Mini Holiday Movie Reviews (2)

Just a few more movies that I watched this year:

From Hallmark:

This was cute - I enjoyed how it went back and forth between the present day and the past.

This was ok. The main lead grew on me, but it took some time. 

Loved this one - the scenery was great, the cousin was great. I would have liked to see more of the dogs. I like how the ending changed the story about villains. 

I adored this one! It was sweet and there were fun moments. Yes I'm a Swiftie, but it wasn't really a Swiftie story. There were a few Easter Eggs though. The grandfather's story was touching. 

This was fun. The dates were amusing - especially how they all went wrong. I would have liked to see more about the house demo and redesign. 

I have mixed feelings about this one. I loved it - until the ending. I wish the ending had been different.

But the scenery was gorgeous. And the concept was neat. 

This was great - loved it. I liked how different all the Santas were and how they embraced it. I'm a big fan of Kimberley Sustad. 

From Amazon Prime:

This was really clever - lots of action and lots of humor. I loved it. 

I'm not done watching Christmas movies, I'll probably watch more through January.

Holiday Movie Round-Up (2)

 

I'm a sucker for Hallmark Christmas movies, so I thought I'd share my thoughts on the ones I've seen so far this year.

Christmas Waltz:

A bride wants to take dancing lessons with her fiancé. But they break up...and she decides to take the lessons alone. 

I loved this one - it might be my favorite Christmas movie this year.

I loved the big family party, the dancing, the banter... 

Everything was great.

* Highly Recommended.

Christmas in Vienna:

A violinist has achieved her greatest goal - but she feels empty inside. She's playing over the holidays in Vienna - where her college roommate happens to live. When her friend gets an incredible opportunity, Jess agrees to watch the children she nannies. Of course the children's father is the one person Jess keeps bumping into...

I really liked this one - for the family, the music, and dealing with grief. 

Plus the scenery was amazing and now I want to travel to Vienna. 

And the food looked delicious!

* Highly Recommended.

Five Star Christmas:

A family comes home for Christmas and discovers their father turned their house into a B & B. And they believe that a famous blogger stumbled upon their inn. So they decide to become the staff and guests to make the blogger's stay more welcoming in hopes of getting a great review. Of course things don't go as planned...

I really enjoyed this one. It was clever and funny and sweet. 

* Highly Recommended

Starlight Christmas:

A Christmas style Two Weeks Notice - lots of humor in this one. 

Plus terrible Christmas sweaters, dog costumes, and ice skating.

* Highly Recommended

Good Morning Christmas:

Two talk show co-hosts couldn't be more different. After working together, he finally asked to be let go from his contract. They have one more week of programs leading up to Christmas. And it's on location in a small country town. 

 This one was really fun and checked off most of the Christmas traditional boxes. (I think snowball fights was pretty much the only unchecked box...)

Nutcracker and the Four Realms:

Clara just wants to the world to return to normal after the death of her mother. She tries to find meaning in the world, but has a hard time dealing with her grief. Than on Christmas Eve, she receives two gifts - one that unlocks something dear and one that needs a key to be saved. Both gifts are from her mother. Clara learns more about life and herself as she journeys to another world.

The costumes were amazing.

I loved how everything was a Rube Goldberg machine and Clara's cleverness.

A fun movie - that's different from the original Nutcracker story. 

This one was on Disney+

Holiday Movie Roundup (1)

 

I'm a sucker for Hallmark Christmas movies, so I thought I'd share my thoughts on the ones I've seen so far this year.

Holidate: Netflix

A date for all the holidays doesn't seem like such a bad idea...especially when your family is bugging you about a boyfriend.

I thought this would be more of a Hallmark movie - but it wasn't. I fully admit I zipped through the bathroom issue scene. The movie was...fine. Not great. Not terrible. It had some funny moments. But it was hard to connect to any of the characters. Also it took place year around and not just Christmas.

Never Kiss a Man in a Christmas Sweater: Hallmark

I really liked this one. As her daughter spends Christmas with her father, a single mom has time to fill over the holidays. After an accident with a stranger, she takes him under her wing and tries to give him a nice holiday season. They work together to help the local military families.

This one made me tear up at the end. It was really sweet. I loved how the families were able to be together. And that grand gesture was something else! I wouldn't mind a sequel set in Paris.

On the 12th Date of Christmas
Two rival co-workers must work together to create a scavenger hunt for a local hotel. 

This was a super cute movie. I loved how they had to create the clues to the scavenger hunt - which would take people all over the city. It sounded like the perfect adventure. I loved how close they both were to their families too. 

* Highly recommended.

One Royal Holiday

A royal family gets stuck due to weather and a stranger offers up her family's inn for their convenience.

While there are a lot of things that don't add up in this movie, once we get past that, it's a sweet movie. Anna enjoys being home again for the holidays and getting to share her town with strangers. She has opinions about the Prince who isn't excited about being stuck in America. She helps him loosen up and make the best of things.  I do love how they met over donuts and pastries. I loved the side romances in this movie. I really enjoyed Anna's best friend, who was the mayor. 

Christmas with the Darlings 

Jessica volunteers to help watch nieces and nephew of her employer during the week leading up to Christmas - with the help of one of the brothers.

I wasn't sure what to expect with this one, but it was really cute. I loved all the Christmas events the family ended up doing together. The siblings were really sweet together. I really enjoyed this one. I wouldn't mind seeing a sequel.

* Highly Recommended

Timeless Christmas:

One night, a man vanishes from 1903 and travels to present day after fixing a clock.

This movie was charming and funny. I enjoyed the time travel aspect - and how Charles Whitley, appears right on cue. It was funny watching Charles adjust to live in the 21st century. I loved the banter between him and Megan. 

Plus, this movie (and book) was written by romance author Eva Leigh. 

* Highly Recommended

Top Ten Tuesday: Holiday Freebie

This week's topic is a Holiday freebie. Last week I talked about Holiday movies I've enjoyed. This week I have a few more to share, plus a few that I'm looking forward to watching. I haven't watched as many thins week, clearly I need to get busy!

Holiday for Heroes

I really liked this one! And it was filmed in Connecticut, so I recognized a few places. Plus I saw two familiar faces (CT romance writers) as extras.

Picture a Perfect Christmas:

A photographer has some downtime at Christmas and spends it with her grandmother. The next-door neighbor is a single dad who needs help with his son. I liked this one, especially the moments between the grandmother and her granddaughter.

Sense, Sensibility, and Snowmen

So I liked this one - except they had the characters names/attributes wrong for the storyline and it did drive me a little nuts. But I loved the party planning aspect. 

Still to Watch:

Christmas Wishes and Mistletoe Kisses 

(I'm waiting to read the book first)

Christmas in Rome

Christmas Town

Let it Snow

Christmas Duet

Check Inn to Christmas

Christmas Club

Christmas at Dollywood

Are there others that I should be watching?

Christmas Book Review: Sugar Plum Seduction

The worst thing for single father Gunnar is telling his daughter no. She's excited to try out for the Nutcracker at her dance school, but the auditions and the practices will wreck havoc on his schedule. When the dance teacher offers to help out, he can't disappoint his daughter.

However, Norah awakens feelings in him that he feels guilt for having. Cancer took his wife from him and he's not sure he's ready to move on. But fate has a different idea...

My Thoughts: I really enjoyed this novella. I love this trope - the single father with a very cute daughter. I enjoyed the banter between Gunnar and his friend and co-worker Sean. I loved reading about the Nutcracker. Funny, sweet, and sexy - I read this novella in one sitting. If you're a Hallmark movie watcher, you'll want to read this book!

Source: Won in a contest

Fun Fact: The author (a friend of mine) was an extra in a Hallmark channel movie Holiday For Heroes. She in the barn scene at the end. You can glimpse her face on the far left

Top Ten Tuesday: Holiday Movies

This week's topic is Holiday reads - but I've talked about my excitement over a few holiday romances. Since I'm a sucker for Holiday Movies, particularly of the Hallmark brand, I thought I would share some I enjoyed both this week and next week.

Merry and Bright:

Cate is the new CEO of Merry and Bright Candy Cane Company - she's taken over the family business. The business is struggling but she's just finishing up her first year. Unbeknownst to her, a consultant is coming in to make the company more profitable.

I liked this one - I loved the candy aspect, trying to market the business, and I loved that it was a family business that meant a lot to the town. Of course the ending was sweet.

Christmas Scavenger Hunt:

A woman returns home for Christmas and her best friend's wedding. She partakes in the town's annual traditions - including the Christmas scavenger hunt where she's teamed up with her ex-boyfriend. 

Of course this one hits all the bingo notes - making a snowman, making hot chocolate, cutting down a Christmas tree, and a match making family member.

Christmas Under the Stars:

A man believes he's getting a promotion, but it turns out he's being fired. Down on his luck, he walks by a Christmas tree stand where a man asks him for help. After helping the man string up some lights, Nick's offered a job. At first, he declines but then has a change of heart. At the Christmas tree lots, he learns the meaning of family and Christmas.

Both the leads are turning out to be staple Hallmark actors. I loved Nick's moment's with both Clem and Matt. I loved the neighborhood feel of the Christmas tree lot and how Clem treated everyone like family. 

Write Before Christmas:
Julie purchases 5 cards to send to her boyfriend to get him into the holiday spirit. But he breaks up with her before she can write them.  Instead, she writes them to five people in her life who have made the greatest impact on her.

True confession: I thought this one was going to be more about the writing than the story, but I still enjoyed it. I did love how the cards impacted the people who received them. I loved Luke's big heart and how he gave back.

Christmas at the Plaza:
Jessica's hired to create a historical exhibit of Christmas at the Plaza Hotel. An archival historian, Jessica's stunned to learn that the records are kept in a hodgepodge of boxes. Feeling the projects is too big for her, she almost quits but becomes inspired by the last moment. With the help of the Christmas decorator and the Head Bellman, she put together a wonderful exhibit.

I really liked this one - for the decorations, the history of Christmas, and the traditions. I loved learning more about ornaments. I would love to see that exhibit in real life.

Noelle:
Noelle's the daughter of Kris Kringle and her job is to create Christmas cheer while her brother takes over the family business. He's not up for it and when she suggests he take a little break from all the training, he does. But he never returns. Now the whole town blames her. There's only one thing for her to do - find her brother and bring him home before Christmas is ruined.

I loved Noelle's outfits and her interactions with people. I loved Snowcone. I loved all the Christmas spirit and the way everything worked out.

The Knight Before Christmas:
Sir Cole travels from the 14th century (Norwich, England) to modern day Ohio where he meets Brooke. She spills hot chocolate all over him and then hits him with her car. Luckily he armor prevents him from being hurt (both times). He's been transported through time to fulfil a quest and can't return home until he completes it.

This movie is the Christmas version of Kate and Leopold - complete with knight lore, Christmas spirit, and family. While he doesn't understand much about the modern world, Cole adapts pretty quickly (although there is that incident with the car...). Plus he has a fascination for hot chocolate.