Hallmark Movies: Small Town Royalty Magically Celebrating Rekindled Love! - General Discussion

[luvthepros]

On 12/12/2020 at 9:07 PM, bankerchick said:

Honestly, I dislike everything about her (Jill Wagner.)  I know it's the script and not her, but I just want to shake my head at every movie as I don't see her as someone that would be worth the trouble.  She's brittle.  Even when she's having fun, which doesn't seem to be very often, she doesn't make me smile.  YMMV of course.  (I hope she's not your sister.)

No worries.

[bankerchick]

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I admit I wasn't impressed when they threw in the usual Big Misunderstanding at the 90 minute mark because I felt the heroine totally overreacted but the movie redeemed itself when they go on to talk about the real reason the writer wanted to bail on doing the story. 

Me too.  She understands he has a magazine article due by a specific date, right?  He never told her he wasn't interested in her story anymore, but he had a deadline.

Watched an older one today, The Magic Stocking.  I literally had to yell at the tv, 'he's dead!!!'  Never mind keeping his clothes and then getting mad at her mom for accidentally donating them because she found them out in the open where the widow had recently been smelling and crying over them, she wouldn't get her daughter a dog because the dad had died on the way to pick up a dog.  No indication that the dog had anything to do with the death, I guess people in her circle die when picking up dogs.  Whatever.

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Bridal Wave (2015)

Love this movie! The love lead actors.

This is probably my favourite of all Hallmark movies.  These two have great chemistry but I believe the movie Norcalgal is referring to is A Bride for Christmas from 2012 which is also really good.

[WinnieWinkle]

58 minutes ago, bankerchick said:

Watched an older one today, The Magic Stocking.  I literally had to yell at the tv, 'he's dead!!!' 

I saw this one a few years ago so may not be remembering it well but if memory serves her mother was also a widow.   And what annoyed me so much was the way the main character didn't seem to have any real understanding that losing a loved one was not an experience that was unique to her!  I mean I totally get that she was grieving but the attitude seemed to be "well you lost your husband but you're old (probably pushing 60 so clearly at deaths door)  so it doesn't count".  

[luvthepros]

On 12/18/2020 at 9:21 PM, Callietwo said:

The ones you dislike are all favorites, except for Ashley Williams and her creepy incessant grin.  Especially the men on your list. 

And though I agree with you with Paul Campbell & Andrew Walker, I find Christopher Russell not attractive and wooden.   

Funny how different we can all be. 

 

Same here about the women. Never did care for Ashley Williams although I have heard she is a wonderful person. As for the men, Paul Greene is a favorite of mine along with Andrew Walker. They are my top two.

[DanaMB]

Still trying to get through all the movies on my DVR...

Time to Come Home for Christmas is really boring me and I’m struggling to finish it. I already fell asleep once. 

[bankerchick]

I wouldn't lose any sleep over that one, it wasn't very good.  But then, I don't get the Lacey Chabert love.  Is she the niece of the Hallmark chairman or something?  Did she win some lawsuit that says she needs to be in 50% of all Hallmark movies?

[Bronx Babe]

Only on Hallmark could a guy be considered an individualist by choosing a life in advertising (with the endless "pitches" and assorted corporate bullshit) instead of becoming a lawyer like his father expected.  Don't ask me to remember the name of this one; of course it had Christmas in the title.

Oh yeah, and also -- only on Hallmark is it considered "romantic" when the leads think of themselves as "a great team".  I'm thinking of Benjamin's (Dustin Hoffman) reply to Elaine in The Graduate after she tells him that her pipe-smoking boyfriend said they'd make a great team:  "Oh, no, he said THAT?"

[Shorty186]

On 12/30/2020 at 11:57 PM, Bronx Babe said:

Only on Hallmark could a guy be considered an individualist by choosing a life in advertising (with the endless "pitches" and assorted corporate bullshit) instead of becoming a lawyer like his father expected.  Don't ask me to remember the name of this one; of course it had Christmas in the title.

The 12 Gifts of Christmas?

I DVR'd My Christmas Love last week and watched it the other day, and although I've seen it a few times before, I realized it's probably one of my fave Hallmark Christmas movies. Especially compared to what they had on this year.

It's very trope-y with the dead parent and the lead failing to realize "the one" has been right in front of her all along, but it seems to subvert those tropes somehow. And the cast is mostly really good, especially Megan Park and Gregory Harrison in supporting roles. Meredith Hagner initially grates with her voice, but you get used to it by the end of the movie. And I don't know where Bobby Campo has disappeared to, but he needs to come back to Hallmark. He was one of my favorite male actors.

[Irlandesa]

4 hours ago, Shorty186 said:

I DVR'd My Christmas Love last week and watched it the other day, and although I've seen it a few times before, I realized it's probably one of my fave Hallmark Christmas movies.

I absolutely love this one. 

[Bronx Babe]

10 hours ago, Shorty186 said:

The 12 Gifts of Christmas?

I DVR'd My Christmas Love last week and watched it the other day, and although I've seen it a few times before, I realized it's probably one of my fave Hallmark Christmas movies. Especially compared to what they had on this year.

It's very trope-y with the dead parent and the lead failing to realize "the one" has been right in front of her all along, but it seems to subvert those tropes somehow. And the cast is mostly really good, especially Megan Park and Gregory Harrison in supporting roles. Meredith Hagner initially grates with her voice, but you get used to it by the end of the movie. And I don't know where Bobby Campo has disappeared to, but he needs to come back to Hallmark. He was one of my favorite male actors.

Honestly I couldn't confirm if that's the title. They all run together in my mind.  That includes the plots too of course lol.

[Bronx Babe]

Whatever happened to that science fiction series Hallmark was supposed to be involved in?  

You know how I continually natter on about the unsettling references to outer space and aliens in their movies, Christmas and otherwise.

This is why I always say it's the channel untouched by human hands.  A fascinating concept to be sure but quite frightening as well. 

 

[bankerchick]

Well, Christmas is so last week and we are on to Winterfest.  Or Winter Wonderland.  Whatever.  Though I did see a filler movie yesterday that was about the Harvest Festival.  It was jarring to go from red/green to orange so quickly.

I watched Taking A Shot At Love.  Terrible.  The premise was exactly the same as every single other movie, but nothing about the actors made me feel like there was any chemistry between them, at all.  They would make great best friends, but definitely not a couple.  I know I fell asleep at the end and I may have been dreaming, but is it possible the movie ended with a smile and a shoulder squeeze, not a kiss?  I swear this is what I remember.

[Kohola3]

32 minutes ago, bankerchick said:

Well, Christmas is so last week and we are on to Winterfest.  Or Winter Wonderland.  Whatever.

But they managed to save the white twinkle lights and leave them up all over town the house in Taking a Shot at Love.

34 minutes ago, bankerchick said:

The premise was exactly the same as every single other movie, but nothing about the actors made me feel like there was any chemistry between them, at all.  They would make great best friends, but definitely not a couple.

Right on, sister.  That was two hours of my life I will never get back.

But, a small plus,  She could dance and he could skate which puts them a step above in the usual "lack of any skills" category.  Of course the kid hockey player was so obviously a double they might as well have put a sign on him saying "don't look too closely" whilst only showing his feet. 

[bankerchick]

Another thing.  The friend's husband.  Was days away from being drafted into the NHL but left it all behind to run his dad's company when his father died?  Why did he need to run the company?  He would have made enough in the NHL to pay any bills that would have been outstanding and to support his mother too.  If it was a large business which employed others, there has to be a manager who can run it.  It beggars belief that someone who was going to the NHL actually had time to work side by side with his dad in any type of business, unless it was hockey related.

[Irlandesa]

I didn't hate Taking A Shot At Love.  I didn't love it but I found it more palatable than I was expecting.  Maybe I'm just glad that the holiday movies are dunzo. 

[gutbuster]

3 hours ago, bankerchick said:

  I know I fell asleep at the end and I may have been dreaming, but is it possible the movie ended with a smile and a shoulder squeeze, not a kiss?  I swear this is what I remember.

Haha, the movie did end that way, but they did have the requisite declarations of undying love followed by chaste kiss immediately before the passionate shoulder squeezing. It was virtually blink and you miss it as usual.

[EyewatchTV211]

3 hours ago, Kohola3 said:

But they managed to save the white twinkle lights and leave them up all over town the house in Taking a Shot at Love.

Right on, sister.  That was two hours of my life I will never get back.

But, a small plus,  She could dance and he could skate which puts them a step above in the usual "lack of any skills" category.  Of course the kid hockey player was so obviously a double they might as well have put a sign on him saying "don't look too closely" whilst only showing his feet. 

The kid supposedly is actually a hockey player 🤷‍♀️ https://twitter.com/shermwolfe/status/1345563392422117377?s=19

[bankerchick]

He's a pretty good dancer for a hockey player.  Maybe there is something to this and the heroine will be able to not only save her business, but also pass along her love of dance to the many athletes beating a path to her door, who will also cultivate a passion for ballet.  Next Christmas the movies will all be about athletes going to the country and falling in love with small town ballerinas.

[EyewatchTV211]

He must actually do both if he also played Billy Elliott (the kid).

[Ashforth]

I admit it, I liked Taking A Shot At Love. Sure, it was a non-Christmas movie in which our heroine had two Christmas trees in her living room 🙄. But there wasn't any talk of the magic of Christmas or the real meaning of Christmas (It's TRUE LOVE, for those of you who haven't already had that pounded into you). 

Things I liked: The lead couple were mostly friendly from the start - not the instant-enemies-who-fall-for-each-other baloney. I'm fairly sure there were no dead spouses or parents. It had some funny moments. Her hair wasn't constantly hanging in her face in 'beachy waves'. They were working toward a common goal that didn't have to do with saving the town (and its success lead to near-heartbreak! Hahaha). Ryan interacted with the students and with her friends instead of almost solely with her. I thought they had a nice chemistry and the progression of their relationship made sense. They hugged several times during the course of the movie (baby steps). Even when he made suggestions about how she could make changes to help her business, he wasn't terribly condescending and backed off when she shot them down. I liked it that at the end, neither was going to move or give up a huge career opportunity for the other.

Of course, a lot of the story was silly - I would think that a big-time pro hockey team would not be clueless about rehabbing foot/ankle injuries. The friend who walked away from a pro career to take over his dad's business... sigh. I guess that's one of the mandatory storylines - one of the characters has to have done it or be choosing whether or not to do it.

[Moose135]

6 hours ago, bankerchick said:

I watched Taking A Shot At Love.  Terrible. 

The guy played for the Rangers, you knew it was going to suck...

Edited January 3, 2021 by Moose135

[Kohola3]

2 hours ago, EyewatchTV211 said:

The kid supposedly is actually a hockey player

Nope, not buying it.  He might do some skating but the kid on the rink was very clearly not him.  Every time he did a "hockey stop"  they only showed his feet and then there was a pause before they showed his face.  I've been a hockey fan for all of my life and that was not the same kid. Besides, someone who does ballet/dance spends hours and hours a day practicing.  So do hockey players as good as the kid on the rink.  I sincerely doubt he could do both. 

[Ashforth]

1 hour ago, Kohola3 said:

Nope, not buying it.  He might do some skating but the kid on the rink was very clearly not him.  Every time he did a "hockey stop"  they only showed his feet and then there was a pause before they showed his face.  I've been a hockey fan for all of my life and that was not the same kid. Besides, someone who does ballet/dance spends hours and hours a day practicing.  So do hockey players as good as the kid on the rink.  I sincerely doubt he could do both. 

Are we demanding realism from Hallmark movies? 🤣🤣🤣

I respect your point of view, I'm just sayin'.

[Kohola3]

Just now, Ashforth said:

Are we demanding realism from Hallmark movies? 

Yeah, good point.

[Suzysite]

1 hour ago, Kohola3 said:

Nope, not buying it.  He might do some skating but the kid on the rink was very clearly not him.  Every time he did a "hockey stop"  they only showed his feet and then there was a pause before they showed his face.  

They did the same thing with Luke McFarlane. I kept watching to see if he was actually skating, but all they showed were closeups or distant shots that obviously were not him. Oh, he stood on the ice all right, but that was it. 

[bankerchick]

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The guy played for the Rangers, you knew it was going to suck...

Well, I can't dispute that.  Especially since the promo had a Canucks logo, which is my son's favourite team.  I bugged him that he would have to watch the movie (like that would ever happen) but he figured he had an out when it turned out to be a Rangers player.

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They did the same thing with Luke McFarlane. I kept watching to see if he was actually skating, but all they showed were closeups or distant shots that obviously were not him. Oh, he stood on the ice all right, but that was it. 

I noticed in the opening shot when he was supposedly practicing with the Rangers and they showed a scene of a tight head-shot with the rink receding quickly behind him as if he was skating really fast, but it was obvious by the way his head was moving that he had never skated fast in his life.

[ZootSuitWyatt]

19 hours ago, Bronx Babe said:

Honestly I couldn't confirm if that's the title. They all run together in my mind.  That includes the plots too of course lol.

I know the generic titles is a common complaint, but it always gets me that "12 Gifts of Christmas" is not "My Christmas Love" (possibly the most generic of all the titles?).

[bankerchick]

Speaking of titles running together, currently if I hit 'guide' on my remote, channel 305 is showing Love on Ice.  Channel 306 also shows as Love on Ice but the word is partially cut off, it's actually Love on Iceland.  Two very different movies, I'm sure.

[Bronx Babe]

2 hours ago, ZootSuitWyatt said:

I know the generic titles is a common complaint, but it always gets me that "12 Gifts of Christmas" is not "My Christmas Love" (possibly the most generic of all the titles?).

To me they're all the same movie.  Every. Single. One.

 

[Irlandesa]

1 hour ago, bankerchick said:

Speaking of titles running together, currently if I hit 'guide' on my remote, channel 305 is showing Love on Ice.  Channel 306 also shows as Love on Ice but the word is partially cut off, it's actually Love on Iceland.  Two very different movies, I'm sure.

They're different.  I loved the scenery in Love On Iceland. And Broadway stars!

[ECM1231]

On 12/23/2020 at 8:39 PM, susannot said:

I really liked USS Christmas.     My son is an active duty sailor so I love Navy movies.  And the tall blond leading man is much better looking than most Hallmark leading men, who mostly look like bland Ken dolls.

I'm a bit behind with the DVR but saw this tonight and loved it. Jen Lilley was appealing and although I'm partial to brunettes, the lead was nice- looking and they had good chemistry. I'm not familiar with him. Always nice to see  Barbara Niven as the mom and the plot was a bit different from Hallmark's standard fare.

[bankerchick]

I agree that Love on Ice and Love on Iceland are totally different.  One has beautiful Icelandic scenery, and the other has Andrew Walker.  Both a pleasure to look at.

I also really liked USS Christmas.  I have since watched a few movies with the same leading actor and he's pretty good.

[WinnieWinkle]

I just rewatched Window Wonderland (again) and still love it but two things struck me - and this is common to most of these movies - first the windows.  Honestly, they were, well, not good.  Yet there is this big fuss over most of them as if we're seeing "great art" and we're just not.  They're pretty bad or pretty bland.  Second the feel good ending -- why are they unveiling windows on Christmas Day?  I mean I get that they want to attract customers for the after Christmas sales but really?  Crowds of people have nothing better to do on Christmas Day morning than look at windows at a closed store?  This second one is the one that truly bugs - how often do we see these movies focus on big adverting promotions for Christmas that have to be done by Christmas Eve?  I mean seriously?  Christmas adverts in the real world can start as early as September!  And definitely not the week of Christmas itself!

Edited January 4, 2021 by WinnieWinkle

[bankerchick]

WinnieWinkle, I guess that's right up there with planning a Christmas party/fundraiser/festival in about 4 days, with the big reveal always being Christmas Eve or Christmas Day.  Seems to me anybody who cares to attend this sort of thing is the type who probably has plans for those days.  If all you can talk about for months at a time is Christmas, are you really free on Christmas Day?  Shouldn't you be home surrounded by all of your family, eating gingerbread cookies, singing carols and drinking hot cocoa?

Totally unrelated, in one of the movies I saw in the last couple days, people are making Christmas wishes and the heroine's mother has invited a woman to have Christmas Eve dinner with them.  When they decide to go for eggnog, one woman says, 'is there rum in it?' and the mother says, 'there better be.'  Apropos of nothing, but I thought it was funny that someone finally acknowledged that some people think that a drink is exactly what you need in these circumstances.

[norcalgal]

On 12/29/2020 at 10:13 AM, luvthepros said:

Bridal Wave (2015)

Love this movie! The love lead actors.

 

On 12/29/2020 at 7:41 PM, bankerchick said:

This is probably my favourite of all Hallmark movies.  These two have great chemistry but I believe the movie Norcalgal is referring to is A Bride for Christmas from 2012 which is also really good.

Yes - I love, love, love Bridal Wave.  I've watched multiple times and try to catch it whenever it reruns. The scenery is AMAZING (does anyone know where they filmed it?)!!!  The only thing I side-eye is the show expecting me to believe that Arielle was going to wear her mom's wedding dress (and it was already altered for Ariell's character) but when the mom ended up wearing it at the end, it fit?!  The two are not close in size at all.  "Washers and Dwyers!"

On 12/30/2020 at 8:18 AM, luvthepros said:

Same here about the women. Never did care for Ashley Williams although I have heard she is a wonderful person. As for the men, Paul Greene is a favorite of mine along with Andrew Walker. They are my top two.

Ever since I saw the show Bitten, I can't look at Paul Greene the same again. I don't know if Bitten used body doubles or not...but if that truly was Paul's body onscreen...yowza!

On 1/3/2021 at 2:06 PM, Moose135 said:

The guy played for the Rangers, you knew it was going to suck...

 

On 1/3/2021 at 4:41 PM, bankerchick said:

Well, I can't dispute that.  Especially since the promo had a Canucks logo, which is my son's favourite team.  I bugged him that he would have to watch the movie (like that would ever happen) but he figured he had an out when it turned out to be a Rangers player.

I noticed in the opening shot when he was supposedly practicing with the Rangers and they showed a scene of a tight head-shot with the rink receding quickly behind him as if he was skating really fast, but it was obvious by the way his head was moving that he had never skated fast in his life.

Hahahahaha re: Rangers. But of course they'd use the Rangers (Original Six Team, Big Market Team) instead of say....Blue Jackets or Florida Panthers!  

 

[bankerchick]

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Ever since I saw the show Bitten, I can't look at Paul Greene the same again. I don't know if Bitten used body doubles or not...but if that truly was Paul's body onscreen...yowza!

  I recall reading in a few places that Greene has a 'mantra' that consists of 4 words, the only 2 of which I can remember are 'faith and fitness' so I'm going to go out on a limb and say it's probably his own body.  Now, excuse me while I go find out what Bitten is...

Bridal Wave is on here tomorrow at 6am so the PVR is already programmed.  I love the movie but not getting up that early to watch it!

 

[ShelleySue]

On 1/4/2021 at 11:04 AM, WinnieWinkle said:

This second one is the one that truly bugs - how often do we see these movies focus on big adverting promotions for Christmas that have to be done by Christmas Eve?  I mean seriously?  Christmas adverts in the real world can start as early as September!  And definitely not the week of Christmas itself!

I used to work in retail.  This was before the internet so advertising had to be planned more in advance so things may be different now. Ad space was purchased and proofs were approved by June or July. An ad campaign was tv, radio, magazines, newspapers, in store promos, etc. The items advertised had to be manufactured and in all of the stores in sufficient quantities by the time the ads hit the market. By the day after Christmas, when the doors opened, you had to be prepared to sell, sell, sell.  

My pet peeve -- people expecting someone to travel any distance for a Christmas Eve wedding.  Is that a real thing or just in movies?

Another question about reality versus movies -- Snowmen Contests. I've spent my entire life living in the north and I've never seen one.  I've built plenty of snowmen and I know how much snow it takes to build one.  I know how building one leaves deep ruts in the snow.  I know how tired you get pushing those balls around trying to get them bigger and bigger.  I know how much effort it takes to lift that second ball on to the first one.  I've been to plenty of winter related festivals but no snowman contests.

[bankerchick]

I have also lived north (though actually the southern area of Canada) all my life and I have never seen:  snowman contests, gingerbread house contests, wreath-making booths, booths that offer eggnog (honestly I don't know anyone who actually even likes eggnog, with the odd exception and that always involves rum), towns where every store on main street vomits Christmas, Christmas cookie bake sale fundraisers, Santa's sleigh driving down main street outside of the Christmas parade, or downtown corner lots that sell Christmas trees that people carry home.  Nor do I know anyone who can name 5 different kinds of Christmas trees.  I am willing to admit that this might be because I live in a city and not a small town named Christmas Hollow or Starbright or Charmingtown.

 

Edited January 8, 2021 by bankerchick

[mikeb]

I know some folks are tired of Lacey Chabert, but it looks like both her Hallmark Channel Christmas movie Christmas Waltz and HMM Channel Christmas movie Time for Us to Come Home for Christmas were the most watched on their respective channels for Christmas 2020, so expect to continue to see a lot more of her.

If interested in complete lists with viewership totals, here is link

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Hallmark_Channel_Original_Movies#2020

 

[bankerchick]

Interesting.  Though not necessarily good news for me, as a non-fan of Lacey Chabert.

It looks like, based on these numbers and the lack of comments on this site, I might be the only person who watched or liked Project Christmas Wish.  Whether it's because Travis Van Winkle is smoking hot or because there is no great misunderstanding drama, I found it very watchable.  I thought the dancing at the mixer was very romantic and yes, I did rewind and rewatch that scene several times.  In fact, I think I will watch the movie again today because it looks like all today's movies are of the pumpkin pie/harvest variety.  I will be so glad when I can finally pull myself out of the rabbit hole of Hallmark movies that I seem to have fallen into.

[Irlandesa]

At least it wasn't Candace Cameron Bure's movie for a change.

[LexieLily]

On 11/16/2020 at 7:51 AM, Suzysite said:

And although I enjoyed most of the movie - Ryan P's wooden self fit the role well - the ending was all wrong.   He should have gone back.

 

On 11/16/2020 at 5:59 PM, KaveDweller said:

I enjoyed the movie, but agree it makes no sense for him to just stay in 2020. I understand he realized his fiance was better off without him, but acting out re-enactments at a museum can't possibly be enough for a full time living and he has no real prospects.

Plus, but he barely knows this woman and suddenly decides she's the love of his life that he wants to spend forever with? In most movies it isn't a big deal when the main characters decide to hook up, because if it doesn't work out they both still have their own lives. Here he is literally giving up his one chance at getting home. But I guess the clock called in true love, so it must be true.

I'm running through my backlog of Christmas movies on the DVR and just finished A Timeless Christmas. Agree with all who said he should have figured out a way to get back. Once the adrenaline of new experiences like pizza and television and spending time with Rosie's great-granddaughter wore off, I think 2020 Charles would be filled with regrets that he didn't go home. In 2020 he has to live forever in a future where, unless he gets an under-the-table job somehow, he has to give tours in a house that he knows is rightfully his, and there is a literal park in town memorializing the man that to Charles will forever only be the enemy that stole his milling invention and his fiancée. It would have worked better and made more sense, for me, if Charles used the clock to go back to do some things differently and then somehow returned to 2020 Megan. 

I also ended the movie feeling sorry for 1903 Rosie, who inevitably died without ever knowing what happened to Charles Witley.

 

[kirinan]

I watched A New Year's Resolution last night and didn't think it was bad. Michael Rady = automatic watch, of course. And even though I thought the story got bogged down a couple of times with the BIG SERIOUS NEWS STORY drama, I also thought the movie overall had a charming vibe to it--at the least the part about the two main characters' growing relationship. I'm not sure what I think about Aimee Teegarden, but I'd be willing to watch it one more time to get second impressions. Not sure it would be a repeat view beyond that, however.

For anyone else who watched it, did it seem like Michael Rady's hair was darker than usual?

ETA: Oh, and they shared a kiss well before the end, so two kisses in one movie! I'm going to use that step toward toward sin to posit that they moved in together without benefit of marriage afterward, LOL. (/s)

Edited January 10, 2021 by kirinan

[brighteyes]

I really enjoyed A New Year's Resolution - of course I'll always watch anything with Michael Rady in it! I think he and Aimee had good chemistry and I think the fact that they started liking each other from the beginning (like her making the first move with her number right after meeting) was nice to see since in most Hallmark movies the leads tend to have a love/hate relationship going on (or something related to getting a business deal/account) so this felt a bit different from the usual Hallmark formula in a good way. The conflict seemed a bit randomly thrown in though, I feel like it could have been set up a bit better from the beginning because it didn't seem very high stakes at all and it was slightly anti-climactic. 

3 hours ago, kirinan said:

For anyone else who watched it, did it seem like Michael Rady's hair was darker than usual?

ETA: Oh, and they shared a kiss well before the end, so two kisses in one movie! I'm going to use that step toward toward sin to posit that they moved in together without benefit of marriage afterward, LOL. (/s)

His hair seemed different to me too! I'll have to rewatch to see if it was the color that was off. 

Lol the rare Hallmark movie with a mid-movie kiss, scandalous! I was glad to see they actually referred their relationship as "dating" to other people because it's always frustrating in these films when the characters are like "we're hanging out, we're competitors/rivals/friends" and then suddenly they're in love and ready to get married by the end. This one was way more realistic and I think that's what set it apart from other Hallmark movies. Or maybe I've just seen too many reused formulaic Christmas movies this year and the bar is low in comparison, lol. 

[bankerchick]

Quote

For anyone else who watched it, did it seem like Michael Rady's hair was darker than usual?

Yes, and I also thought a few times, 'run a comb through that mess.'

I agree that it was a pretty good movie, as these things go.  I liked the natural progression of their relationship as well.

[MerBearHou]

I enjoyed A New Year’s Resolution too.  I’d never seen Aimee before and she was more than OK — I liked how she handled her producing work and thought the New Year’s resolution was a good one, given how she’d gotten in the habit of saying no to everything.  Michael looked great — even more than usual — and I liked his little bit longer, fuller hair (filmed back in 2019).  Michael is so good at conveying a connection with his co-lead.  Aimee comes across as a smidge young and flat in selling a love-match.  I was so caught off guard when (a) they kissed before the end and (b) mid-movie they said they were dating!  Progressive, Hallmark!  

My daughter and I watched Christmas at the Plaza tonight because she loves NYC and we thought it would be a fun watch.  Good Lord, now THAT actress is flat in her emoting.  No way did we buy that Ryan Paevey’s character would fall for her.  My daughter was talking back to the TV and telling Ryan’s character to RUN the other way!  Won’t watch again.

Edited January 11, 2021 by MerBearHou

[Cherpumple]

4 hours ago, MerBearHou said:

My daughter and I watched Christmas at the Plaza tonight because she loves NYC and we thought it would be a fun watch.  Good Lord, now THAT actress is flat in her emoting.  No way did we buy that Ryan Paevey’s character would fall for her.  My daughter was talking back to the TV and telling Ryan’s character to RUN the other way!  Won’t watch again.

Yes to this! She was one of the weakest actresses I've ever seen on Hallmark, and I didn't believe for a second that a smoke show like Ryan would fall for her. And when she turned down the chance to be the archivist at the freaking PLAZA HOTEL, I screamed at my tv. Jobs like that are few and far between (even for PhDs), and to have that one handed to you on a silver platter would be a once-in-a-career opportunity. Idiot! I'll probably watch this again, for Ryan, the Plaza, and the overall plot (despite the ridiculous timeframe of her job assignment), and I'll try to ignore the lead actress.

[bankerchick]

Quote

I'll probably watch this again, for Ryan, the Plaza, and the overall plot (despite the ridiculous timeframe of her job assignment), and I'll try to ignore the lead actress.

That's the thing about these movies.  All of the guys are handsome, some more appealing than others (Ryan is one of my favourites) but I find it's the woman who determines whether or not I can watch a movie.  Most are not particularly good actresses, but some are so flat, or so shrill or so 'bright' that I can't watch.  Case in point - I love, love Paul Campbell and have watched Christmas at Starlight a few times this season because I also like Kimberly Sustad but I can't watch Holiday Hearts and can barely tolerate The Last Bridesmaid because of the lead actresses.  I am currently watching Appetite for Love which stars Andrew Walker and Taylor Cole, both of whom are very appealing.

[MerBearHou]

8 hours ago, Cherpumple said:

when she turned down the chance to be the archivist at the freaking PLAZA HOTEL, I screamed at my tv. Jobs like that are few and far between (even for PhDs), and to have that one handed to you on a silver platter would be a once-in-a-career opportunity. Idiot!

Oh yes, that's another thing that made us both say out loud "yeah, right".  She was ready to quit the absolutely incredible opportunity after perhaps a DAY?  

[norcalgal]

On 1/11/2021 at 6:50 AM, bankerchick said:

All of the guys are handsome, some more appealing than others (Ryan is one of my favourites) but I find it's the woman who determines whether or not I can watch a movie.  Most are not particularly good actresses, but some are so flat, or so shrill or so 'bright' that I can't watch.

I can't think of any Hallmark actors or actresses that make the movie "not to be watched" for me. My thing is more this:

1) I get tired of the same rotation of actors & actresses; and

2) I can't help but have my mind wander to other shows where I've seen the actor/actress so I get taken out of the movie for a bit. Granted, this is probably on me, rather than the actual actor/actress or the script or anything else to do with the actual movie I'm watching.

Here's some that come to mind:

Travis Van Winkle - The Last Ship

Aimee Teegarden - Starcrossed (others might know her from Friday Night Lights but I never watched that)

Lacey Chabert - Party of Five/Lost in Space film

Arielle Kebbel - Vampire Diaries

Brett Dalton - Agents of Shield

CCB - Full House/Fuller House

Paul Greene - Bitten/When Calls the Heart

and so many more...