• Home
  • Blog
  • Archive
  • Contact
  • About
Menu

Cassandra Morgan

Street Address
City, State, Zip
Phone Number

Your Custom Text Here

Cassandra Morgan

  • Home
  • Blog
  • Archive
  • Contact
  • About

Sealed With A List | 2023 Christmas Movies

December 22, 2023 Cassandra Morgan

Sealed With A List is another Hallmark movie that I couldn’t tell what it was about from the commercials. They really are bad at trying to convey the plot in a 30 second clip. Well, let’s see what we got.

Carley (Katie Findlay) has settled into a life that she isn’t very happy with. She makes a pact with her best friend, Jamie (Kelcey Mawema), that she will change her life in the next year. However, next December rolls around and she has done nothing. On a whim, she gets fired from her job - thanks to taking the blame for a problem caused by her inept boss, Wyatt (Evan Roderick). That is when she makes a list of things she wants to accomplish by the end of the year. And she makes Wyatt help her achieve them.

I thought this was a rather cute movie. Instead of focusing on a blossoming romance, the story focused on trying to make both Carley and Wyatt better people. Carley needed to get out of her comfort zone and Wyatt needed to stop relying on his father’s money to do everything for him. Sealed With A List could have easily gone the wrong way but I think Findlay’s portrayal of Carley was just what the movie needed. She was able to pull off competent yet shy but still outgoing when the situation needed. She was easily my favorite part of the whole thing.

Rating: I don’t run but that Christmas 5K looked like fun

In Christmas movies Tags Hallmark, Hallmark Channel, Sealed With A List, Katie Findlay, Evan Roderick, Kelcey Mawema, BJ Harrison, Jai Braithwaite, Jason Asuncion, Ellie Harvie, Christmas movie, Christmas 2023
Comment

Must Love Christmas | 2022 Christmas Movies

December 18, 2022 Cassandra Morgan

While I was waiting for this weekend’s group of movies to air, I popped back over to CBS to watch Must Love Christmas. I think this is the first year I have ever watched a network television Christmas movie. They are very similar to the Hallmark stuff.

Natalie (Liza Lapira) is a Christmas romance novelist. She is also a recluse currently suffering from writer’s block. In order to help her finish her newest book, her editor, Gloria (Lossen Chambers), teams up with her publicist, Ryan (Adam Beauchesne), to force her into a book reading at the bookstore that first sold her books. Unfortunately, Natalie and Ryan get caught in a snowstorm that strands them in Cranberry Falls, where Natalie ends up in a love triangle between her high school crush, Caleb (Nathan Witte), and a journalist writing an article about her, Nick (Neal Bledsoe).

This was a decent enough movie. It seemed like they tried to throw a little bit everything into the plot, which makes it a little chaotic. As a result, I found myself going between paying attention to the movie and playing games on my phone. The acting and the writing and everything was fine. There was just a lot going on.

So, I don’t know how to rank this movie. It was perfectly fine but a little overwhelming to me. I guess give it a watch, just make sure you keep your phone nearby in case you find yourself overwhelmed as well.

In Christmas movies Tags CBS, Christmas 2022, Christmas movie, Must Love Christmas, Liza Lapira, Neal Bledsoe, Nathan Witte, Adam Beauchesne, Ian Collins, BJ Harrison, Sarah Strange, Lossen Chambers
Comment

Serving Up The Holidays | 2022 Christmas Movies

December 5, 2022 Cassandra Morgan

I don’t have an intro for Serving Up The Holidays. Pretend that I wrote something witty about restaurants and menus and Christmas.

Scarlett (Britt Irvin) is the co-owner and chef for an upscale restaurant. When she has to come up with a new holiday menu in order to keep their investor from leaving, her friend and co-owner, Claire (Bethany Brown), signs her up for a Christmas-themed cooking getaway. Only the getaway is hosted by Scarlett’s rival from cooking school, James (Zach Roerig). Will Scarlett be able to get her menu together in time?

This movie was so boring. I mean, it was so boring that I don’t even know what to say about it. It’s a movie where literally nothing happens. The whole thing is supposed to be about cooking but we don’t see any cooking. We see some preparations. Some flour is thrown around. We see a couple of finished plates but nothing is actually made on camera. I hate it.

No. No. No. Don’t watch Serving Up The Holidays. It’s not worth spending any time on. We’re already spending too much time on it with this review. Onto the next movie!

In Christmas movies Tags Lifetime, Christmas 2022, Christmas movie, Serving Up The Holidays, Britt Irvin, Zach Roerig, Taylor Bly, Bethany Brown, Tanja Dixon-Warren, Beth Fotheringham, Eric Gustafsson, BJ Harrison
Comment

The Christmas Contest | 2021 Christmas Movies

December 5, 2021 Cassandra Morgan

It’s finally that time of year! Time for Candace Cameron Bure’s Hallmark Christmas movie! You know you were waiting for this one…The Christmas Contest!

Lara (Candace Cameron Bure) has been unhappy with her life since she broke up with Ben (John Brotherton). When they both sign up for a Christmas-themed contest in order to win money for their respective charities, emotions run wild. Maybe this contest will remind them how much they truly love each other.

For the most part, this is a pretty typical Cameron Bure Hallmark movie. A bit of schmaltz, a bit of family reconciliations, and a bit of former lovers getting back together. But the best part, in my opinion, is when she actually makes fun of Hallmark movie plots. I was dying! It happens pretty early in the movie so it isn’t a scene that would make or break the whole show but it was pretty funny.

As for the rest of it, it’s fine. Cameron Bure and Brotherton also star in Fuller House together. It’s not like Hallmark threw two strangers together on this one. And that has actually been a big part of the marketing for The Christmas Contest. While I’m not sure the characters make a great couple, the two actors have enough chemistry together that their playful banter is fun to watch.

This one will be another tough call. If you’re a big fan of traditional Hallmark movies, this will be right up your alley. If you’re looking for something more, this is more like a movie you’d put on the background while you bake some cookies or something. On the plus side, it is much better than last year’s pile of crap that Cameron Bure starred in.

In Christmas movies Tags Hallmark, Hallmark Channel, Candace Cameron Bure, John Brotherton, Barbara Niven, BJ Harrison, Jennifer Higgin, Doron Bell, Keenan Tracey
Comment

Lonestar Christmas | 2020 Christmas Movies

December 20, 2020 Cassandra Morgan
LonestarChristmas.jpg

Well, that was a bit of an emotional rollercoaster. I don’t think I understand how Lifetime chooses what movies to air. Do they just pick the ones that sound the most Christmassy?

Erin (Stephanie Bennett) is a widow with two young daughters. When her mother goes on a Christmas cruise, she decides to spend the holidays with her estranged father, Gary (Brent Stait). There she meets a local Mexican restaurant owner, Mateo (Marco Grazzini).

Lonestar Christmas isn’t really a romance Christmas movie. Yes, there is romance in it but it’s really about a woman that is emotionally broken. She has a lot of anger towards her father from him not being around when she was a child. Granted, it sounds like maybe he was going to college or something. They don’t really explain why or how he wasn’t around. Everyone just says he wasn’t around. In addition, I’m not sure she has truly grieved her dead husband. Since she has two young children, she admitted that she focused on raising them instead of dealing with her emotions. Erin needs to go see a therapist immediately.

I don’t have anything against a movie about a woman working through her emotional trauma. That might actually make a good Christmas movie since a lot of people have troubles around the holidays. If they took out Erin’s patient, Tessa (BJ Harrison), and replaced her with an actual therapist, it would have changed the mood of the movie. Erin (who is an occupational therapist) already uses Tessa as a sort of therapist, which is a terrible idea since she is one of Erin’s PATIENTS. She is not a friend, she is not a confidant, she is a patient. They should have had Erin talking to a professional to deal with her problems.

Should you watch Lonestar Christmas? I would say skip it unless you want to watch a woman devolve into self-pity. I really wish they had treated this differently so I could recommend it.

In Movies Tags Christmas movie, Christmas 2020, Lifetime, Lonestar Christmas, Stephanie Bennett, Brent Stait, Marco Grazzini, BJ Harrison, Colleen Wheeler
Comment

Jingle Bell Bride | 2020 Christmas Movies

November 26, 2020 Cassandra Morgan
JingleBellBride.jpg

Christmas weddings aren’t a new thing, especially in movies. Jingle Bell Bride isn’t actually about a bride though. It’s about her wedding planner.

Jessica (Julie Gonzalo) is a wedding planner for a famous singer, Renee (Donna Benedicto), who is a bit of a Bridezilla. Two weeks before her wedding, Renee insists that Jessica find the rare jingle bell flower for her. The only place that currently has this flower is a remote town in Alaska. Can Jessica make it back to New York City before Renee’s wedding?

While Jingle Bell Bride has a very stupid premise, the movie itself isn’t that bad. I wish there was a different reason for Jessica to go to Alaska. The best parts of the movie were when Jessica was spending time with the townsfolk. Everything else felt crammed in, including the parts with her sister (Alison Araya) and niece (Pietra Castro). I think I would have liked it more if Jessica was simply visiting the town. She could still step in to help when the town’s festival ball loses their venue at the last minute but she wouldn’t be held back by her event planning boss.

They could also give the jingle bell flower more meaning. That way Matt (Ronnie Rowe) would have a reason to spend more time with Jessica. Sure, he spends time with her now but the reasons feel forced. He only spends time with her because she’s stuck staying at his family’s house since there is no hotel in town. I think I would have liked it more if Matt had a little more passion for the flowers that could have shown through.

If you have the ability to look past all of the stupid wedding planning parts in the movie (there aren’t that many really), then this is definitely worth a watch. And if you watched The Christmas Yule Blog, you’ll recognize Alison Araya as Caroline’s boss. It’s the circle of Christmas movies.

In Movies Tags Christmas movie, Christmas 2020, Jingle Bell Bride, Julie Gonzalo, Donna Benedicto, Alison Araya, Pietra Castro, Ronnie Rowe, BJ Harrison, Hallmark
Comment

Subscribe

Sign up for our weekly newsletter

We respect your privacy.

Thank you!
Archive
  • March 2025
  • February 2025
  • January 2025
  • December 2024
  • November 2024
  • October 2024
  • September 2024
  • March 2024
  • February 2024
  • January 2024
  • December 2023
  • November 2023
  • October 2023
  • February 2023
  • January 2023
  • December 2022
  • November 2022
  • October 2022
  • September 2022
  • August 2022
  • February 2022
  • January 2022
  • December 2021
  • November 2021
  • October 2021
  • September 2021
  • January 2021
  • December 2020
  • November 2020
  • December 2019
  • November 2019
  • February 2019
  • January 2019
  • December 2018
  • November 2018
  • May 2017
  • April 2017
  • October 2016
  • April 2016
  • February 2016
  • January 2016
  • October 2015
  • September 2015
  • August 2015
  • July 2015
  • June 2015
  • May 2015
  • April 2015
  • March 2015
  • February 2015
  • January 2015
  • December 2014
  • November 2014
  • October 2014
  • September 2014
  • August 2014
  • June 2014
  • May 2014
  • April 2014
  • March 2014
  • February 2014
  • January 2014
  • November 2013
  • September 2013
  • August 2013
  • July 2013
  • June 2013
  • May 2013
  • April 2013
  • March 2013
  • February 2013
  • January 2013
  • December 2012
  • November 2012
  • October 2012
  • September 2012
  • August 2012
  • July 2012
  • June 2012
  • May 2012
  • April 2012
  • March 2012
  • February 2012
  • January 2012
  • December 2011
  • November 2011
  • October 2011
  • September 2011
  • August 2011
  • July 2011
  • June 2011
  • May 2011
  • April 2011
  • March 2011
  • February 2011
  • January 2011
  • December 2010
  • November 2010
  • October 2010
  • September 2010
  • August 2010
  • July 2010
  • June 2010
  • May 2010
  • April 2010
  • March 2010
  • February 2010
  • January 2010
  • December 2009
  • November 2009
  • October 2009
  • September 2009
  • August 2009
  • July 2009
  • June 2009
  • May 2009
  • April 2009
  • March 2009
  • February 2009
  • January 2009
  • December 2008
  • November 2008
  • October 2008
  • September 2008
  • August 2008
  • July 2008
  • June 2008
  • May 2008
  • April 2008
  • March 2008
  • February 2008
  • January 2008
  • December 2007
  • November 2007
  • October 2007
  • September 2007
  • August 2007
  • July 2007