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


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7 hours ago, Dani said:

It’s brand new and was just filmed in August. It’s based on a novel with the same name published by Hallmark in 2018. The most recent movie with a similar plot was Netflix’s Knight Before Christmas from last year. I think Hallmark’s previous time traveling movies have had the woman as the time traveler. 

Thanks! This is probably what I was thinking of. I know that it's normal for Hallmark movie plots to get recycled ad nauseum, but this one was unusual enough that a repeat of the concept jumped out at me.

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I did laugh that at the very beginning, her fancy red dress wrinkled up in a way that made it look like she has a peen. 

I laughed out loud at this. If Hallmark only knew!  She totally  bugs and I can't watch anything with her in it.  Interestingly, I feel the same way about Jodie Sweetin - and a few others.  Usually I'll tape the new Hallmark movies (though I haven't watched a single one since winter) and then skip based on who is in them.  Please tell me Tyler Hynes is in something this Christmas (preferably WITHOUT Kelly Pickler). 

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2 hours ago, VartanFan said:

I laughed out loud at this. If Hallmark only knew!  She totally  bugs and I can't watch anything with her in it.  Interestingly, I feel the same way about Jodie Sweetin - and a few others.  Usually I'll tape the new Hallmark movies (though I haven't watched a single one since winter) and then skip based on who is in them.  Please tell me Tyler Hynes is in something this Christmas (preferably WITHOUT Kelly Pickler). 

Schedules change, but I found this

On the 12th Date of Christmas
Premieres: 11/1
Stars: Mallory Jansen and Tyler Hynes

A pair of game designers butt heads while creating a romantic urban scavenger hunt themed around the 12 days of Christmas.

 

ETA:  Looks like date did change.  The Hallmark website now shows 11/1 instead of the originally announce 11/8 date.

 

Edited by mikeb
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51 minutes ago, VartanFan said:

I’m finally getting around to Sweet Autum.  I’m hoping that Nikki DeLoach’s hair is a wig.  Those bangs...

Sweet Autumn did not hold my attention at all.  And omg, those bangs...not a good choice, Nikki.

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On 10/20/2020 at 1:54 AM, Cherpumple said:

I watched Sweet Autumn and thought it was decent.

Oh dear lord... this movie had me cringing so many times, and for a few days I kept coming here to see if anyone else was commenting about it.  I love the two lead actors and and so much hope! 

But, I've lived in VT for for a long, long time.. my cringing list:

  1. They are NOT called Maple Farmers.  They are called Sugar Makers. 
  2.  They aren't called Maple Farms.. they're called either Sugarwoods or Sugarbush.
  3.  It is not called a harvest when they're collecting the sap, it's called Tapping   (aka tapping trees) during Maple Season or Sugar Season.
  4.  Making syrup is called Sugaring, traditionally done in a Sugar House where people will fill trough's full of sap and get it boiling to whatever degree they need to boil and stir with large wooden paddles till 'just right... the coolest sugar houses will use a woodfired process,  and of course mass production is done in factories.  
  5.  His "snow taffy" is called Sugar on Snow which was served fine in the movie at first, except they were missing the dill pickles & plain donuts that are traditionally served with Sugar on Snow  (I personally think the dill pickle with this is disgusting but the general thought is it cleanses the palate of the sweetness so you can go back for more) 

 

  • Nicki Deloach's bangs.. hoping that was just traditional Hallmark standard Bad Wig
  • And though they did really good with the autumn feel, I wish they had obscured the obvious green leaves that were reflecting in windows, as it took me right out of the movie every time I saw the green in the background. 

I truly wasn't trying to pick the movie apart but all of the above about Maple Season can be found in a 5 minutes or less google search and if you're going to make a movie about something then you can do 5 minutes to get the correct terms for a few basics!

That said, it was an okay movie.  🙂  I would watch again, knowing that they don't know sh*t about Sugaring.  

Edited by Callietwo
corrected for some misspelling & removed extra words :)
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51 minutes ago, Callietwo said:

Oh dear lord... this movie had me cringing so many times, and for a few days I kept coming here to see if anyone else was commenting about it. 

One of the Bramblejam podcast guys thought it was the worst movie he'd ever seen.  It was definitely cringe worthy on many levels.

To add to your info on maple syrup (I live in Michigan and used to help with tapping and have worked in the sugar shack) the consistency of that supposed syrup was like colored water.  For heaven's sake, it wouldn't have broken the bank for them to go to the supermarket and get some real stuff.

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1 hour ago, Kohola3 said:

One of the Bramblejam podcast guys thought it was the worst movie he'd ever seen.  It was definitely cringe worthy on many levels.

To add to your info on maple syrup (I live in Michigan and used to help with tapping and have worked in the sugar shack) the consistency of that supposed syrup was like colored water.  For heaven's sake, it wouldn't have broken the bank for them to go to the supermarket and get some real stuff.

Oh...  and I forgot the most important cringe inducing situation,  though they did kind of address it a little bit:  Sugaring Season is early spring! 

Why did they have to set this Movie in Fall?  It could have easily been done as a spring movie when it made sense.  Walker's character did at least mention that they wouldn't be "harvesting" the sap until the fall.   The weather needs to be cool nights with warmer days.  Tradition in VT is to start tapping trees around Town Meeting day (which is the 1st Tuesday in March) and a state holiday 🙂  

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2 minutes ago, Callietwo said:

Oh...  and I forgot the most important cringe inducing situation,  though they did kind of address it a little bit:  Sugaring Season is early spring! 

Yep, nothing like tromping through the snow with the buckets and spiles.  Hallmark is SO lame.

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4 hours ago, MerBearHou said:

Sweet Autumn did not hold my attention at all.  And omg, those bangs...not a good choice, Nikki.

No.  One of the worst case scenarios where they have leads I like who have had chemistry--and I actually think they had it here too--but it was completely wasted.  Not even their above average lead-ness could save the movie. 

I meant to comment on it but all I could manage was meh and that doesn't make for an interesting post. Now, if I had @Callietwo's knowledge about maple production*, maybe you would have heard from me.

*All I know is it's not a fall thing but fall is the only time I've actually visited maple farms to buy maple stuffs.  It's usually just an open shack with product, a money box and a book telling you to write down what you "bought."

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What the hell is Hallmark thinking?  Someone explain to me what Cheers, Happy Days and Brady Bunch have to do with Hallmark Drama?  They replaced Waltons and Little House with those three beyond use by date shows, shows by the way that are shown on so many other networks.  I just can’t figure out why they’re putting those shows on that channel. 

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16 hours ago, Callietwo said:

I would watch again, knowing that they don't know sh*t about Sugaring. 

This is exactly how I feel watching Chesapeake Shores as a Marylander, lol.  Or should I call it, Vancouver Shores.

8 hours ago, KLovestoShop said:

What the hell is Hallmark thinking?  Someone explain to me what Cheers, Happy Days and Brady Bunch have to do with Hallmark Drama?  They replaced Waltons and Little House with those three beyond use by date shows, shows by the way that are shown on so many other networks.  I just can’t figure out why they’re putting those shows on that channel. 

Maybe it's a cost cutting measure?  Maybe the syndication costs are cheaper?  I have no idea I'm just guessing.  

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8 hours ago, KLovestoShop said:

What the hell is Hallmark thinking?  Someone explain to me what Cheers, Happy Days and Brady Bunch have to do with Hallmark Drama?  They replaced Waltons and Little House with those three beyond use by date shows, shows by the way that are shown on so many other networks.  I just can’t figure out why they’re putting those shows on that channel. 

Waltons and Little House are on almost nonstop on weekdays on that channel. 

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8 hours ago, Jenniferbug said:

Waltons and Little House are on almost nonstop on weekdays on that channel. 

Yes, that’s true, but it doesn’t help people who are working during those hours.  We like to come home, sit and relax and watch those shows.  And not everyone has DVR capabilities. 

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16 hours ago, KLovestoShop said:

They replaced Waltons and Little House with those three beyond use by date shows, shows by the way that are shown on so many other networks.

Doesn’t that also describe Little House and Waltons? I actually think that Cheers, Brady Bunch and Happy Days are not in any other networks. They might be on MeTV but that’s not a widely watched network. Nick at Night and TV Land have both moved on to newer shows. 

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1 hour ago, Dani said:
18 hours ago, KLovestoShop said:

They replaced Waltons and Little House with those three beyond use by date shows, shows by the way that are shown on so many other networks.

Doesn’t that also describe Little House and Waltons?

I agree that these two are all way beyond their use date more than Cheers et al.  How many times can you replay the same episodes that have been on multiple networks for umpteen years?  Especially on a pay channel.  I will find my favorite HHoF movies on some other service and bypass Hallmark.  Just watched Sarah Plain and Tall the other night on my Spectrum movies. 

Until Hallmark gets new writers, I am over their repetitive drivel.

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Christmas at Graceland: Home for the Holidays.   Lead actress meets control-freak, super-organized single father of three and is immediately hired as a nanny by him on the basis of her having been a tour guide at the Elvis home.  We are left to assume he did a background check.

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1 hour ago, In2You said:

Wow a movie on Hallmark with a white latina and Black male leading couple. Just a few years ago didn't think that would be something to see on Hallmark.

I quite enjoyed it. I only know Julie Gonzalo from Hallmark. I thought perhaps Gonzalo was her married name. I was impressed with her Spanish so I checked her bio and she was born in Argentina. Mystery solved. The male lead was handsome and they had nice chemistry. Like many of Hallmark's main leads, he was Canadian.

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1 hour ago, ECM1231 said:

I quite enjoyed it. I only know Julie Gonzalo from Hallmark. I thought perhaps Gonzalo was her married name. I was impressed with her Spanish so I checked her bio and she was born in Argentina. Mystery solved. The male lead was handsome and they had nice chemistry. Like many of Hallmark's main leads, he was Canadian.

I enjoyed Jingle Bell Bride a lot! 

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1 hour ago, ECM1231 said:

I quite enjoyed it. I only know Julie Gonzalo from Hallmark. I thought perhaps Gonzalo was her married name. I was impressed with her Spanish so I checked her bio and she was born in Argentina. Mystery solved. The male lead was handsome and they had nice chemistry. Like many of Hallmark's main leads, he was Canadian.

I recorded it to watch after Black Friday. 

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3 hours ago, ECM1231 said:

I only know Julie Gonzalo from Hallmark.

I remember her from Dallas but I've liked her Hallmark movies. I never realized she was from Argentina but when she stared speaking with her sister, I was surprised because the Spanish coming out of her mouth definitely sounded like it was coming from someone comfortable with speaking the language.  It made me happy even if I also got the sense that they didn't want to go too far with it. 

I like the bit of humor and energy she brings without being too perky.  The male lead in Jingle Bell Bride was new to Hallmark, I think, but he had some charm and humor as well. I liked them together and that made the movie enjoyable even if it was standard.  It's always the small things that can make it a fun couple of hours or a boring couple of hours. 

I'm watching Christmas Tree Lane now.  It was kind of boring for about the first 45 minutes but they revealed Andrew Walker's connection to the evil corp who wants to destroy Christmas (or something) earlier than I anticipated so it might get better. 

 

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Darn it, I missed Jingle Bell Bride. Well, good thing Hallmark shows their movies a hundred times a season, so I can catch it. I'm glad to hear you all liked it.

I did get to the TV in time to watch Christmas Tree Lane, though, and I have to say I liked it. Basically the same old plot, but it made me feel good enough that I'm handwaving the little things I would normally roll my eyes at (there were several) and counting it as a win. And Alicia Witt didn't annoy me, another win. Although I'm wondering if that was actually her singing at the very end; her voice has always seemed a bit thin to me, but that voice was beautiful, along with the song she sang. Plus, of course, Andrew Walker. He always raises things several notches for me.

Edited by kirinan
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1 hour ago, kirinan said:

Darn it, I missed Jingle Bell Bride. Well, good thing Hallmark shows their movies a hundred times a season, so I can catch it. I'm glad to hear you all liked it.

I did get to the TV in time to watch Christmas Tree Lane, though, and I have to say I liked it. Basically the same old plot, but it made me feel good enough that I'm handwaving the little things I would normally roll my eyes at (there were several) and counting it as a win. And Alicia Witt didn't annoy me, another win. Although I'm wondering if that was actually her singing at the very end; her voice has always seemed a bit thin to me, but that voice was beautiful, along with the song she sang. Plus, of course, Andrew Walker. He always raises things several notches for me.

That really was Alicia Witt’s voice. Andrew Walker was on Home and Family talking about it. He said he was blown away the first time he heard her sing. She’s also a songwriter and I noticed that she was the Executive Producer. 

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14 hours ago, Ashforth said:

I enjoyed Jingle Bell Bride a lot! 

So did I. 

I’ve liked Julie Gonzalo since Eli Stone and she was so good with Ronnie Rowe Jr. I was a fun movie to watch plus I have a appreciate a Hallmark movie set in a small town where the city wins in the end. 

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One thing that cracked me up about Jingle Bell Bride is that it's hard for me to believe that a town of 112 has such a vibrant shopping area. 

1 hour ago, Koalagirl said:

That really was Alicia Witt’s voice.

Yeah. She's a musician and I instantly knew that all the music was there because she probably wanted to sing.  Since she has a good voice and there's no specific sound they had to achieve, I never questioned it was her. 

I feel like Christmas Tree Lane is the kind of movie that I can tolerate at the very beginning of the season but might struggle with towards the end.  I almost gave up after Andrew Walker basically negged her (no one drinks black coffee) when they first met but I like him and I like Alicia Witt's voice so I watched the whole thing.

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1 hour ago, Irlandesa said:

One thing that cracked me up about Jingle Bell Bride is that it's hard for me to believe that a town of 112 has such a vibrant shopping area. 

Yep, Jingle Bell Bride had all of the tropes. A bristly first meeting, stuck in the small town by a snowstorm and plane (usually car) trouble, no place to stay but with the love interest's family, an annual festival that everyone looks forward to ALL YEAR LONG! Of course there is a career in peril and the heartrending choice of whether to leave your new love behind to return to the Big City. And yet none of those things worked my nerves the way they sometimes do in these movies. I think it was because of the strength of the acting and chemistry between the leads. I also liked that Matt wasn't just a small town dude, he had lived in New York.

On the other hand, we have Christmas on Ice on Lifetime. Oh, boy. I was expecting more, but this out-Hallmarked Hallmark with its treacly badness. Boo, Lifetime! Boo. (I'll post my longer diatribe about it in the Holiday Movies thread).

Edited by Ashforth
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4 hours ago, Koalagirl said:

That really was Alicia Witt’s voice. Andrew Walker was on Home and Family talking about it. He said he was blown away the first time he heard her sing. She’s also a songwriter and I noticed that she was the Executive Producer. 

Wow, she has a lovely voice, then! I've only ever heard bits and pieces of her singing, so I just assumed her voice was only so-so (I know there was a movie last year with her as a country singer, but I never caught it). Thanks for letting me know, Koalagirl.

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19 hours ago, ECM1231 said:

I quite enjoyed it. I only know Julie Gonzalo from Hallmark. I thought perhaps Gonzalo was her married name. I was impressed with her Spanish so I checked her bio and she was born in Argentina. Mystery solved. The male lead was handsome and they had nice chemistry. Like many of Hallmark's main leads, he was Canadian.

I knew she was a latina from being familiar with her outside of Hallmark she just usually doesn't play those characters because of her look. So it was nice of them to incorporate that a little into this movie.

I thought the leads had great chemistry so Jingle Bell Bride didn't feel like the many other Christmas movies where someone is stuck in a small town. Especially since I've seen a few about small town Alaska specifically recently.

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14 minutes ago, In2You said:

I knew she was a latina from being familiar with her outside of Hallmark she just usually doesn't play those characters because of her look. So it was nice of them to incorporate that a little into this movie.

I thought the leads had great chemistry so Jingle Bell Bride didn't feel like the many other Christmas movies where someone is stuck in a small town. Especially since I've seen a few about small town Alaska specifically recently.

I left out of my post that I think that having fresh faces made a huge difference. If JBB had starred Lacey Chaubert, or Candace Cameron Bure, or Ashley Williams, or any of the other Hallmark "regulars" (I'm including the men in this) I don't think I would have liked it so much. Watching the same actors play the same roles with the same plots with only changes of the names of the characters and locations is old, old, old.

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I didn't have much time to watch many holiday movies tonight so of those on my DVR, I selected Deliver For Christmas and I really liked it.  It's another interracial romance.  I liked the more rugged, with a touch of gray, Eion Bailey as the male lead.  I find him sexier than most of the leads of these movies. 

And I'm also a sucker for the You've Got Mailness/Shop Around The Cornerness of the plot.

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4 hours ago, Irlandesa said:

I didn't have much time to watch many holiday movies tonight so of those on my DVR, I selected Deliver For Christmas and I really liked it.  It's another interracial romance.  I liked the more rugged, with a touch of gray, Eion Bailey as the male lead.  I find him sexier than most of the leads of these movies. 

And I'm also a sucker for the You've Got Mailness/Shop Around The Cornerness of the plot.

Eion Bailey had a beautiful post on Instagram about this movie.

I enjoyed it thoroughly. It was definitely my favorite out of the first 4. 

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On 10/25/2020 at 12:34 PM, Koalagirl said:

That really was Alicia Witt’s voice. Andrew Walker was on Home and Family talking about it. He said he was blown away the first time he heard her sing. She’s also a songwriter and I noticed that she was the Executive Producer. 

I saw Alicia Witt on Hometime, and she wrote the movie, the songs, she sang, acted & produced this movie.

I never noticed how thin her lips were and found that distracting whenever she had dark lipstick on.  I think the lighter lipstick flattered her more because of that.  

The movie was okay.  It really followed the Hallmark Rules, though.  But Andrew Walker is a favorite so I'll watch almost anything with him. 

 

Edited by Callietwo
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I liked Jingle Bell Bride and Christmas Tree Lane due to the leads (I don't always like Alicia Witt but she was okay here). I found Chateau Christmas to be boring. And I don't know if it was my recording or if there was something going on with her teeth, but Merritt Patterson almost sounded like she had a little lisp when she made the /s/ sound. I never noticed that with her in other movies. I just finished Deliver by Christmas and it was another one where I really liked the leads and the time they had getting to know each other. I just wish they didn't have to throw in the juvenile assumptions that Molly kept making, first with the wife and then with him being on a date with Jessica. Especially the Jessica one. Being on one date does not mean they are going to be a couple and together forever. The movie kept me interested enough without that drama. If they had to have it, I wish Molly's sister had made similar points to her immediately about how maybe it was just one date, etc. And then her ignoring his calls because her fantasy seems ruined? So immature. I still enjoyed it overall because of the leads, like I said, but they definitely made it hard for me at the end there. 

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15 minutes ago, EyewatchTV211 said:

Being on one date does not mean they are going to be a couple and together forever. The movie kept me interested enough without that drama. If they had to have it, I wish Molly's sister had made similar points to her immediately about how maybe it was just one date, etc. And then her ignoring his calls because her fantasy seems ruined? So immature.

I think that movie was my favorite of the four Hallmark movies that debuted this weekend (now that I've had time to sit on it) so I kind of have to defend that a little bit.

Yes, it could have been a single date and it didn't mean they'd be together forever but she did make a fair point that he had been pretty clear that he didn't feel ready to date. He also hadn't made any effort--that she knew about--to meet her outside of the cookies thing.  I thought her palpable disappointment that she liked someone who liked her but clearly didn't like her was very real.  And creating distance is actually kind of a smart thing in the immediate aftermath

But assuming it was his wife was quite stupid. I've got no excuse for that one. 

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You make a good argument. But I'm still frustrated that they even felt the need to have a second misunderstanding. His family had already tried to set him up with Jessica and he clearly wasn't feeling it while he clearly WAS feeling Molly. The push to be happy all of them (including the son through his bear) should have led to him taking the steps to meet Molly in person instead. The writers should have dropped the Jessica storyline without having her ask him to dinner or possibly by having him actually turn her down on the spot (in a nice way, of course). 

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I loved Deliver by Christmas. It was just so charming. On a purely shallow note Alvina August is gorgeous. Hallmark needs to put her in more movies. 

1 hour ago, Aliconehead said:

Does any one know a good website that has descriptions and premiere dates that does not include judgmental edits?  I use to use one but they are excluding any that have any gay characters and I refuse to use them now.  Thanks

https://sleepykittypaws.tumblr.com/post/178247015024/2020-tv-holiday-premieres

This one is kept up to date and pro-diversity. 

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1 hour ago, Dani said:

I didn't realize the other one I use was excluding some movies until it was mentioned here. I was excited to find this one, but I wish it was organized by date instead of network. The other site I use is organized by date and it makes it really easy to keep up with setting my DVR for things as we go. If anyone has another suggestion organized by date that compiles all movies from all networks, that would be great!

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3 hours ago, Aliconehead said:

Does any one know a good website that has descriptions and premiere dates that does not include judgmental edits?  I use to use one but they are excluding any that have any gay characters and I refuse to use them now.  Thanks

 

9 minutes ago, redpencil said:

If anyone has another suggestion organized by date that compiles all movies from all networks, that would be great!

Did you ever think you hit "send" but then realized you hadn't?  That's me when I read your post because I thought I had just posted a link that answered your question.  It turns out---nope.  I hadn't. 

Thankfully, more sites have gotten into the business of listing these out. 


@Dani's site lays them out by channel but if you want them by date, US Weekly has a list.  The only drawback is that the descriptions aren't attached to the titles--just the cast.  So you'll have to do a bit of Googling if you want to know what they're about.  But it's helpful for me just to know they're out there. I can rely on my cable box to find out more information.

https://www.usmagazine.com/entertainment/pictures/a-guide-to-every-holiday-movie-airing-on-tv-in-2020-schedule/november-7/

 

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8 hours ago, redpencil said:

Thank you @Irlandesa! The US Weekly list is much more useful to me (I also can use my cable guide for descriptions).

Just a heads up that the US weekly list is from before HMM moved their start times to 10pm. I really prefer ones that list by date but have stopped trusting them because Hallmark tends to change their schedule frequently. Last year was so bad those lists were wrong when they published.  Hopefully it’s better this year. 
 

ETA: I looked through the Hallmark Channel movies and the most notable difference is the a movie was added to Nov 23rd, Heart of the Holidays. Also, A Merry and Bright Christmas got a name change and is now Good Morning Christmas! Christmas by Starlight and Five Star Christmas have swapped places in the schedule. 

Edited by Guest
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18 hours ago, redpencil said:

I didn't realize the other one I use was excluding some movies until it was mentioned here. I was excited to find this one, but I wish it was organized by date instead of network. The other site I use is organized by date and it makes it really easy to keep up with setting my DVR for things as we go. If anyone has another suggestion organized by date that compiles all movies from all networks, that would be great!

Thanks for asking about this. I was thinking the same thing. 

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