Love, Lights, Hanukkah! | 2020 Christmas Movies

When is a Christmas movie not a Christmas movie, when it’s a Hanukkah movie! Every year, we get one Hanukkah movie. Last year was Mistletoe & Menorahs. This year it’s Love, Lights, Hanukkah!

Christina (Mia Kirshner) was adopted as a baby. After her adoptive mother passes away, she takes a DNA test to find out her heritage. Not only does she find out that she is half Jewish, she also finds a close familial connection. When she is contacted by the connection, she finds her entire biological family.

A lot of times, the annual Hanukkah movie focuses solely on the religious aspects of the holiday. While Love, Lights does show us some of the traditions, it mostly focuses on the family as a whole. The movie isn’t about Hanukkah; it’s about a family welcoming in a new member. I love it.

Even the romance in the movie isn’t a typical Christmas movie romance. David (Ben Savage) doesn’t need Christina’s help and he doesn’t need to help her. They just spend some time together enjoying each other’s company.

Normally, I complain about how stupid the Big Conflict is in a movie. Love, Lights doesn’t really have a conflict. (There is a small one about David moving away for an undetermined amount of time to write a book but it is quickly resolved and unnecessary.) All of the dramatic tension comes from the fact that Christina doesn’t want to disrespect her adoptive mother’s memory by finding her biological mother and going from a family of two to a family of seven. Anyone from a large family would know that is more than enough tension for a movie.

I absolutely loved this movie. Mia Kirshner and Ben Savage are great actors. It’s almost like these roles were created for them specifically. All of the supporting cast are great as well. Everyone compliments each other perfectly. Please go watch Love, Lights, Hanukkah! so that Hallmark knows we need more of these types of movies.

The Santa Squad | 2020 Christmas Movies

A lot of Christmas movies have the word ‘Christmas’ somewhere in the title. I appreciate that this one goes with Santa instead. Though, apparently, it’s also known as Santa’s Squad. But it’s only one person. There’s no squad; there’s just one person.

Allie (Rebecca Dalton) is an unemployed teacher. Her friend, Tony (Chris Sandiford), shows her a job listing for The Santa Squad, hired Christmas helpers. Allie’s first Santa Squad assignment is the Church household, where a wealthy widower lives with his two daughters.

The Santa Squad was an adorable movie. It gave me a little bit of The Parent Trap or The Sound of Music (without the songs) type of vibe. There’s two daughters of a wealthy single man, an awful girlfriend who kinda hates the kids, and a new woman who befriends the children. OK, that last part isn’t very Parent Trap but it does have similar vibes.

I quite enjoyed the movie, for the most part. My only gripe is that Rose (Hattie Kragten), the older daughter, is given the ‘quirky trait’ of rattling off little known facts about animals or bugs. While that could be really cute, it fell a little flat for me. Some of the interjections fit into the scene well but some of them felt forced. It would have been nice if her facts fit the conversations better.

With that said, the rest of the movie was enjoyable. Gordon (Aaron Ashmore), the father of the family, and Allie had great chemistry together. Even Paniz Zade was pretty perfect as the stuck-up girlfriend Kimmee. Sometimes it can be difficult to find a good bad guy.

So, should you watch The Santa Squad? Yes! Lifetime has only had a handful of good movies this year. And this is one of them.

Christmas Ever After | 2020 Christmas Movies

One of the most interesting things this year is how inclusive the Christmas movies have been. The world no longer revolves around attractive thin white women. And I am here for it.

Izzi (Ali Stroker) is a romance novel writer with writer’s block. The leading man in her books has become unbelievably perfect. In order to reignite her spark of creativity, Izzi goes on her annual Christmas vacation to Silver Springs. She quickly finds out that her favorite lodge is under new management. The owner’s son, Matt (Daniel di Tomasso), has taken over and he is trying to change everything.

I first heard about Ali Stroker when she won the 2019 Tony Award for her performance in Broadway’s Oklahoma! Unfortunately, I did not get the change to see her perform on stage. However, she is a delight to watch on screen. Even though the script for Christmas Ever After isn’t great, Stroker does a great job with Izzi.

The plot of Christmas Ever After revolves around Izzi having a problem writing her holiday-themed romance novel. She finished the book in the beginning of the movie but her editor-friend, Mila (Kim Nelson), thinks that the leading man is too perfect. So Izzi has to rewrite the entire thing? It is the main conflict but we don’t get a lot of detail. We know that she’s behind deadline and she needs to have the book finished….at some point? But it never feels like Izzi is risking anything. She spends a lot of time at the Christmas events the town is running. There is very little time spent actually writing. It would have been nice if the stakes were a little higher. Maybe she could be seen writing at all of the events or maybe her contract with her publisher would be at risk if she didn’t get the book finished immediately. Mila says the book was supposed to be finished by the holiday season but the movie begins a few weeks before Christmas. Even if they used the first draft that Izzi submitted, there’s no way the publisher would have the books on shelves by Christmas.

Overall, the movie is pretty good. There are a few flaws but I think they could be overlooked pretty easily. Go ahead and give this a watch. If anything, Matt’s daughter, Kacey (Melia Charlotte Cressaty), is kinda adorable.

Time For Us To Come Home For Christmas | 2020 Christmas

Lacey Chabert is back for another 2020 Christmas movie. This time it’s a mystery over on the Hallmark Movies & Mysteries channel.

A group of people are mysteriously invited to spend Christmas at a local inn. Sarah (Chabert) takes it upon herself to figure out who invited them and why.

I was really looking forward to Come Home. The mystery sounded interesting and I was intrigued about how these five strangers fit together. Then I fell asleep in the middle of it. Yes, I actually fell asleep.

I think the problem is that the story spends too much time on everyone’s individual stories. Instead of pulling them together to solve the Big Mystery, we’re busy with a father trying to win his daughter’s affection, a former couple rekindling their flame, a musician mourning his wife, and a woman mourning her mother. The writers could have had the group working together to solve the mystery so the father could impress his daughter with some rare knowledge, the former couple could be canoodling while finding clues, and the two people mourning could reminisce about their deceased family members. It would have been so much more interesting with the group together.

Also, Chabert isn’t a very good leading woman. In both movies this year, she spends a lot of time making sad eyes at the camera. It’s not attractive.

Should you watch it? Meh. Watch beginning and the last 30 minutes. Skip the rest. Or sleep through it. I did have a good nap while it was on.

Christmas She Wrote | 2020 Christmas Movies

Around the time Christmas She Wrote aired on Hallmark, Danica McKellar dropped some TikToks showing the behind-the-scenes magic of making a Hallmark Christmas movie. I don’t know if this changed what I thought about the movie but it definitely changed how I watched it!

Kaleigh (McKellar) is a romance columnist in New York. She goes home to Pineberry, CA when the newspaper’s new managers fire her. Realizing they made a mistake, the newspaper owner sends the new editor, Tripp (Dylan Neal), to Pineberry to hire her back.

Hallmark and Lifetime tend to rotate the same group of actors through all of their Christmas movies. Danica McKellar has done her fair share of these. (I gave up counting at six.) Thankfully, she is a delight as an actress. She makes even the worst script enjoyable to watch. Dylan Neal, on the other hand…not so much.

Normally, when we get a story about a writer, they are looking for a big scoop or they need to write their next big article. Having her get fired is a nice change of pace. The story can focus more on Kaleigh as a person instead of making her character solely about her job. Her job is important to her but it’s not the end of her life.

Tripp, meanwhile, isn’t as rounded of a character. He isn’t the type that is sighing and groaning about having to follow orders but he also isn’t particularly personable. I don’t quite understand why everyone in Pineberry likes him so much. The writers even throw in a past boyfriend to compete for Kaleigh’s heart but he is barely in the story so he’s not really competition.

Is it worth watching Christmas She Wrote? Absolutely. I think Danica McKellar’s bright star can outshine all of the problems in the movie. I look forward to seeing what Christmas movie she is in next year.

Forever Christmas | 2020 Christmas Movies

Forever Christmas is another one of those weird problematic movies. While Lifetime calls it Forever Christmas and has it listed as one of it’s 2020 Christmas movies, it was originally titled Mr 365 and it was filmed in 2018. Judging by the quality of the movie, this was definitely filmed in 2018. Considering there are problematic elements in it, I can see why they sat on it for so long.

Sophia (Chelsea Hobbs) is a reality TV producer looking for a subject for an extreme Christmas episode. Will (Christopher Russell) has the inside of his house decorated for Christmas every day of the year. (Due to an injunction from his crabby neighbor, Fred (Ken Camroux-Taylor), he can’t decorate the outside until after November 1.) When Sophia and Will begin dating, it throws a wrench into the production of the show.

This isn’t one of those ‘will-they-won’t-they’ movies. Sophia and Will start getting it on early in the movie. I know that this movies are rarely realistic but this is the least realistic thing I have ever seen in a Christmas movie. A professional TV producer wouldn’t start heavily making out with the subject of their show after the second meeting. This might be something that happens on long-term shows where the cast and crew spend a lot of time together. Instead, they start groping each other after the first day of shooting.

The only conflict in this movie is how the reality show is portraying Will. Will then blames Sophia for not being able to take total creative control over the project. You would think there would be some sort of “Damn The Man” type thought here but no. I guess the writers needed a reason for the couple to break up so they could have the big reconciliation at the end.

Please don’t watch Forever Christmas. It is overall bad. The only redeeming quality is Romeo the dog. And they don’t even show him all that much!

Let's Meet Again On Christmas Eve | 2020 Christmas Movies

One of this year’s biggest Christmas movie tropes have been “former couple loses touch and gets back together.” To name a few from this year’s crop: A Godwink Christmas: Second Chance, First Love, The Christmas House, and Meet Me At Christmas. Then we get it again with Let’s Meet Again On Christmas Eve.

Corinne (Kyla Pratt) and Rob (Brooks Darnell) were college sweethearts. When Rob got an offer to go to Paris for two years to work on his photography skills, Corinne makes a deal with him. They will break up for the two years then meet again at the campus Christmas tree on Christmas Eve to see if they still have the spark of love. Seven years later, Corinne gets a job planning a Christmas wedding for a wealthy couple - Nancy (Nancy Sorel) and Sam (Paul Essiembre). Rob happens to be their wedding photographer. What will happen when the former couple has to spend two weeks on a project together?

One of the things that annoys me about these ‘lost love’ storylines is - why didn’t they just call/email/text each other? When Rob didn’t show up, why didn’t Corinne email him to see why he didn’t come? When Rob saw the picture of Corinne with her boss, Victor (Erik Athavale), why didn’t he ask her if she was seeing someone instead of assuming Victor was her boyfriend? All of this could have been cleared up with an email or a phone call or even a DM,

I’m also annoyed with Nancy’s daughter, Tracy (Sarah Luby). She looks like she’s 25 but she talks like she’s 15. Not only is she using outdated slang, she’s also talking with his weird….it’s not really an accent but spacing of words. They could have cut her character out completely with no consequence.

Oh, and they have the Christmas movie trope of planning an entire wedding at the last minute. This time they have a whole two weeks. No one does that. Venues and bakers and florists and dressmakers all need ample time to plan their part of the ceremony. Two weeks isn’t nearly enough time. At least not for something that is supposed to be extravagant.

Beyond that, the movie is fine. Pratt and Darnell have good chemistry together. They were quite believable both as a couple and as a bitter former couple. If you decide to watch Let’s Meet Again On Christmas Eve, do it for Pratt and Darnell, not for the plot.

A Little Christmas Charm | 2020 Christmas Movies

I kinda love when Hallmark/Lifetime Christmas movies have multiple names. Granted, it can make it a little difficult to research the movie but it feels like someone is trying to hide the movie from the world. A Little Christmas Charm also goes by the name The Charm Bracelet.

Holly (Ashley Greene Khoury) is a jewelry designer working at her best friend’s vintage store. When her friend, Megan (Britt Irvin), brings in a jacket for Holly to prep for the sales floor, Holly finds a charm bracelet in the pocket. Determined to find the owner, Holly pairs up with Greg (Brendan Penny), a reporter with a local paper.

Hallmark Movies & Mysteries tends to air the movies that have a mystery attached. Returning lost items, finding lost loves…those types of things. Normally, I’m into those types of movies. Christmas Charm, however, loses its focus halfway through. Instead of giving them a good mid-movie conflict, Greg just gives up because he doesn’t think they will find the owner by the deadline for his “feel good” article. Since Holly doesn’t want to search on her own (she says “it’s more fun with Greg”), the search completely stops. It isn’t until Holly has an epiphany while looking at pictures from Megan’s baby shower that the search continues. There should have been something like - Holly loses a charm (because she keeps taking them off the damn bracelet) and they have to retrace their steps then they see something they didn’t notice last time that helps them. Giving up is dumb when the writers made Holly so determined in the beginning to find the owner.

If you aren’t a super fan of one of the actors, I would recommend that you skip A Little Christmas Charm. The Christmas Ring has a similar plot. If you need to watch a Christmas mystery, watch that one instead. It’s much better.

Christmas in Evergreen: Bells are Ringing | 2020 Christmas Movies

Last year, I watched Christmas in Evergreen: Tidings of Joy. That was the third movie in Hallmark’s Christmas in Evergreen series. This year, we get the fourth movie - Christmas in Evergreen: Bells are Ringing.

While Michelle (Holly Robinson Peete) is getting ready for her wedding, Hannah (Rukiya Bernard) takes over getting the new Evergreen Christmas museum ready to open. Meanwhile, Hannah’s boyfriend, Elliot (Antonio Cayonne), is planning to open a Boston flagship store for his tinker shop.

Like A Christmas Tree Grows in Colorado, Bells are Ringing also features a main cast filled with people of color. The cast is also filled with people from the previous Evergreen movies. From what I can tell, there are only three new characters. (Well, the writers did mess up some of the names of the old characters. You would think they would re-watch the old movies so they could remember what they did. I didn’t count those as new characters.) I am glad that the twin sisters got more action this time around. They are adorable!

Despite liking the characters and the interactions between them, Bells are Ringing was lacking consistency. There was a great idea hidden in the plot but the story kept getting sidetracked. Sometimes it was by snowball fights and candy canes in hot chocolate, sometimes it was a conflict that only got resolved with an “oh well!” For example, Michelle’s fiancé is stuck in Maine due to a snowstorm and won’t make it to Evergreen (in Vermont) for the wedding. Most movies would have Michelle melt down. Instead, she just shrugs it off saying that she can stop planning now and they’ll just get married in July. She doesn’t cry, she doesn’t try on the dress one last time before giving in…it seems like she never actually planned the wedding. We don’t see any signs of a wedding - no invitations, no dresses, no flowers. It was weird.

Is this movie worth watching? I would say it is. It’s not a great movie but it does have some cute moments. The Cooper twins (Jacqueline Robbins and Joyce Robbins) are my favorite part. They are almost like the town Christmas elves. I think the movie is worth watching just for them.

Too Close For Christmas | 2020 Christmas Movies

THIS MOVIE MAKES NO SENSE. I swear Lifetime has just given up on Christmas movies. They put them out because they “have” to but they don’t want to.

Hayley (Jessica Lowndes) is spending Christmas with her sister, Amy (Vanessa Sears), and Amy’s in-laws. Unfortunately, Haley blames Amy’s brother-in-law, Paul (Chad Michael Murray), for the breakup of her last relationship. When Amy’s mother-in-law, Judy (Seana McKenna), falls ill and Paul’s Christmas trip falls through, it’s up to Amy and Paul to fulfill Judy’s wishes for the perfect Christmas.

I am so annoyed by Too Close For Christmas. I have no idea what Hayley does for a living. It seems like she plans something. Parties? Events? I’m not sure. I just know she constantly calls her boss to bug her about a possible promotion. There’s a running gag about Hayley not getting good phone reception at the Barnett house.

Then there’s this wanna-be-tension between Hayley and Paul. Apparently, at Amy and Tim’s wedding, Paul made a comment about Hayley’s then-boyfriend moving back to London without her AND IT HAPPENED. (Big gasp here?) So now Hayley blames Paul for it? It doesn’t seem like it was his fault. He may have been rude (they don’t actually show the interaction; Hayley just talks about it) but he didn’t make the guy decide to move across the ocean without his girlfriend. The movie tries very hard to make this the conflict between the two characters. IT IS DUMB.

Everything else feels so forced. There’s a charity gala that has to be planned and it ends up being left to Hayley and Paul. For some reason, Hayley decides to have a local barbecue place cater the event. Sure, ribs might be tasty but I’m not sure who wants to eat them at a gala, where they are wearing fancy clothes with perfect hair and makeup. I get that they wanted to come off as ‘down to earth’ and ‘relatable.’ But ribs are a messy food. Not something you eat at a fancy party.

I don’t like this movie at all. It has a 6/10 rating on imdb so I guess someone out there likes it. However, I can’t - in good conscience - recommend it. If you want to watch Too Close For Christmas, do it at your own peril.