.  The ditzy lead was obnoxious.

[Badsamaritan]

4 minutes ago, absnow54 said:

I wanted to line the Christmas Trivia movie because I usually love the found family ones but the main character was so unlikable! I couldn’t imagine what the football coach saw in her. There’s a way to make Type-A charming and endearing (see Taylor Townsend and Andie McPhee) and this wasn’t it. 

Lol Tammin Sursok played briefly on Young and the Restless as Paul's daughter, and the streets used to call her 'Tammin Sure Sucks'. There's no way I was gonna watch this movie, even with Brent's cute behind lol. 👀🤭

[Kemper]

35 minutes ago, Badsamaritan said:

Lol Tammin Sursok played briefly on Young and the Restless as Paul's daughter, and the streets used to call her 'Tammin Sure Sucks'. There's no way I was gonna watch this movie, even with Brent's cute behind lol. 👀🤭

Yes! I remember that; and wasn't there a name about her forehead? At the time, wasn't she dating the head of the network or some such?

[Badsamaritan]

38 minutes ago, Kemper said:

Yes! I remember that; and wasn't there a name about her forehead? At the time, wasn't she dating the head of the network or some such?

If I remember correctly they said she had a 5 head instead of a forehead. And yes, she was dating an exec so it took a while to get her run off canvas.  Eventually Y&R execs cut her loose. I believe a celebration was had in the Y&R forums lol. 

[Notabug]

5 hours ago, absnow54 said:

I wanted to line the Christmas Trivia movie because I usually love the found family ones but the main character was so unlikable! I couldn’t imagine what the football coach saw in her. There’s a way to make Type-A charming and endearing (see Taylor Townsend and Andie McPhee) and this wasn’t it. 

I had the same problem; she was insufferable and I have no idea how she had any friends and no trouble believing that she had a hard time finding a date.  It's too bad, too, because I thought the leading man was charming and cute, too.  Also, most of the supporting cast were tried and true Hallmark reliables who I usually enjoy seeing.

[LakeGal]

Is anyone watching Finding Mr. Christmas?  I am enjoying the reality show to find the next male lead.   

[Clawdette]

I can't remember if this has been mentioned previously.  But, if you have a Samsung Smart TV, its Smart App has Hallmark and Lifetime channels playing Christmas movies 24/7.  You'll run across many that you may not have seen in years.  I'm unsure of the exact channel numbers but they are back-to-back in the 1200s.

I just watched part two of The Bridge.

[Irlandesa]

5 hours ago, LakeGal said:

Is anyone watching Finding Mr. Christmas?  I am enjoying the reality show to find the next male lead.   

Are you watching on Hallmark+?  I don't have that but the first two episodes are going to air on Hallmark.  I can't wait to watch.  It's the one thing that I kind of wanted to get Hallmark+ for.

I didn't sleep Thursday night so there was no way I was going to be able to stay awake during the trivia movie.  The thing I hate about trivia movies is that the trivia is usually so boring.  And I usually give a lot of slack to the lead actresses for being unlikable because usually the men are equally unbearable early on.  But yeah, no excuse in this one. 

[EtheltoTillie]

I was hoping Brooke D’Orsay had a movie this year but she seems to have only a mystery movie.  Has anyone seen this?  How do we watch this?  I don’t want to subscribe to another channel. 

[absnow54]

I’m still way behind on catching up with the year’s crop, but I liked Holiday Mismatch. While the love story was sort of a back burner thing, the young couple had more chemistry and a more believable romance than most of the other movies this year. 

[chitowngirl]

10 hours ago, EtheltoTillie said:

I was hoping Brooke D’Orsay had a movie this year but she seems to have only a mystery movie.  Has anyone seen this?  How do we watch this?  I don’t want to subscribe to another channel. 

It looks like Brooke’s movie Deck the Halls on Cherry Lane will be on Hallmark +

[EtheltoTillie]

I really liked Holiday Crashers. Just caught it last night. Despite the terrible legal ethics. Really bad writing. They should have had a better lawyer vetting it. But the chemistry among the leads was great

Edited November 10 by EtheltoTillie

[LakeGal]

I have seen the first 2 episodes of Finding Mr. Christmas.  It aired on StackTV in Canada.  Jonathan Bennett is hosting with Melissa Peterman helping.  

[Ele]

17 hours ago, EtheltoTillie said:

I was hoping Brooke D’Orsay had a movie this year but she seems to have only a mystery movie.  Has anyone seen this?  How do we watch this?  I don’t want to subscribe to another channel. 

Do you have Peacock? The Hallmark channels are on it. 
 

I think the Christmas movies on HMM look better than the regular Hallmark Channel’s offerings. 

[EtheltoTillie]

I have Peacock.  I can't figure out the viewing schedule on Peacock.  Some movies stay up longer than others.  I may get a temporary Hallmark subscripton also. 

[absnow54]

3 hours ago, Ele said:

 

I think the Christmas movies on HMM look better than the regular Hallmark Channel’s offerings

I have high hopes for Thursday’s A Reason for the Season. 

[Kaoteek]

I wish I liked Santa Tell Me more than I did (and more than most apparently did). If only for the three Nicks who had fun in their roles, and for the overall tone of the movie, much broader and dynamic than most. 

But the plot was so, so basic/predictable and, dare I say it, shallow to an extent, that it ended up feeling kinda forced (just like that brief, fleeting moment of LGBTQ representation at the end). Also, I must say I couldn't care less about home renovation tv shows, so...

[kirinan]

I watched two of this year's movies over the weekend: 

'Twas the Date Before Christmas was a catch-up, and I loved it. That could be due to Robert Buckley, who's one of my favorite HM actors. But I think I would have liked it even with another of my favorite actors (or a really charismatic new actor, but I haven't seen one of those in a long time). I really, really liked Amy Groening; this is the first time I've ever seen her, but I think she's so likable and charismatic. The two of them were great together. I also loved the goofiness of the story, and the rest of the cast. There were probably little things I could pick on, but this one is my favorite so far, and I'll watch it again as many times as I can.

I also watched 'Tis the Season to be Irish (hmm, I just noticed that I seem to have a thing for leading apostrophes this year). I really enjoyed it—maybe not quite as much as 'Twas the Date, but I enjoyed it nonetheless. The actors were good, the scenery was beautiful, and the story was not too fluffy for my fluff tolerance level. I absolutely loved the friendship that developed between the three women (I cried a little when the singer sang Danny Boy on the cliff), and I thought there was chemistry between the two leads. Yes, there were a fair amount of the Ireland stereotypes you see in Irish-set movies and books, but I guess I was in the mood for them, and I was able to hand wave things I might have picked on in another movie.

So I'm two for two so far. There aren't as many movies I want to watch this year, but hopefully the ones I do want to watch are as enjoyable. 

Edited November 11 by kirinan

[DanaMB]

On 11/10/2024 at 4:03 PM, EtheltoTillie said:

I have Peacock.  I can't figure out the viewing schedule on Peacock.  Some movies stay up longer than others.  I may get a temporary Hallmark subscripton also. 

The movies are only available on demand for 2 days. If I forget to watch within the 2 days, I try to catch when they air again on the Hallmark channel through Peacock. You have to sit through the commercials and can’t pause. (You’re watching cable without a DVR.) The Hallmark app lets me know when they’re airing again. 
 

I have also tried catching premieres when they air through the Hallmark channel via Peacock but I always forget. I cut cable and am not used to not recording every movie to watch later at my convenience. And I hate being “stuck” for 2 hours in order to catch them live. 🤣

 

I guess the good news is I don’t have a DVR full of Christmas movies I’m trying to get through in mid-January. 

Edited November 12 by DanaMB

[EtheltoTillie]

9 hours ago, Kaoteek said:

I wish I liked Santa Tell Me more than I did (and more than most apparently did). If only for the three Nicks who had fun in their roles, and for the overall tone of the movie, much broader and dynamic than most. 

But the plot was so, so basic/predictable and, dare I say it, shallow to an extent, that it ended up feeling kinda forced (just like that brief, fleeting moment of LGBTQ representation at the end). Also, I must say I couldn't care less about home renovation tv shows, so...

I was getting bored and turned it off. 

[Orcinus orca]

8 hours ago, EtheltoTillie said:

I was getting bored and turned it off. 

Santa Tell Me didn't pass my Fifteen Minutes - On or Off test either.

[Kaoteek]

The Irish one was okayish. A bit slow for me, but I didn't hate it.

The first Hallmark + Unwrapping Christmas movie, though, wasn't great. Production-wise, the sound was very uneven, with mediocre ADR ; the leading man was... bland, the kid felt too old for the part, Natalie Hall was overacting (I usually like her, but her vibe was entirely different from the rest of the movie's, here), and the story was the usual "we've gotta save that historical building before Christmas" fare. Meh. Hopefully the other three Unwrapping Christmas movies will be better.

 

(also, enough with the "Die Hard is a Christmas movie" quips, it's getting tiring, to the extent I'm now docking points from Christmas movies that go there)

Edited November 12 by Kaoteek

[bankerchick]

Wow, if someone who likes Natalie Hall thinks she was overacting, I can't imagine what I would think, given that I have disliked her in every movie I've ever seen her in.

[Irlandesa]

On 11/11/2024 at 11:45 AM, Kaoteek said:

But the plot was so, so basic/predictable and, dare I say it, shallow to an extent, that it ended up feeling kinda forced (just like that brief, fleeting moment of LGBTQ representation at the end). Also, I must say I couldn't care less about home renovation tv shows, so...

I feel like I've seen that a few times this season--blink and you'll miss it.  It happened in this movie and I think it might have happened in an earlier movie too.  The Austrian one.  At least Holiday Mismatch had a gay brother with an actual husband and both had lines (if not kisses)>

[One4Sorrow2TooBad]

On 11/9/2024 at 6:45 AM, Orcinus orca said:

Christmas Trivia didn't pass the Fifteen Minutes - On or Off test.  The ditzy lead was obnoxious.

Gave it a chance and couldn't make it pass 10 minutes, seriously, it sucked.

[voiceover]

Guys! should I livestream this???🤣

[Badsamaritan]

20 minutes ago, voiceover said:

Guys! should I livestream this???🤣

Ok I'll say it...Tyler seems a little old for Hunter King. I know she's in her 30s but she still has a baby face to me so she reads younger. Maybe they'll have great chemistry and I won't notice 🤷🏽‍♀️🫣

[EtheltoTillie]

34 minutes ago, voiceover said:

Guys! should I livestream this???🤣

I’m looking forward to this movie. She’s one of the writers I really like. 

I started out hating the holiday trivia movie, but it grew on me. Not one of the best, but middling. 

[EyewatchTV211]

21 minutes ago, EtheltoTillie said:

I’m looking forward to this movie. She’s one of the writers I really like. 

I started out hating the holiday trivia movie, but it grew on me. Not one of the best, but middling. 

Same. I mostly hated how awful the lead actress was being at the start. But once they stopped that, the rest of the movie did grow on me. Definitely middling. 

[Miss Anne Thrope]

I'm going to give the trivia movie a look because Liz Keifer (a Guiding Light alum) is in a supporting role, and it turns out it was shot semi-locally --  so I want to check out the scenery, etc.  Hope I can make it past the 15-minute mark!

[Irlandesa]

12 minutes ago, Miss Anne Thrope said:

I'm going to give the trivia movie a look because Liz Keifer (a Guiding Light alum) is in a supporting role, and it turns out it was shot semi-locally --  so I want to check out the scenery, etc.  Hope I can make it past the 15-minute mark!

Trying to figure out if that was her was my favorite part of the movie.  But I was falling asleep when I watched so maybe I'd appreciate it more if I were awake.

But I won't go back to watch because I doubt it's worth a second chance. There is only so much time and so many movies to watch.

[coffeebean]

On 11/1/2024 at 10:15 PM, MerBearHou said:

I just stumbled upon Carol for Two tonight and recognized the actress from the delightful Hallmark Rockettes movie a couple of years ago, so I decided to give it a go.  I love Broadway and Carol for Two was a wonderful surprise for me.  The singing talent of the two leads and the natural way the songs were worked in at the Fiore’s Club — it all made for a charming movie.  Hearing some of my all-time favorite Christmas carols even made me tear up a little.  The chemistry of the leads was wonderful.  The very, very annoying cousin was funny but overdone.  There was a bit of Cyrano de Bergerac in Alex trying to give his cousin pointers on how to woo Violette.  It had so much NYC Christmas which added to its charm.  I found it delightful and will happily watch again (but you do need to enjoy the Broadway vibe IMO).  

Charlotte D'amboise has very impressive Broadway credits.