Movies Reviewed by Cally Younger
Reviewer: Cally Younger
Publication: Hallmark's the Spot
Average Rating: 41/100
Number of Reviews: 39
Christmas Tree Lane
Rating: Dud
So, over all... this movie was fine. Maybe it’s because it’s the last one I watched from the weekend. Maybe I’m always prone to be a little snarkier about keeping unprofitable old buildings instead of building something new. I don’t know. But it’s still Hallmark and we’re all still here, aren’t we? But it still felt VERY Hallmark and VERY Christmasy.
Jingle Bell Bride
Rating: Spud
Overall, this movie was... fine. I would have liked more “will they or won’t they” moments. I would have liked to see better Christmas sweaters and seen more hot chocolate and Christmas cookies. But there were a lot of nice Christmas feels and some wonderfully over the top Christmas home decor. And I do love a small Christmas town. So I imagine this one will land in the middle of the pack of 2020 Hallmark Christmas movies when this is all said and done.
Deliver by Christmas
Rating: Spud
So, overall, I liked this one. ALOT of good Christmas decorations and lots of Christmas baked goods. There were some cute sweaters. And I appreciated the novel concept of them only chatting by phone. BUT I did miss not getting to really see them together for most of the movie. It is hard to show a relationship growing through texts posted on screen. But I did enjoy it. Definitely one to watch!
Chateau Christmas
Rating: Dud
So, overall take-I liked this movie. It was a lot of fun. I like both the lead actors. There was BIG CHRISTMAS ENERGY in this one too. And truly, my mom and I laughed a lot as we reminisced on our days at the Sleep Inn. We spent many great Christmases there, even though we never made any wreaths or brought ornaments from home.
Cranberry Christmas
Rating: Spud
Okay so I loved this one. It will probably end up being one of my favorites of the season. Nikki Deloach is one of my faves and I loved Benjamin Ayres in Blue Ridge Mountain Christmas. All the characters were very fun and I liked the idea of Hallmark showing two people falling in love again after going through a difficult time. So, this is definitely worth a watch! Let’s see how it did on the checklist. Since we didn’t have two “new to each other” leads, we missed out on a lot of common tropes! Maybe that’s why it was so good.
One Royal Holiday
Rating: Dud
So this was your pretty standard bad Hallmark movie. It was MUCH BETTER than last year’s Royal movie. But, no part of the Royal story line made any sense whatsoever. It just doesn’t work. But the characters are all pretty dang likeable so even though this is not a good movie, I enjoyed watching it... and isn’t that the whole spirit of Hallmark Christmas Movies? So yeah, go ahead and fold some clothes or clean your kitchen while you watch this. Or put it on while you take down all your Halloween decor and put up your Christmas decorations. It’ll probably be in the bottom tier of my 2020 rankings though.
Holly & Ivy
Rating: Spud
So, I was really dreading this movie. The preview looked unbearably sad! I wasn’t sure I could get through it. And then we had some DVR issues where we recorded the wrong airing so I am behind on a movie I didn’t want to watch anyway! So here we are.
On the 12th Date of Christmas
Rating: Spud
This was the other movie I was looking forward to this weekend. Tyler Hynes has become one of my favorite Hallmark men. I might have turned off the Mistletoe Secret had it not been for Tyler Hynes’ cardigans. And I genuinely loved Winter In Vail. If THAT had been a Christmas movie, I don’t know if I would have ever recovered.
Never Kiss a Man in a Christmas Sweater
Rating: Spud
Okay. I loved this movie. It is probably in the running to be my favorite of the season. There was lots of funny dialogue and it was a fun twist on the classic Hallmark set up.
The Christmas Ring
Rating: Dud
...Oh good. A baking montage. They break up the candy canes and... like none of them are broken. Like they basically show a completely intact candy cane. But they cheer for themselves anyway. She gets a text from her boss that says “GREAT NOTES ON MICHAEL” in all caps. Why, if she wasn’t planning to include the gossip, would she include details of his breakup in her notes? Come on, Kendra.
Christmas with the Darlings
Rating: Dud
I didn’t know anything about this movie before I started it... except perhaps that one of the characters had the audacity to group Oatmeal Raisin in with actual Christmas cookies. Be warned, that DOES happen. Let’s dive in!
The Christmas Bow
Rating: Spud
This was a cute movie. It was a nice, different story idea. And I liked that the lead was a REAL violinist. I believe the actor who played Patrick’s mom really has CMT as well. So those were two nice things to feature. Everyone was really great in this movie too! So great job all around.
Christmas in Vienna
Rating: Dud
...Tori asks Jess to help her babysit so she can sell her ornaments at the Christmas market. WHAT NOW. Before Jess can like, recover from the shock of being asked something so outrageous, Tori DRAGS her into Mark’s office. Well, what do you know. It’s MARK. GUYS. I would hardly agree to watch my close friends’ children IN TOWN. FOR ONE NIGHT. And I HAVE KIDS. If I was a single 40 year old woman, I would have NO interest in hanging out with strange children ON MY GD VACATION. For heaven’s sake TORI!!!! Also, I just want to reiterate that Tori and Jess CANNOT possibly be the same age and also have Jess be interested in Mark.
Meet Me at Christmas
Rating: Dud
So, this movie was fine. I thought Joan was just kind of a grump the whole movie. I guess she was supposed to be torn because she probably liked Beau better the whole time and then married this other guy and had a kid. But I guess those emotions are hard to display. But I don’t know. I do love a movie with a Christmas wedding... at a lodge. So that was nice too. But, yeah, “fine” about sums up my feelings on this one. Find one that’s more fun to watch while you cook or do laundry or whatever.
A Timeless Christmas
Rating: Spud
I enjoyed this movie. It was fun. I anticipated a lot of silliness, but I must say, this is probably Hallmark’s best time travelling Christmas movie. I liked the two leads together. I do find it hard to believe that anyone would be interested in this museum but maybe the mystery of his disappearance was enough to keep it in business? I GUESS.
The Christmas Doctor
Rating: Spud
I put this movie off until last because I thought it was going to be the worst one. Boy was I wrong. I think it might be my favorite from the weekend! I just really enjoyed it. It was a fun premise with a great little connection twist at the end... even though I figured it out MUCH EARLIER OKAY? But, I was really hoping Gabby and that lonely guy in the waiting room would get together. Anyone else? Also, I am probably always going to be partial to the movies that take place in a cute little Christmas town.
The Angel Tree
Rating: Dud
So this one was a cute concept. Overall, I liked it. I found Rebecca’sgrudge against the Angel to be QUITE silly. I also didn’t like how they just referred to THE angel as “Angel.” I don’t know why. It bugged me. But in general, this was a cute one with lots of good Hallmark Christmas feels because of all the community outreach.
A Nashville Christmas Carol
Rating: Dud
Okay so this movie was on the sillier side for sure. But it wasn’t as bad as I expected. There were some cute moments. I liked the idea of them doing some flashbacks to tell the story of Vivian and Gavin’s friendship. But the country themed Christmas Carol component was obviously quite silly. But it’s very hard to get that right. I find it hard to believe that despite Vivian landing an even better job the very night Gavin does, that she would still be angry about not directing his client’s music videos as well. Like, everything worked out for both of them? Let’s not hold a grudge for a decade? So, yeah. Also, WHAT IS PEPPERMINT BRITTLE.
The Christmas House
Rating: Spud
Well DANG IT THAT WAS CUTE. For real this is probably going to be my favorite movie of the year. It was such a fun idea for a Hallmark movie. I loved the brothers’ relationship. Their silly competitiveness was so hilarious. And all of Mike’s OVER THE TOP acting in EVERYTHING. It was all so great. I also liked that all three couples were kind of going through something different. And of course that everything worked out at the end. So yes, loved this one. You should all definitely watch
A Christmas Tree Grows in Colorado
Rating: Dud
This is quite the title. Sometimes, Hallmark movie titles just have me scratching my head. How do they come up with this stuff? Here, it kind of makes sense but it is still... I don’t know. Anyway, this is Tuesday night’s movie from Thanksgiving week. Like the one the night before, it is just fine. Kind of a twist on our traditional premise and another nice nod to adopting “older” (meaning not babies) children from foster care so it gets points for that.
Good Morning Christmas!
Rating: Dud
OH MY GOSH HOW MANY MORE MOVIES CAN I WATCH. For real. I just want to catch up on the Mandalorian but there’s NO TIME. So now I’ve got to tell you about this stupid movie. It was okay, alright? My husband decided to watch this with me and I felt bad because there are much better ones I could have forced him to sit through.
Christmas by Starlight
Rating: Spud
This was a fun one. There were lots of silly nonsensical things in this movie but it also made me laugh out loud a few times. I enjoyed watching it after three snoozers in a row. This one is definitely worth watching!
Five Star Christmas
Rating: Spud
So this one got off to a rough start in my view. But there were several funny moments. The family hamming it up was pretty great. So it was better than I thought. There was a little bit of silly nonsense in it of course but it was definitely a fun, light hearted movie! Definitely worth watching.
USS Christmas
Rating: Dud
This movie was a little silly. It was a different story for sure. I thought all the actors did a fine job. I don’t think I loved this movie... but it will probably end up in my top half. I don’t know. It’s the last one of that marathon week, you guys! What do you want from me?
The Christmas Waltz
Rating: Dud
So, this one was okay. It was definitely better than I thought it would be. I kind of liked that the ex-boyfriend was like genuinely up to no good. Usually they are perfectly nice guys but just you know, not running their own small town coffee shop or handy man business. There wasn’t a lot of like... Christmas moments in this one though. It definitely had some Christmas feels, but in general, it seemed like this story just happened to take place at Christmas. So, yeah, this one was fine!
If I Only Had Christmas
Rating: Dud
So, this one was better than I thought. Some of the dialogue was... not great. They tried super hard to use a lot of Wizard of Oz lingo too. And I was confused about the relationship between this foundation and Austen, Inc. I thought William was just one member of a board of directors. But it seemed like Emerald was actually like the company’s charitable foundation towards the end. I also don’t understand the world of PR so some of this seemed silly there too. But, it was much better than say, “A Shoe Addict’s Christmas?” So there’s that.
Christmas in Evergreen: Bells Are Ringing
Rating: Dud
I am pretty upset about how this all went down. I have to assume that Covid ruined the plans to make this a wedding centric edition of this line of movies. I mean, Thomas was on video chat the whole time so that might explain a lot. However, it does not explain why Elliot didn’t PROPOSE at the end of this movie?! Like, why not? Are we going to have to wait another year for this proposal? Or are we just not going to get to see that? I waited all year to hear what these two got up to for heaven’s sake. But also, I do think we are probably GOOD on Evergreen Christmas movies. Let’s just let these people be probably? Can we all agree?
A Little Christmas Charm
Rating: Dud
Guys this movie was so bad. It might be the worst movie of the entire year. I would watch Christmas Tree Lane 5 more times if it meant my memory of this movie would be erased. Can we be done with the Christmas jewelry mysteries? They are not interesting. They are not mysterious. And the big reveal is always incredibly underwhelming. Remember that movie where the nurse finds out that her supervisor actually delivered her when she was born? That was actually a lovely little twist ending. So anyway, this movie was terrible. I cannot get over the fact that they thought it would be okay to include a scene where a woman surprised her friend at 20+ weeks pregnant with the news that she was carrying twins. NO ONE, literally NO ONE stopped this scene from playing out the way it did. I just cannot.
Christmas She Wrote
Rating: Dud
Okay so this is Danica McKellar’s movie. I didn’t love Christmas in Dollywood last year. I liked the scenes at Dollywood. Did not care for that movie. Also, seeing the movie “posters,” I was a little skeptical at the pairing for this movie. Would the story convince me that these two work together? Spoiler alert: NO.
A Glenbrooke Christmas
Rating: Dud
So this one was perfectly fine. It is very much a spin on the same old same old. But I did enjoy watching it. I mean, this is what we’re all here for right?
Time for Us to Come Home for Christmas
Rating: Dud
So here was the version of this movie everyone was asking for... Right? Time for US to come home? Except none of the people in this movie actually went home for Christmas. Are we going to do this again next year? Time for THEM? For those guys over there? To come home? Or are we done? (Sigh.)...Nobody came home for Christmas. So there’s one problem. “US” is a bunch of people who don’t know each other. Can we be done with this? And also, can we have some actual compelling mysteries? Would a Christmas murder mystery be so bad? Would a Christmas remake of “And Then There Were None” be so bad? Come on you guys!
Love, Lights, Hanukkah!
Rating: Spud
Well, so this was pretty cute. I normally don’t like to criticize acting because, who am I? But I felt like some of Christina’s reactions just did not line up with what was happening around her. I don’t really know what was going on but like, when Ruth says she’s her mother... I don’t know... her reactions and face just didn’t seem to line up with the words she was saying. But, overall, I liked this movie! I would love to see more Hanukkah movies thrown in the mix next year.
Unlocking Christmas
Rating: Spud
So, another Sunday night, another “mystery” movie. Will this one be as disappointing as nearly every other attempt at creating a Christmas mystery? I hope not. Neither my heart nor my brain can take it.
Christmas Comes Twice
Rating: Spud
So overall, I enjoyed this movie. Time travel movies always get a little tricky but I feel this ending really did a disservice to the rest of the story. Also, I am placing the blame for Mrs. Nelson’s untimely death squarely on Cheryl’s shoulders. I hope she lives with that guilt for the rest of her life.
A Christmas Carousel
Rating: Dud
So this movie was honestly fine. There were some huge leaps in logic, certainly. And of course there is always trouble when you are trying to build out a fictional European country that is still actually governed by a monarchy. I also hated that they added in the “Art of Christmas” student art show story line but I suppose they needed some reason for the prince to be resistant to becoming the king some day. I guess it had to be because of “his art.” Doesn’t make me hate it any less.
Swept Up by Christmas
Rating: Dud
So I didn’t hate this movie. It was a cute, different story line. I liked the two leads. I think their jobs were both a little silly but yeah, this one worked for ol Cal!
Cross Country Christmas
Rating: Spud
I really liked this one. It might end up being one of my favorites of the season. Lena and Max were really cute and fun together. There was a lot of silliness but it was just a FUN watch! Normally I hate a movie where everything goes wrong but I just didn’t mind it as much here.
Project Christmas Wish
Rating: Dud
We did it! We made it through all the movies. I don’t know how I feel about this one. I really hated the beginning and most of the premise. But I did kind of like these two at the end. So maybe bottom middle? I just can’t believe this was the last one.
Heart of the Holidays
Rating: Dud
So yeah this is your standard fare Hallmark movie. It was fine. Everyone was likeable I guess. But it really is your stereotypical Hallmark movie. So if that is what you came here for well, then this is for you.