Each movie listed includes: 

(1) Title (2) Rating (3) Genres (4) Starring (5) Synopsis (6) My Personal Review (7) Scoring 1-5

 

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Christmas Made To Order (2018)

Rated: G

Genres: Family, Romance

Starring: Alexa PenaVega and Jonathan Bennett

Synopsis: An architect hires a professional coordinator to help him host his family for Christmas. 

Review:  There are lots of Christmas and family traditions to enjoy, fun characters, and beautiful scenery. This is one of those movies that the more I watch it the more I love it. The characters make you want to root for them. 

Scoring: 4

 

Christmas Magic (2011)
Rated: G
Genres: Drama, Family, Fantasy, Religion, Romance
Starring: Lindy Booth and Paul McGillion
Synopsis: Carrie Blackford lives for her successful career as an event planner in New York City, but her life changes in an instant after a nasty car accident in a snowstorm. Carrie regains consciousness in Central Park with an older man.  Henry is Carrie's spirit guide and is there to help her "pass over" to Heaven. But before Carrie can move on, she must fulfill one last task on Earth - a type of Angel Duty. She must help guide a widowed, young restaurant owner, Scott Walker, whose restaurant is failing. Carrie befriends Scott and his 8-year-old daughter, who, of course, knows she’s an angel. Carrie falls for both Scott and his daughter but how will the universe handle this?
Review:  This movie is a little corny, especially the end. I didn’t expect it to end the way it did which was a nice surprise.  As expected the little girl is the center of the story. It's chock full of sweet moments that make it fun to see.
Scoring: 3.5
Christmas Mail  (2010)
Rated: PG
Genres: Comedy, Drama, Family, Romance
Starring: Ashley Scott, A.J. Buckley, Vanessa Evigan, and Lochlyn Munro
Synopsis: Matt's, a postman, boss grows suspicious of new hire Kristi, a "Santa Writer", whose job is responding to letters addressed to the North Pole. The boss recruits him to spy on her and report back with any unusual findings. But the more time Matt spends observing Kristi, the harder he starts to fall for her until he's hopelessly in love. Later, when Kristi uncovers the clandestine plot, she quits her job and disappears without a trace. Meanwhile, Matt searches high and low for her, to no avail. But when Kristi learns that Matt had no choice if he wanted to keep his job, it's only a matter of time before fate brings them back together.
Review:  Very adorable movie. Lochlyn Munro makes a good villain and the other characters are so enjoyable. A girl who was orphaned and is being raised by her uncle has the potential to make the movie dark and sad but they manage to keep it light.  The magic and joyous nature of Kristi will lift your spirits.  It's corny at times but still fun. 
Scoring: 3.5

A Christmas Masquerade (2022)

Rated: G

Genres: Family, Romance

Starring: Erin Aviation, Amy Matysio, and David Lafontaine

Synopsis: When she is mistaken for her boss at a Masquerade ball by a businessman, she continues the ruse over Christmas. Her mission is to secure him as a client. When his own motivations are revealed, they both realize, it just might be love.

Review: The romance was a fairly typical plot. Seeing the partner with the daughter and deciding she wants to be a mom was really moving. The rest was standard. It’s sweet, plenty of awkward moments, and a little corny. Still cute if you want a sugary romcom. 

Scoring: 2.5

Christmas Matchmakers (2019)

Rated: PG

Genre: Drama, Family, Romance

Starring: Vivica A. Fox, Anna Marie Dobbins, and Andrew Rogers

Synopsis: Two overworked personal assistants hatch a plan to get their bosses to date each other.

Review: I loved the unique plot.  Of course, we know what will happen with the assistants but I wasn’t sure what would happen with their bosses.  It was funny and sweet and filled with reminders of prioritizing family, especially at the holidays.  It’s a fun and easy movie to watch.

Scoring: 3

A Christmas Melody (2015)
Rated: G
Genres: Comedy, Musical, Romance
Starring: Mariah Carey, Brennan Elliott, Lacey Chabert, Kathy Najimy, and Fina Strazza
Synopsis: A single mother moves back to her hometown with her young daughter. Having a hard time adjusting, the daughter seeks help from her music teacher to write a song for the Christmas variety show. 
Review:  Lacey Chabert, as Kristin, is delightful as always. The best part of the movie is watching Fina Strazza as Chabert’s daughter Emily. The music is wonderful and the relationships between all the characters makes this a good one to catch. 
Scoring: 4

A Christmas Memory (1997)

Rated: NR

Genres: Drama, Family

Starring: Patty Duke, Piper Laurie, and Eric Lloyd

Synopsis: A boy, Buddy, whose parents have split and whose mother is an actress in New York, has been dumped in the south at the small-town home of some older cousins, all of whom are unmarried. Buddy brings life to the house and develops a close friendship with one of the older, simpler ladies, Sook. Buddy and Sook undertake many adventures together, including the baking of 31 fruit-cakes which they give as Christmas presents, even mailing them to President and Mrs. Roosevelt and Jean Harlowe! Just before Christmas, one of the older cousins begins to wonder if it is best for Buddy to be living with them...

Review:  A sweet tale of unconditional love and friendship. It’s very moving and makes you feel all the emotions you want to feel at Christmas. 

Scoring: 3

 

Christmas Miracle (2012)

Rated: PG

Genres: Drama, Family, Religion

Starring: Aaron Pearl

Synopsis: Due to a road closure, eight strangers must take refuge in an abandoned church during a storm. They learn how to manage through various dilemmas by working together.

Review:  There are so many life situations faced by the eight that many people will find relatable. It’s an endearing and moving story. 

Scoring: 3

 

A Christmas Miracle (2019)

Rated: G

Genres: Family, Romance

Starring: Barry Bostwick, Brooks Darnell, and Tamera Mowry-Housley

Synopsis: Ever-optimistic single mom Emma Sanderson is looking for a Christmas miracle to write about for the lifestyle magazine at which she has landed a temporary job. While following her lead on the story, Emma discovers unexpected romance with a supportive colleague and takes it upon herself to bring about a Christmas miracle for a lonely street musician.

Review: One of the best parts of this movie is Emma herself.  Her Christmas spirit, optimism, and seeing the positive in situations and people is contagious.  Her relationships with her son and her coworker Marcus are so sweet.  The only negative was that everything, throughout the movie, resolved too easily.  I left the movie feeling a little lighter and happier.  What more could you want?

Scoring: 3

A Christmas Miracle for Daisy (2021)

Rated: G

Genres: Family, Romance

Starring: Jill Wagner, Nick Bateman, and Rubi Tupper

Synopsis: Whitney, an interior designer, takes a job only to discover the home’s owner is her ex-boyfriend Conner, who has moved from Los Angeles with his daughter, Daisy.  More than anything, Daisy wishes for a mom to complete her picture-perfect family, and no prospect is as perfect as Whitney. Tall order, but Christmas is a time for miracles.

Review: I loved this movie.  The pace and the way the stories unfold are perfect.  Naturally, Daisy is unbelievably adorable.  Snow and Christmas magic help Whitney and Conner get over past hurts and rediscover each other.  It’s just lovely and well done.

Scoring: 4 

Christmas Mountain (1981)

Rated: G

Genre: Drama

Synopsis: A cowboy comes to a town at Christmas time and eats at a cafe but was unable to pay for his meal, so the owner throws him in jail. The town wants to alleviate their guilt over a Mexican family, who has a pregnant woman with them, who lives on top of a mountain called Christmas mountain. They bail out the cowboy and tells to bring some old clothes and food to them.

Review: I should begin by saying I’m not a fan of westerns in general.  The story is okay and the messages of kindness and equality are good but that’s about it.  It’s poorly done and frankly, quite boring.  Had it been directed or edited differently it may have been better.  If you like westerns you may like it.  Otherwise, I’d skip it.

Scoring: 1

A Christmas Movie Christmas (2019)

Rated: PG

Genres: Comedy, Drama, Family, Fantasy, Romance

Starring: Brant Daugherty, Lana McKissack, Ryan Merriman,  and Kimberly Daugherty

Synopsis: Following a Christmas wish, Eve and her sister Lacy get magically transported into a Christmas movie.

Review: This movie is going on my list of all-time favorites.  Obviously, as the Christmas Movie Queen, I would naturally love a movie about living in a Christmas movie.  Still, it was sweet, funny, moving, and still had a happy ending.  It kept the humor by including every movie cliché and making fun of it without making fun of loving the clichés.  I kept wondering how the sisters would end up happy when they left the Christmas movie but the magic continued.  Don’t miss this one.

Scoring: 5

Christmas Movie Magic (2021)

Rated: PG

Genres: Drama, Romance

Starring: Drew Seeley and Holly Deveaux

Synopsis: Follows Alli Blakeman, an entertainment writer who learns that movie magic isn’t always just on-screen after she discovers the mysterious origins of a classic Christmas movie.

Review: Magic is a good word for this movie. It’s like we’re experiencing the magic of classic Christmas movies along with the characters. The story had me totally involved from the get-go. It even had some surprises towards the end. I loved it. 

Scoring: 4

A Christmas Mystery (2014)

Rated: PG

Genres: Drama, Romance

Starring: Esmé Bianca, Ryan Bittle, and John Ratzenberger

Synopsis: When a reporter discovers that her late mother had been receiving Christmas cards from a secret admirer, she decides to track him down. In the process, she'll discover a family secret more dangerous than she could have ever imagined.

Review: This movie was lacking in every department, from script to casting to direction. It’s not horrible to watch but it’s not enjoyable either.  It just falls flat.

Scoring: 1

A Christmas Mystery (2022)

Rated: PG

Genres: Comedy, Drama, Family 

Starring: Beau Bridges, Eddie Cibrian, Violet McGraw and Santino Barnard

Synopsis: When her best friend's dad is falsely accused of stealing the town's prized jingle bells, a young amateur sleuth and her friends must find the real thief before Christmas.

Review: I was surprised at how much I liked this movie. It’s more solving the mystery than Christmas, but it would be a good film for older kids and tweens as well as families. 

Scoring: 3

Christmas Next Door (2017)
Rated: G
Genres: Drama, Family, Romance
Starring: Jesse Metcalf and Fiona Gubelmann
Synopsis: Eric Randall, an author of bachelor lifestyle books, is left in charge of his young niece and nephew for the holidays. Unsure of himself, Eric turns to his neighbor, April, a lover of all things Christmas, for help. 
Review:  The movie is interesting but a little slow. There are lots of Christmas traditions that April and the children participate in.  I enjoyed watching Eric and April, with the help of the kids, transform their lives for the better. 
Scoring: 3.5
The Christmas Note (2015)
Rated: G
Genres: Drama, Family
Starring: Jamie-Lynn Sigler and Leah Gibson
Synopsis: Having just moved back to her hometown without her serviceman husband but with her young son, Gretchen finds her life in disarray as Christmas approaches. She discovers new purpose when she helps to deliver a message to her neighbor, Melissa, which makes her an ally in the quest to find the neighbor's sibling she never knew she had. The women become bonded not only by the search, but by the understanding that being there for each other means they're no longer alone. This friendship becomes the greatest Christmas gift of their lives.
Review:  I experienced a roller coaster of emotions. There are sad moments but so many happy ones. Both Melissa and Gretchen’s stories are interesting and moving. You’ll be happy for sharing their journey with them. 
Scoring: 5