anicho01-944-812539 Reviews

This Is Not What I Expected (2017)

Amalie Meets You've Got Mail

[9/10 · 11 March 2024]

This is a super adorable rom-com. A quirky Amelie style chef meets a strict hotelier foodie straight out of You've got Mail.

Despite their cataclysmic initial meetings, eventually they become friends bonded by food. This film is so delightfully quirky from random flights of fancy including CGI fish to hallucinating rain.

My only caveat is just like the end of You've got mail, when the rich male love interest puts the quirky heroine out of business, she still forgives him. This film undergoes a similar setup, and I really wish men firing their potential love interest yet still finding happiness while she finds unemployment weren't a romance trope.

Pride, Prejudice and Mistletoe (2018 TV Movie)

A little tone deaf

[5/10 · 7 March 2024]

This is THE MOST contrary and unknowingly tone deaf script ever.

Lawyer and socialite Darcy Fitzwilliam returns home to head a Christmas fundraiser with her hometown crush, Luke. Of course, the acting and romance were great, but the underlying message came across as hypocritical.

First off, the leads ask the minority small business to donate her talents for EXPOSURE but 30 seconds later INSIST on paying the Caucasian male caterer.

When the cater waiters quit, the committee demands the underserved children serve as the waiters instead - Despite claiming restricted funds, the Fitzwilliam women have a FULL hair and makeup team to help prep - WHO is paying for that? The Charity?!

The only Black female in the cast is called a snake

Yes, the script's fun and enjoyable, but having a wealthy woman with her own family law firm continuously complain about her partners wanting to have a financially stable firm also seemed hella tone deaf -

The overarching philanthropic message really contrasted with the actual actions written into the script.

It's a fun watch, if you aren't continuously annoyed by the white, super-rich female complaining that her Black partners don't want to give their work away for free.

Girls' Play (2024)

A True Crime Podcaster Who Done It

[8/10 · 7 March 2024]

Layal is a true crime influencer with a popular YouTube channel where she solves stagnant crimes. When friends invite her to a bachelorette party with her high school bully, true crime in the present collides with events from her past.

The initial episodes are very much a slow burn with a dash of cottage core hygge life thrown in. As she wanders the premises of the abandoned spa that hosts the retreat, she remembers her childhood where she dated the most popular guy in school, became a victim of assault and was bullied when pictures from the attack were circulated.

The production values and acting were excellent. The slow burn kept everything very low-key and grounded even as it flipped between the past and the present.

In the final two episodes everything goes off the rails and reveals the people who planned her high school attack are the same ones who invited her to the bachelorette party with plans of humiliating her and pinning a murder on her. It seems a little over the top that a bunch of high school bullies would continue to pursue and harass this woman decades later.

The initial episodes deserved a higher score, for the strong pacing, but the final 30 minutes of the last episode became more wish fulfillment.

Wild Cards (2024– )

White Collar for the New Gen

[9/10 · 21 January 2024]

I loved the escapist fantasy of buddy cop tv in the early 00s from Castle to Psych to White Collar. No one was as cool as Neil, as well dressed as Neil, as slick as Neil, as well versed in the arts as Neil, or as smooth a con artist as Neil.

Enter Max, basically the secret love child of White Collar's Neil caffrey and his sleek landlady June, with a Robin Hood twist. Max is sleek, well-dressed, and uber confident. She unabashedly uses her criminal connections and upper level friends to benefit both herself and her less fortunate friends.

Vanessa Morgan SPARKLES as Max from her charisma to her walk to her accents. Max is clearly the smartest, hottest, most cunning person in the room and that's okay.

This show features the hottest most established cast with Vanessa Morgan from Riverdale, THE original Daddy Jason Priestley, Jessica Jones' Terry Chen, and Schmigadoon's Karin Konoval. And, yes, Giacomo Gianniotti looks like a young David Gandy. I feel the producers demanded anyone incredibly hot who starred in super trendsetting shows in the past 5 years.

This show is a throwback to old school CW when it represented everything young, hot and sexy with smart, funny scripts and awesome casts to match.

I cannot talk enough about the positives of this pilot episode. CW set a super high bar. I hope it continues to support such a great show with an awesomely diverse cast. I absolutely LOVED The pilot episode. The cast meshed SO WELL. The writing was so smooth. The locations were amazing.

Honestly, it is light-hearted action fun but with that grown n sexy vibe that White collar did so well.

Update: After having watched three more episodes, the budget has drastically reduced since the pilot. It is now less White Collar's sexy adult crime territory and more in Psych's quirky crime solving territory. Although I have no idea why they'd use a high class con artist to solve local murders a la Jessica Fletcher, it is still a ton of fun.

Holiday Heritage (2022 TV Movie)

A positive communally focused film

[8/10 · 21 January 2024]

This was such an uplifting film that tackled standard familial concerns with maturity and emotionally open conversations.

Holiday heritage surrounds the after effects that death can have on a tight-knit family. In the surface, it sounds like the standard Hallmark holiday fare. Big city heroine returns to her family bakery to reunite with her high school love while helping with local holiday festivals.

However, in reality, it addresses issues that we encounter in our day-to-day but with honesty and openness. A year after the death of the family patriarch, The protagonist Ella returns home to discover increasing tension between her mother and grandmother.

The script is amazing. The level of maturity each family member showcased while expressing her perspective is super touching. I loved when Ella addressed the difficulties in her hometown relationship, not with overdramatic tears but with clear communication.

This is another example of Hallmark using its standard template but increasing the production values, the writing, the acting and the directing to produce a quality final result.

This was a very diverse cast, featuring Black, brown and white cast members without explicitly calling it out. Basically, it just showcases slice of life humanity. Personally, as a person of color, I also love when mainstream channels showcase upper middle class African American families as just that families, while still acknowledging the cultural background.

Honestly, this was such a good script and it was supported by an amazing cast. The clothes were amazing. The numerous hairstyles that Holly Robinson rocked were off the hinges. The houses were gorgeous and I always love holiday winter scapes with non-stop snow.

So, if you're looking for the Hallmark template but with a strong script and grounded acting, this is definitely for you.

A Vineyard Christmas (2023 TV Movie)

A Multicultural Friends Christmas

[7/10 · 16 January 2024]

Single wine journalist Heather meets super single wine owner Rudolph. They share each other's cultural backgrounds while helping each other achieve their career goals. He stars in her show and she advertises his winery.

Although this has the Hallmark look and feel, this was on Peacock and Freevee and it deviates in a couple ways.

First, old school Hallmark demanded the heroine abandon her career for the love interest she met a week ago. Luckily, the script points out the absolute folly of that and suggests long-term dating. Of course, when she starts to leave, Rudy acts as if she is permanently moving overseas and that telephones, video calls, texting and airplanes don't exist.

Second, old school holiday films romanticized the curmudgeonly small town business owner who refused to advertise or attract new clients. Again, the script points out that a business owner who hates improvement might just hate their business.

Finally, although Hallmark has greatly improved how they handle multiple religions and cultures, A Vineyard Christmas is way more subtle. Rudolph talks about his German background while Heather shares her Filipino and Irish traditions. They did a great job portraying Hanukkah without pretending the characters had never heard of it.

Only a few parts didn't work. When the female lead called the male lead too hot to work at a winery, I disagreed. While Victor Zenck is attractive, in this film he looks like the standard blandly cute love interest, so the comment fell flat. Also, the actor playing her dad, is the hottest over 50 dad in holiday films, so I hope they give him his own holiday film.

Overall, both leads have great chemistry. I loved the winter shots and the adorable matching pajamas. This was a great addition to the holiday cannon.

Role Play (2024)

Ghosted: The Married Edition

[7/10 · 13 January 2024]

This is essentially Amazon Prime's version of Apple TV's spy meets ordinary human film Ghosted with Chris Evans and Anna de armas. But this time they are married with kids and he discovers her secret after a night out on the town.

This isn't intended to win any awards. It's basically a fun action flick. Kaley Cuoco did a great job in her fight scenes and David Ayelwo was hilarious. And Bill Nighy in his quick cameo was as charismatic as usual - POW!

It was interesting seeing them both play against type with Kaley taking on the more serious role while David handled the comedic straight man, but they both did a great job.

This isn't intended to subvert the genre. And yes we've seen this before with True lies and even Mr and Mrs Smith. But Spies/assassins with ordinary people is always fun escapist fantasy. Like gunpowder milkshake It's just a fun hour and a half.

Saltburn (2023)

Royal Tanenbaums meets Talented Mr Ripley

[9/10 · 12 January 2024]

Although we've seen wealthy opulent satire before with subtle erotic undertones, this is the millennial update. Rosamond Pike, Richard Grant, and Carrie Mulligan caricaturize stereotypes they've played previously.

Jacob Elordi and Archie Madekwe do an excellent job portraying young 'kings' who are to the manor born. Although Barry Keoghan initially looks like a 30 something weirdo who snuck onto a college campus, that's the point. As the film continues he grows more seductive. His awkwardness softens and his natural charisma shines through.

TV frequently exploits female nudity from Reacher to the Tudors. With a female writer/director we get the flip side. It is nice seeing a side of female sexuality, which happens 5 to 7 times a month, expressed without blatant nudity or objectification. It's also nice seeing male sensuality openly expressed. The men clearly find each other attractive and don't hesitate in showing their interest in anything that moves while luxuriating in their own casual nudity. Oddly, the sweaty shirtlessness always felt more organic than gratuitous.

I've noticed a lot of complaints claiming the film is grotesque. However, it mostly avoids full frontal nudity until the end. Is it perhaps just the homo eroticism and The intimacy in the scenes that made people uncomfortable? No one complained about the full frontal female nudity, sexual assault or bloody death scenes in Game of thrones or Westworld in the past or about the nudity in Reacher last year.

The only sore spot is a 5-minute scene that overtly explains how everything happened but not WHY it happened. And honestly neither was necessary.

So break out your best '80s '90s and early OOs music and get ready to watch some Saltburn.

Echo (2023–2024)

Old School Defenders / Daredevil Feel

[8/10 · 12 January 2024]

Echo returns to old school Marvel a la Daredevil, Luke Cage, and Jessica Jones. It veers away from the fun wish fulfillment snarktastic scripts of early Guardians of the Galaxy, Thor and Iron Man.

Instead, the series steeps itself in Choctaw heritage alongside the trauma of gang violence. It shows the flip side of what happens to the families of Kingpin's henchmen and what happens when they fall out of favor.

Maya Lopez is a rich character dealing with disabilities that aren't shown as hindrances. Alaqua Cox does an excellent job portraying all of her anger, sadness and empty rage. And they did a great job casting a child who looks like her younger doppelganger.

This is an also an excellent character study of Kingpin and his frustrated emotions in being abandoned by Maya who he views as his adopted daughter. Kudos to Vince for continuing to plumb the depths of that character.

Although I loved the past 20 years of fun wish fulfillment Marvel, as the MCU matures I like seeing it experiment with the gritty reality of earlier Marvel TV series.

Merry & Gay (2022 TV Movie)

A Millennial Christmas

[6/10 · 12 December 2023]

The script surrounds two protagonists, Sam and Becca, in their twenties. Unlike Hallmark's standard roles of generic business people, bakers, nannies or home shoppers, the protagonists in this flick belong to today's gig economy. Becca stars in an off-Broadway Friends parody while Sam is a weekly Quizzo master who hangs with D&D friends. In a way, this script feels more realistic and in touch with the jobs held by early 20 somethings. It also serves as a love letter to the city with quiet raw footage.

When two childhood best friends unite, everyone in their rural Tennessee community, including their significant others, neighborhood cheerleaders, their parents, a scene stealing juggler, the local minister, and a Dolly Parton wannabe are convinced the friends belong together. But ... the friends themselves remain clueless.

The script is great but the film suffers from a restricted budget: The sound is echoey, scenes rely too frequently on natural light and the houses are very generic suburban with minimal set decorating.

My biggest frustration is the film's limited budget contrasted with other Hallmark flicks with bigger budgets but cardboard acting, one-dimensional scripts and static directing. Early Hallmark typically forced the cisgender female to choose between love and her career. Unfortunately, despite breaking other templates, it adheres to this pretty closely.

There are a lot of great moments including a hilarious setup by their parents, a breakout musical number and numerous relationship focused scenes. If you're accustomed to the polished Hallmark look, this might not be for you. But, it is nicely inclusive including a deaf character and various representations of the LGBTQIA+ community.

Your Christmas or Mine 2 (2023)

A Bigger Budget but Smaller Heart

[5/10 · 11 December 2023]

Your Christmas or mine surrounded the loneliness of the holidays with two different family archetypes - the feuding British upper crust and the working class pub warmth. Despite occasionally playing to stereotypes, the film did a deep dive into both families, while fleshing out each of the characters. The final 20 minutes created Christmas magic when both came together.

The sequel has a bigger budget but less heart. It played with every single obnoxious stereotype imaginable with the loud lower class family. Occasionally, it also conflated race with class. Existing characters like the grandfathers on both sides and the sassy aunt received even less acknowledgment and maybe had five lines each in the film. There were newer characters added that did absolutely nothing for the plot including Jane Krakowski's American authoress.

This was such an absolute waste of talent. The original cast had so much chemistry I wanted to see the grandfathers playing off of each other, more honest intimacy between the young couple and the parents fleshing out their own relationships.

Whenever the script quieted down we got the magic intimate moments from the original. There were even times when the script let the characters grow and we learn that everyone in the working class family can ski rather than playing to stereotypes.

However, the strength of the original script surrounded the feelings of the family members and the honest communication.

But this felt more like let's take two different British family archetypes and put them into a big budget Hollywood movie and see what happens ... Sadly,none of the original magic ....

Merry Little Batman (2023)

For Bat-Geeks And their Kids

[9/10 · 10 December 2023]

Ever wondered what Batman might look like with therapy, reduced crime fighting and no longer desires to turn every single little boy under 12 into a crime fighting machine? Well, it's Luke Wilson in a beard.

This is a great holiday flick for comic geeks and their kids. It is Batman meets Home alone meets the Grinch who stole Christmas. There are so many nods to old school Batman while simultaneously mocking it. What Would Batman's chest look like without bat armor and bandages? And, yes, Dead parent jokes are definitely on the menu.

This script was written by clear long time fans of the Bat who perfectly captured Damien's try hard personality and so many winks to Gotham culture. There is one brilliant part where the flick flips to gothic black and white and then back again.

While this is definitely for kids, it is clearly written with their parental geeks in mind. Basically, it's a smart Christmas script with a nice life lesson with homages to other holiday flicks thrown in.

Also, the soundtrack slaps and pulls from multiple genres including Punk in the opening.

A Holiday in Harlem (2021 TV Movie)

Hallmark formula with authentic flair

[8/10 · 10 December 2023]

Although this is the standard workaholic businesswoman returns home to contribute to the local Christmas festival, the script, writing, acting and Harlem location fleshes out the template and makes it more realistic.

Jazmin might be the standard business woman who businesses, but her fear of commitment due to traumatic parental relationships grounds the character. Caleb might be the standard hot guy in flannel who works with wood, but restoring vintage homes in Harlem is a believable business. Additionally, the actor's vulnerability and true desire for Jazmin made me cheer for the relationship. Honestly, he put more heat into his looks than I do into my chili. I can't say enough positive things about the relationship, but maybe that's also because the script was written by a woman.

As a bonus, the neighborhood cast of characters were utterly believable. There's always the negative knowing Nellie and the doubting Tom, but they helped ground Jazmin without going over the top into cartoon villains.

This was a good script. It showed African American culture without reducing us to impoverished stereotypes. It also showcased Harlem without portraying it as big city evil.

Hallmark has really increased its offerings / scripts and this is a great example. Don't just watch it because you're a person of color, watch it because you love holiday flicks. This is a great example of where the Hallmark formula can excel when you ground it believably.

Christmas Belles (2019 TV Movie)

Holiday Fun and Female Bonding

[8/10 · 10 December 2023]

Although Chad Quinn did a great job on the script about two feuding friends, co-leads Raven Goodwin and Dominique Perry rather hilariously fleshed the characters out.

Although allegedly feuding for the attention of the same man, it didn't really feel like that. And it didn't feel as if the script truly pit the women against each other dynasty style which made the film all the more enjoyable.

What came across was the tight bond between the two characters with surprisingly humorous / realistic punches at what it means to be single.

Although the production budget regarding filming locations were restricted to the church and the main character's houses, the actors didn't stint on their talents.

I'd rather have a production with a limited budget but great acting, strong script and strong directing, then a huge budget with painfully awkward acting, unnatural pauses and a script portraying the main characters as superficial one-dimensional holiday stereotypes.

Having Janet Hubert was a huge bonus.

Overall, this was just super funny. Yes, it mentions Church culture, for the anti-religious, but more in the vein of church politicking, which the script simultaneously mocks.

This was super fun, super realistic and super accessible. Do take a holiday chance on it.

Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny (2023)

A little Sad and a little close-minded

[4/10 · 10 December 2023]

Even though Indiana Jones was about a cis het male tomb raiding other cultures, there was a sense of fun. Plus, his international cast members were treated with respect.

This go round everyone is sad. Indiana Jones is portrayed as the sad old man next door. His British best friend is shown as sad, old and mentally obsessed in his later years. His Egyptian best friend, who was well off in Egypt and just as cultured as Indy, is portrayed as a sad old man desperate to regain his former glory, who is also an impoverished taxi driver.

Other minority characters receive similar negative fates. An African American server is lightly denigrated by the villain in the opening. A black female CIA operative is violently murdered for no reason. Helena's Morro can boyfriend is portrayed as cartoonishly violent and romantically obsessed. And there's a weird creepy moment when the Nazi villain is credited for putting the man on the moon when we know it was due to a team of female calculators.

In some ways the script's attempt at realism makes it better than the horrid crystal skull. But the writers appear to not really care for any of the characters. Oddly, Mads Mikkelson's Nazi is the only one who came off well. The first 30 minutes nicely channel the energy of the original Spielberg films. But once they returned to modern-day US, it was both over the top in action, yet relentlessly portrayed all characters as some version of sad. And the murder of the African American female CIA agent just felt mean. Adding Phoebe Waller bridge was a nice choice and added new energy, but I have no idea why they reused the same scriptwriter from Crystal skull for this version.

This could have been a good film. But there were so many subtle things that made me uncomfortable, including the portrayal of minorities that oddly did not make me feel uncomfortable in the '80s. Also, Indy was a great character. I loved the idea of showing an older more mature Indy who maybe can't do everything he could in his youth. But they could do that without portraying him as well ... sad.

Christmas with the Campbells (2022)

A Great Palate Cleanser

[8/10 · 9 December 2023]

After watching a series of un-ironic offerings from Hallmark, Amazon Prime, Hulu, and Disney Plus, this was a great palate cleanser for people that love holiday flicks but can't help rolling their eyes.

The casting director smartly used actors who play these types of roles in other films but to even greater levels. Brittany Snow played a great straight woman/standard holiday heroine who interacts with every single over the top stereotype from the smarmy 80s style finance boyfriend, to the curmudgeonly guy next door who negs like it's 1999. Alex Moffat plays his usual SNL frat boy banker awesomely. Annette Wright plays the usual gossipy neighbor but even more blatantly.

And Vince Vaughn's script gave more texture to the locals. Joanna Garcia played a horny baker with a penchant for branding. Julia Duffy played more than the standard holiday homemaker.

This is definitely a script written by improvisers who both love the holiday but can't help asking 'if this is true' what else could happen with these holiday stereotypes?

Time for Me to Come Home for Christmas (2018 TV Movie)

A Reliable Holiday Franchise

[6/10 · 9 December 2023]

I watched three of the later films in the 'time to come home' series, but I was hesitant to watch this one because Megan Park played a superficial character in 'Once upon a prince.' I wasn't certain if that was due to her acting or just bad writing/directing. However, this is a well-written script and a well-directed film. And, I have now learned not to judge a Hallmark actress by her previous film.

The 'time to come home' series avoids static Hallmark plot lines, by giving each character their own realistic storyline, and one overarching plot to unite the film. Cara has a failing business while Heath handles family concerns. But both must travel to the same community for the holidays.

This is the standard warm hearted road trip film without the standard cliches. Cara at least shows initial believable hesitance at sharing a car with an absolute stranger. And there is no forced one bed scenario. Instead the various interactions with Heath's fans and family create a warm holiday atmosphere.

I realize I could not be a Hallmark heroine because I would never accept an already opened alcoholic beverage from a stranger, let alone drive in a car with him for days.

Considering this is the fourth film I have seen in this series, even if I have to put up with several lowkey country music ads, I feel I can reliably say the focus on bittersweet reality (although this is the first Hallmark small business with a realistic holiday idea) that helps keep the script accessible yet warm.

A Godwink Christmas (2018 TV Movie)

Well-written, Well-acted, Well-directed

[8/10 · 8 December 2023]

Hallmark's writers are learning how to incorporate subtle complexity into their works. Girl next door Paula is at a crossroads with her relationship, her job and her family. Old school Hallmark would've given her a 2D villainous boyfriend, a hideous job with an overbearing boss and a terrible home scenario. But real life isn't like that. We can have a great job, good love interest and still feel unhappy. The script taps into that.

Although both actors are old school Hallmark performers, they bring a lot of emotional vulnerability to the table which helped the film and the heroine's experiences feel real.

Normally, Hallmark's male writers create very superficial female characters, but this male trio and the director created a film full of authentic, accessible emotions

As a bonus, the decorating budget was amazing, so get ready for some blazing eye candy.

Love in Winterland (2020 TV Movie)

The bachelor meets hallmark

[7/10 · 8 December 2023]

The film does a great job of good naturedly poking fun of various Bachelor-nation cliches including the heroine there 'for the wrong reason,' the up-and-coming influencer pitching her products and the too good to be true hero who probably doesn't have a job.

The film does a great job of avoiding standard hallmark cliches. The heroine doesn't have to choose between two unrealistic male stereotypes. Plus, she does not have to choose between her job and the small town hero.

In addition to the gentle winks and nudges at reality TV, the graphic design team also mocks early '90s boy bands with various posters.

Chad Michael Murray maintains his usual early OOs charisma in his curmudgeonly role.

This was a great addition to the Hallmark stable. The budget and production values were much higher. The leads had a nice gentle chemistry. The supporting characters were all good actors who were not written as one dimensional small town stereotypes.

So if you are a bachelor fan and a Hallmark fan, this is for you.

Christmas at the Palace (2018 TV Movie)

A Royal Improvement

[7/10 · 6 December 2023]

Normally Hallmark's focus on Royal Christmases includes an idealistic over-the-top heroine, a stiff upper lip hero, a lot of unnecessary elitism and a heroine abandoning her career for love.

Luckily, this does not adhere to the old template. Instead of just one heroine we get two. Plus, we don't get the standard all or nothing plotline. All of the characters have realistic relationship discussions and the heroines choose what is best for them not their love interests.

Also, great job with European casting. When selecting faux-English royalty, Hallmark rarely chooses actors that are believably posh or have believable accents. Luckily, this time around, from the daughter, to the aunt, to the Prince himself, I absolutely believed all were upper crust.

And, as a bonus the prince and his aide were both very easy on the eyes. Double bonus, the writers created a credible child character and not a cardboard cutout.

Overall, I enjoyed the directing and the writing. The plot took time for relationship building, but didn't drag out scenes (there were some really nice very intimate moments). Also, it avoided the usual European royal meets common American stereotype with a mean bullying mother.

I'd recommend this for any anglophile who is also a Hallmark fan.

Christmas Princess (2017 TV Movie)

Bittersweet Holiday Warmth

[8/10 · 5 December 2023]

As a former foster child, Donaly has undergone numerous traumatic events. These are Experiences she still struggles with even as a popular student in a stable, adopted home with her birth siblings.

The film does an excellent job portraying her increasing fears even as she progresses through the Rose Princess levels.

My parent was a former foster kid adopted by a loving family, but despite their success in adulthood, numerous degrees and a stable middle class home, I remember my parent's ongoing fear of the other shoe dropping.

The acting was realistic and showed how a teen navigates that experience while trying to reach out, yet fearing to do so. Despite her harrowing backstory, the editors/directors/writers avoided trauma milking save through small flashes.

What also remained notable is as this teen navigated these difficult experiences, her adopted parents and even close friends, knowing her difficulty, couldn't stop putting their own pressure on her, which is also pretty realistic.

This was definitely warmhearted. There are a couple mentions of Christianity, for those anti-religion, but not overwhelmingly so. Overall, it's nice to have another holiday movie entry that allows for a bittersweet backstory with holiday warmth.

Deliver by Christmas (2020 TV Movie)

Holiday Hallmark meets Quirky Love is Blind

[8/10 · 4 December 2023]

Hallmark's newer films, especially with diverse casts, tend to offer better writing, improved directing and more genuine, up to date storylines.

Baker Molly plans a holiday event with single dad Josh without ever meeting in person. Basically it's Love is Blind meets Holiday Hallmark.

The strength of the script comes from the time the two spend in long late night discussions communicating by phone. As a viewer, I appreciate when the writers and directors give the relationship room to breathe.

On a plus side, they hit the male fashion out of the park. Everything Eoin Bailey wore as Josh looked like something out of his day to day wardrobe as opposed to 1980s Sear's finest.

Some things were off. For instance, it isn't believable anyone would run their bakery that way, Molly's sister was the stereotypical noodnik and Molly's wardrobe felt less contemporary.

However, the film's strength rests on the natural connection between the two leads.

Time for Him to Come Home for Christmas (2022 TV Movie)

Best Friends to Lovers

[7/10 · 4 December 2023]

3 years ago, I would've said Hallmark manufactures nothing but over emotional, superficial schmaltz, but the last 3 years have greatly changed that.

'Time for HIM to come home' has a great atemporal plot device mixed with an overarching Christmas mystery and underlying plot of holiday sadness. The script balances all plot lines nicely while adding a b plot of following the separated lovers.

This is a GREAT cast. Steve Bacic was THE 90s hot guy for any sci fi genre, so pulling him for the b plot was awesome. Plus, anytime a celeb plays a celeb always adds credible star power i.e. Country singer Tenille.

The only rough spot came from the seeming age discrepancy. Although the same age, Holland, the female lead looks early-mid twenties while Tyler Hynes looks like a male in his mid to late 30s. I couldn't believe they were classmates, let alone buy him as an undergrad in flashbacks.

This was a great, well-written film that didn't trauma milk and had great cast chemistry.

Time for You to Come Home for Christmas (2019 TV Movie)

Bittersweet

[7/10 · 4 December 2023]

A well-crafted Hallmark film that acknowledges Holiday sadness can occur without over the top trauma milking.

Lucas Bryant was lovely in Haven, but here he mixes his usual grounded acting style with warmth.

Alison Sweeney continues her acting journey from passionate Sammi on Days of Our Lives to portraying a wise yet emotionally vulnerable character.

There were small pops of diversity that didn't feel forced with her musical best friend who served a critical plot point.

The film was gently crafted from the opening to the ending. This remains a great example of Hallmark's increasingly more nuanced offerings.

Time for Them to Come Home for Christmas (2021 TV Movie)

Smart and Heartwarming

[8/10 · 4 December 2023]

This is the standard road trip romantic comedy without the overdone cliches. First off, it avoids stereotypical gender roles with a male lead as nurse. Plus, despite numerous roadside mishaps nary a forced shared bed scene to be had.

The film didn't force the chemistry and didn't create unnecessary dialogue with side characters hinting at a barely there connection. Instead, thr script nicely relied on real world relationship chemistry.

Note: these rom-coms always have one easily explainable misunderstanding, which I wish the script hadn't included.

Overall, great casting, great writing, great directing and a Nice little Easter egg for Hallmark fans.