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

[norcalgal]

3 hours ago, absnow54 said:

I finally (FINALLY) caught this one after years of seeing it recommended in this thread. It was such a gem! I love Autumn Reeser, especially as Taylor Townsend on the OC, and her character in this movie was very Taylor-esque. I wish they still made Hallmark movies like this one. 

Re: Love at the Thanksgiving Day Parade, I think my favorite line was when they went to the pizza place and it's just the way/manner Autumn said the line about the Buddha pizza being "one with everything" that kills me.  I love that so much! 

[absnow54]

57 minutes ago, norcalgal said:

Re: Love at the Thanksgiving Day Parade, I think my favorite line was when they went to the pizza place and it's just the way/manner Autumn said the line about the Buddha pizza being "one with everything" that kills me.  I love that so much! 

Mine is when she's drinking from a champagne flute in the limo, and admits that she's not much of a drinker, so she's already feeling a little tipsy, and he just looks at her dumbly and says, "But it's ginger ale." And then they actually do go out for drinks, and sleep beside one another on the roof, which feels very risque for a Hallmark movie.

[JAYJAY1979]

11 hours ago, absnow54 said:

I finally (FINALLY) caught this one after years of seeing it recommended in this thread. It was such a gem! I love Autumn Reeser, especially as Taylor Townsend on the OC, and her character in this movie was very Taylor-esque. I wish they still made Hallmark movies like this one. 

It's one of the few Hallmark channel movies that I find enjoyable.  She and her male counterpart just meshed well with one another.. and both performers have personality (a rarity amongst the Hallmark Channel mannequins).

[KaveDweller]

On 11/7/2022 at 6:19 PM, Bronx Babe said:

Lights, Cameras, Christmas -- Hallmark spoofing it's own image.

Why Carrie turned down the New York designer job is beyond me, especially since she missed her chance all those years ago in that city to expand her creative horizons. 

I can see her wanting to do the movie job in London, but at least wait to get back to the NY job until you talk to the actor-love interest again. I've never heard of a job offer where you had to give them an answer immediately.

But I guess she was destined to be a costume designer for Christmas movies.

[kirinan]

Just finished watching Ghosts of Christmas Always. Loved it! Maybe I’m all keyed up about the election or something, but I cried all the way through the last half hour of the movie. And yes, the ending was a little confusing, but the rest of the movie makes up for it, so I can handwave it.

It was fun to see Kim Matula, who I know from the Fox comedy LA to Vegas (which I still mourn the loss of four years later). She was excellent in this, as was Ian Harding, who I don’t know but really liked. I hope we se both of them on Hallmark again.

[EyewatchTV211]

2 minutes ago, kirinan said:

Just finished watching Ghosts of Christmas Always. Loved it! Maybe I’m all keyed up about the election or something, but I cried all the way through the last half hour of the movie. And yes, the ending was a little confusing, but the rest of the movie makes up for it, so I can handwave it.

It was fun to see Kim Matula, who I know from the Fox comedy LA to Vegas (which I still mourn the loss of four years later). She was excellent in this, as was Ian Harding, who I don’t know but really liked. I hope we se both of them on Hallmark again.

I found a good amount of the movie funny and was not expecting to cry, but I also teared up towards the end. Guess that's the sign of them doing a good job that they got me to feel varying emotions. 

[absnow54]

I'm surprised no one knows who Ian Harding is. Was I the only one who suffered through Pretty Little Liars?

[JAYJAY1979]

12 hours ago, kirinan said:

Just finished watching Ghosts of Christmas Always. Loved it! Maybe I’m all keyed up about the election or something, but I cried all the way through the last half hour of the movie. And yes, the ending was a little confusing, but the rest of the movie makes up for it, so I can handwave it.

It was fun to see Kim Matula, who I know from the Fox comedy LA to Vegas (which I still mourn the loss of four years later). She was excellent in this, as was Ian Harding, who I don’t know but really liked. I hope we se both of them on Hallmark again.

I liked Kim Matula since her soap days.  Nice to see she's still getting roles. 

[bankerchick]

On 11/7/2022 at 6:05 PM, norcalgal said:

If Antonio Cupo was in it, it might partially salvage the Italian heritage part of the movie, since he is of Italian heritage and speaks fluent Italian. 

Not to mention he's totally hot.

On 11/7/2022 at 7:12 PM, Bronx Babe said:

Marlo Thomas is I believe over 80 years old and has a very good plastic surgeon.

Honestly, I thought they should have been arrested for medical malpractice.  At some point, someone who loved her should have told her to step away from the knife.

[ctlady]

1 hour ago, bankerchick said:

Honestly, I thought they should have been arrested for medical malpractice.  At some point, someone who loved her should have told her to step away from the knife.

She resembled a stretched out younger  version of Mariah Carey

[Cetacean]

1 hour ago, bankerchick said:

Honestly, I thought they should have been arrested for medical malpractice.  At some point, someone who loved her should have told her to step away from the knife.

Does she look 86?  No.  Does she look human?  No.

[Bethany]

I saw Christmas in Evergreen and the sequel about the letters today.  First, I admit they were both cute and a pleasant way to pass a few hours. But wow I mean I know these stories can be goofy but the second movie has an adult woman worrying about something and her solution to the problem is to make a wish on the magic snowglobe? Ok it worked (of course) but c'mon!

Oh and on a shallow note, the actor playing Kevin was 51 when this movie was made but was supposed to be aged roughly 35.   Sorry but to me he looked 50.  Not that there's anything wrong with that but let's face it when we have older actresses playing characters much younger than themselves it gets commented on so, fair play!

Edited November 9, 2022 by Elizabeth Anne

[Bronx Babe]

6 hours ago, Cetacean said:

Does she look 86?  No.  Does she look human?  No.

Fits right into a Hallmark movie.

I guess when I posted that Marlo has a great plastic surgeon I should have said relatively speaking.  (has anyone seen Joyce Meyer or Suzanne Somers recently? Scary)

Did I dream a scene in Noel Next Door where Jeremy sees her holding a box of tampons at the grocery store, and she tells him "It happens every month"

[Bronx Babe]

Picture a Perfect Christmas:  grandma hobbles out of her home with a cane (she recently broke an ankle) to greet the visiting granddaughter who you think would say something human like "Oh grandma you shouldn't have come outside just to meet me, you need to stay off your feet"   But we know there is nothing really human about Hallmark, lol.

[Bronx Babe]

23 hours ago, KaveDweller said:

I can see her wanting to do the movie job in London, but at least wait to get back to the NY job until you talk to the actor-love interest again. I've never heard of a job offer where you had to give them an answer immediately.

But I guess she was destined to be a costume designer for Christmas movies.

Of course it was Happily Ever After with "Brad Baxter"   I didn't care for that actress -- even though she looked refreshingly "normal" for a Hallmark heroine, she looked very glum and well-worn -- but at least there was no vocal fry or obnoxious perkiness.

[anniebird]

2 minutes ago, Bronx Babe said:

Of course it was Happily Ever After with "Brad Baxter"   I didn't care for that actress -- even though she looked refreshingly "normal" for a Hallmark heroine, she looked very glum and well-worn -- but at least there was no vocal fry or obnoxious perkiness.

That's Kimberly Sustad - she's very popular here. I, for one, really appreciate the face that she looks normal and acts normal. She's usually cast as the smart funny girl and she's very good in those roles.

[Bronx Babe]

Thank you, anniebird, even though I didn't care for the way her character was portrayed, I did appreciate this actress nevertheless, not a cookie cutter type at all.

On 11/7/2022 at 11:03 PM, anniebird said:

Haven't you ever done that? It's really cool!

Never, not even with an artificial tree!   With respect I ask:  why?  lol

[Bronx Babe]

The only thing I liked about Ghosts of Christmas Always was the little old Asian ghost -- she was given some cute lines:  "What do you think, we died yesterday?", "You poor strange guilty man"  

[anniebird]

27 minutes ago, Bronx Babe said:

Thank you, anniebird, even though I didn't care for the way her character was portrayed, I did appreciate this actress nevertheless, not a cookie cutter type at all.

Never, not even with an artificial tree!   With respect I ask:  why?  lol

Because you're looking up through the branches and you see the way the lights shine on the ornaments. It's a whole different view.

[twoods]

1 hour ago, Bronx Babe said:

The only thing I liked about Ghosts of Christmas Always was the little old Asian ghost -- she was given some cute lines:  "What do you think, we died yesterday?", "You poor strange guilty man"  

I loved both actors playing the ghosts, and they were one of the reasons I enjoyed this movie. Reginald VelJohnson is 70 and looks great for his age- loved him in Family Matters and glad to see he’s still acting.

[Bethany]

5 minutes ago, twoods said:

I loved both actors playing the ghosts, and they were one of the reasons I enjoyed this movie. Reginald VelJohnson is 70 and looks great for his age- loved him in Family Matters and glad to see he’s still acting.

I knew I knew him from somewhere!  I honestly didn't think of Family Matters though.  Now I see it! 

[luvthepros]

On 10/31/2022 at 2:55 AM, redpencil said:

Totally agree with others about Ghosts of Christmas Always. It was wonderful. More of these two actors, please. And all the twists to the usual tropes were great. We've had Christmas Carol storylines before, but this was quite different. And we've had storylines with ghosts/angels/whatever falling in love with mortals, and this was definitely a new take on that, given it was the point the whole time rather than something that was never supposed to happen.

I even saw it trending briefly on twitter earlier, which I can't imagine happens often with these movies.

My only two super minor quibbles were the actor who played the lead's mom looking way too young in the present scenes (but she was barely there, so not a big deal) and the terribly dubbed singing of the previously scrooged lady. But that was also not enough to really put a dent in how much I enjoyed it. And all the other secondary characters were great.

Just watched The Ghosts of Christmas Always. LOVED it! The lead actor reminds me of Jack Lemmon.....not only his look but his comedic timing. LOVED him.

Beth Leavel was the first woman scrooged in the very beginning of the movie. Her name was familiar to me then when I saw her on screen, I knew I had seen her before. Where did I see her???? On Broadway in The Drowsey Chaperone with Sutton Foster. That was several years ago but I still remembered this actress. She is a hilarious comedic actress and her talent was certainly on display in this little Christmas Hallmark movie.

Here Is Ms. Leavel in a scene from The Drowsey Chaperone with that amazing voice of hers. That voice you heard in this Hallmark movie was not dubbed........

Beth Leavel singing As We Stumble Along

Edited November 10, 2022 by luvthepros

[Bethany]

12 minutes ago, luvthepros said:

Beth Leavel singing As We Stumble Along

Thank you so much for sharing this!  "Antarctica - oh please."  Laughing out loud here!

[norcalgal]

2 hours ago, twoods said:

I loved both actors playing the ghosts, and they were one of the reasons I enjoyed this movie. Reginald VelJohnson is 70 and looks great for his age- loved him in Family Matters and glad to see he’s still acting.

I watched Family Matters from time to time, but (shows how old I am)....the first thing I think of when I see Reginald is his character from Die Hard.  Sucks there wasn't some way to bring his character back in any of the Die Hard sequels.

[Clawdette]

I didn't watch Family Matters so Reginald will always be Sgt. Al Powell to me!  I hope we see him again in future movies.

[chitowngirl]

7 hours ago, Bronx Babe said:

Thank you, anniebird, even though I didn't care for the way her character was portrayed, I did appreciate this actress nevertheless, not a cookie cutter type at all.

Never, not even with an artificial tree!   With respect I ask:  why?  lol

It’s just a neat perspective. 🤷‍♀️

[redpencil]

6 hours ago, luvthepros said:

Here Is Ms. Leavel in a scene from The Drowsey Chaperone with that amazing voice of hers. That voice you heard in this Hallmark movie was not dubbed........

It may have been the actress singing, but I don't think what we heard was her singing in the moment while filming those scenes. It was probably a studio version of her singing on top of the scene that was shot, and it was pretty obvious to me. I'm glad to know it was the same actress, but I wish they'd just let her sing live and use that version.

Edited November 11, 2022 by redpencil

[EyewatchTV211]

20 minutes ago, redpencil said:

It may have been the actress singing, but I don't think what we heard was her singing in the moment while filing those scenes. It was probably a studio version of her singing on top of the scene that was shot, and it was pretty obvious to me. I'm glad to know it was the same actress, but I wish they'd just let her sing live and use that version.

True. Or have her sing with the track, like they did on the show Julie and the Phantoms. It worked so well there, where the singing scenes felt live and real. 

[bankerchick]

8 hours ago, norcalgal said:

I watched Family Matters from time to time, but (shows how old I am)....the first thing I think of when I see Reginald is his character from Die Hard.  Sucks there wasn't some way to bring his character back in any of the Die Hard sequels.

He did have a small cameo in the second movie, the one in the airport.  John McClane (or Roy, as Al refers to him) calls him at his desk and (I think) he sends him a fax of something for Al to look up for him.

[Chippings]

While we've been talking about Beth Leavel in Ghosts of Christmas ..  bringing Broadway skills to Hallmark, a couple of related notes ..  Shortly she will be the lead (the Meryl Streep role) in the new Broadway musical "Devil Wears Prada."  

Then just today there's a rave review for Victoria Clark, who played Queen Gabriella in the wonderful One Royal Holiday, which had  three other Broadway people in it.  Ms. Clark is starring in "Kimberly Akimbo", which just opened on Broadway.  The New York Times loves it and her. 

Keeping on topic the best I can, Hallmark does us a great favor when it occasionally brings us these people -- and we can add Jeremy Jordan, Santino Fontana, Krysta Rodriguez, of course Aaron Tveit and Laura Osnes.  There are more ??  They bring such a great, different energy to things.  Once we've met them, it's fun to track them on the stage as well.  Keep it up, Hallmark!

[norcalgal]

18 hours ago, bankerchick said:

He did have a small cameo in the second movie, the one in the airport.  John McClane (or Roy, as Al refers to him) calls him at his desk and (I think) he sends him a fax of something for Al to look up for him.

Man, I totally forgot about that!  Thanks for the reminder!

[MerBearHou]

2 hours ago, Chippings said:

While we've been talking about Beth Leavel in Ghosts of Christmas ..  bringing Broadway skills to Hallmark, a couple of related notes ..  Shortly she will be the lead (the Meryl Streep role) in the new Broadway musical "Devil Wears Prada."  

Then just today there's a rave review for Victoria Clark, who played Queen Gabriella in the wonderful One Royal Holiday, which had  three other Broadway people in it.  Ms. Clark is starring in "Kimberly Akimbo", which just opened on Broadway.  The New York Times loves it and her. 

Keeping on topic the best I can, Hallmark does us a great favor when it occasionally brings us these people -- and we can add Jeremy Jordan, Santino Fontana, Krysta Rodriguez, of course Aaron Tveit and Laura Osnes.  There are more ??  They bring such a great, different energy to things.  Once we've met them, it's fun to track them on the stage as well.  Keep it up, Hallmark!

Agreed.  And Broadway person, Patti Murrin!  She’s got such an amazing voice and is so funny.  She is in a movie that’s on Hallmark right now — In Merry Measure — with Brendan Penny who I also like so much.  The movie so far is just OK and her hair is a fright.  

Edited November 12, 2022 by MerBearHou

[bankerchick]

1 hour ago, MerBearHou said:

In Merry Measure — with Brendan Penny who I also like so much.  The movie so far is just OK and her hair is a fright.  

'Just OK' is being generous.  It's not awful, just so meh that it's hard to even find anything to say about it other than it's impossible to believe that 'Sugar Rush' or whatever the lead's big hit was, was even a 5-minute wonder, never mind an enduring hit that people still remember many years later.  I do like Brendan Penny and he was good in this, though I'm not sure why he opted for the nerd look.

[MerBearHou]

16 minutes ago, bankerchick said:

'Just OK' is being generous.  It's not awful, just so meh that it's hard to even find anything to say about it other than it's impossible to believe that 'Sugar Rush' or whatever the lead's big hit was, was even a 5-minute wonder, never mind an enduring hit that people still remember many years later.  I do like Brendan Penny and he was good in this, though I'm not sure why he opted for the nerd look.

Well, I opted out after a bit and moved over to good old true crime!  That’s too bad — Patti and Brendan are talented but sounds like the movie was a dud.  

Edited November 12, 2022 by MerBearHou

[Bronx Babe]

Just finished In Merry Measure -- did anyone else initially think that dorky bespeckled Adam and the black football coach were a gay couple?  They sat around the local coffee shop drinking peppermint whipped cream lattes (and in true Hallmark fashion Adam proclaims it "The best I ever had!") and were very touchy-feely later on, not that there's anything wrong with this.   I liked the actor -- what is his name, Brendan Perry?  Is he American or Canadian?  I thought he had some interesting charisma.

Also unfamiliar with the lead actress, whose face to me looked like a beaver with those cheeks and teeth, lol.

Nice British pub (complete with a photo of Queen Elizabeth behind the bar) in the unlikely heart of what was supposed to be Dayton, Ohio.

Understated, tasteful Christmas decorations (gorgeous Provence-style house, particularly the kitchen and living room; love those chandeliers) but they just had to add an inflatable snowman on the lawn,

The sister and niece are cheerfully building their gingerbread houses while at the same time passive-aggressively insulting New York City with references to cockroaches.  Then the niece tries to tone it down by telling Aunt Darcy "but New York must be so romantic this time of year"  Too late, lol.

[Bronx Babe]

On 11/10/2022 at 12:16 PM, anniebird said:

Because you're looking up through the branches and you see the way the lights shine on the ornaments. It's a whole different view.

In my best Johnny Carson voice:  I did not know that!

[Irlandesa]

It's a less interesting Mistle-tones but basically the normal story of competing choirs.  A group is amazingly talented vs. a group of misfits that don't make A group but somehow are equally talented?

I ended up fast forwarding because the singing was quite good.  I really enjoyed the final performance. 

But I did find it amusing that the movie ended with a montage of moments from the movie to the sound of her new song.  A montage of the nothingness of this movie? LOL!

Edited November 12, 2022 by Irlandesa

[Bronx Babe]

On 11/10/2022 at 7:23 PM, chitowngirl said:

It’s just a neat perspective. 🤷‍♀️

Apparently!  But I'm such a wuss, afraid of getting needles or ornaments or something falling down on me, lol.

Brendan Penny, ah...(shows you how much I know about fine Canadian actors -- zilch!)  I'd like to see more of his work.

[Bronx Babe]

I love the title Christmas at the Golden Dragon -- for some reason it sounds like an old fashioned Nancy Drew mystery set around the holidays, filled with all kinds of "exotic" adventure, lol.

But it will probably just be the typical save-the-store/restaurant Hallmark scenario, drat.

[Artsda]

Lights Camera Christmas was good in how it was shot. Like the flashbacks way of telling the story. 

Jolly Good Christmas, interesting when they were running from mall cop she yelled "look The King" I'm guessing that this has to have filmed prior so maybe they had to dub over to fix. 

[Cetacean]

Perhaps it's because of the totally (but not unexpected) bland formulaic new movies thus far, I am irrationally excited about Three Wise Men and a Baby debuting next Saturday.  The three guys are my favorites so that may be part of it.  Saw the commercial tonight while attempting to slog through In Merry Measure (nope, ditched it when the female warbled her "hit" song and the lyrics were SO lame) but it caught my eye. 

So fingers crossed for at least one movie this year that I will keep on my DVR for the dark days of winter.

[voiceover]

From here in the shallow end:

Just watched the preview for Three Wise Men…, and that last shot w/Santa, and the guys in elf costumes, and <faints dead away>…Tyler with what appears to be a lollipop sticking out of his mouth…

I’ve never loved him more 😍

[bankerchick]

3 hours ago, Cetacean said:

Perhaps it's because of the totally (but not unexpected) bland formulaic new movies thus far, I am irrationally excited about Three Wise Men and a Baby debuting next Saturday. 

Me too!  I actually replayed the commercial when it first came on last night.

[BuckeyeLou]

I thought "The Royal Nanny" had a better plot than most Hallmark/Holiday movies...at least the Heroine saved the Prince & was a very capable young woman.  The actress looked very ordinary with her hair pulled back while being a Security agent but looked very pretty when she put on the red ball game & let down her hair.  I liked the Mystery/Spy aspect of the story, it was something different.

[Irlandesa]

1 hour ago, BuckeyeLou said:

I liked the Mystery/Spy aspect of the story, it was something different.

If anything, the romance angle was sidelined so much that it felt a bit out of nowhere when it popped up in the end.

I agree that it was fun to make it a spy/mystery movie even if it's not one I'd watch again. 

In fact, I think Hallmark is doing a pretty good job breaking out of old patterns and shaking things up a bit--even when the movies have plots that sound like things they have done in the past.

And this is especially in comparison when I've compared the movies to those that UP and Lifetime have been putting out.  I've abandoned so many of those which is sad because I used to love Lifetime's movies. 

Edited November 13, 2022 by Irlandesa

[Daff]

On 11/11/2022 at 11:15 PM, Bronx Babe said:

Apparently!  But I'm such a wuss, afraid of getting needles or ornaments or something falling down on me, lol.

Brendan Penny, ah...(shows you how much I know about fine Canadian actors -- zilch!)  I'd like to see more of his work.

I’m 15 minutes into Merry Measure, still looking for Penny, then something about his voice hit me. I didn’t recognize him with the darker hair and geek glasses. And you’re right, he’s in many Canadian productions as well as Hallmark holiday movies. He and Rachel Leigh Cook made a trio of “In the Vineyard” movies a few years back-“Valentine, Summer, then Autumn”. There are also quite a few Christmas movies where he had the lead, or was on screen quite a bit. 

[Cetacean]

8 hours ago, BuckeyeLou said:

I thought "The Royal Nanny" had a better plot than most Hallmark/Holiday movies...at least the Heroine saved the Prince & was a very capable young woman.

I actually made it to the end of The Royal Nanny and was (sort of) paying attention. It definitely was different, the kids were not obnoxious, the mom was not over the top, the heroine didn't need to be saved by some macho dude, the bad guys were obvious but Hallmark level barely threatening villians. I probably wouldn't watch it again but might have it on in the background.  

I agree, the remance came out of nowhere. But overall it was an OK movie which is high praise for me.

[absnow54]

12 hours ago, Cetacean said:

Perhaps it's because of the totally (but not unexpected) bland formulaic new movies thus far, I am irrationally excited about Three Wise Men and a Baby debuting next Saturday.  The three guys are my favorites so that may be part of it.

If Kimberly Sustad were the female lead, I’d swear it was this thread that conjured the movie into existence. 

[luvthepros]

9 hours ago, BuckeyeLou said:

I thought "The Royal Nanny" had a better plot than most Hallmark/Holiday movies...at least the Heroine saved the Prince & was a very capable young woman.  The actress looked very ordinary with her hair pulled back while being a Security agent but looked very pretty when she put on the red ball game & let down her hair.  I liked the Mystery/Spy aspect of the story, it was something different.

The lead actress in The Royal Nanny, with her hair pulled back, strongly reminded me of Jaime King when she appeared in The Mistletoe Promise with Luke MacFarlane. Honestly, at first, I actually thought this lead actress was Jamie until I looked at the info on my DVR.

Edited November 13, 2022 by luvthepros

[bankerchick]

I am watching Well Suited For Christmas.  I can't decide whether the lead actor is devastatingly handsome, or weird looking.  I am, however, quite sure that the lead actress is extremely unlikeable and even if she warms up, I doubt I will end up liking her.  Why, why, why do they think that strong independent women need to be bitchy all the time, about everything?  She doesn't even like the guy but gets all weird when he says he's bringing a plus-one to decorate her tree.  Who didn't know it would be the teenage kid he mentors who thinks her designs are fire, or rad, or whatever cool word they used?  Some of the fabrics she is showing the guy would be too much for a formal dress, but a tuxedo made from large flowered fabrics from Scandinavia?