Christmas On 5th Avenue (2021)

Rated: G

Genres: Romance

Starring: Kathryn Davis and Olivier Renaud

Synopsis: Hopeless romantic Eva Jordan decorates a spectacular Manhattan Penthouse for Christmas and brings moody writer Lucas Blade some joy for the holidays.

Review: This is a very sweet movie with the basic elements of Beauty and the Beast. Eva is a true ray of happiness and sunshine. Just watching her is enough to uplift you and erase a tiny bit of cynicism.  There’s also lots of beautiful Christmas scenery and the spirit of Christmas is throughout.

Scoring: 3

Christmas on Candy Cane Lane (2022)

Rated: G

Genres: Family

Starring: Andrea Barber and Dan Payne

Synopsis: Ivy Donaldson struggles with her mom's shadow, Muriel, the Christmas darling of Icicle Falls. She is now separated from her husband Rob and tries her best with her daughter, but after a series of strange but comical events everybody gets together in unexpected but festive ways.

Review:  I feel the movie would have been more impactful if there was more backstory. The viewer is expected to immediately understand all the emotions involved in the mother’s death and the separation as well as the whole Candy Cane Lane traditions. It was a cute movie but lacked depth. 

Scoring: 2 

Christmas On Division Street (1991)

Rated: PG

Genre: Drama

Starring: Fred Savage and Hume Cronyn

Synopsis: A boy moves to Philadelphia where he’s taught by a homeless drifter. 

Review:  It’s hard to put what makes this movie so special into words. It’s a feeling you get. While I don’t advise young children becoming friends with strangers, the friendship between these two is heartwarming. The movie reminds us that people who are homeless are exactly that. People. People in need of a home and kindness. Keep your tissues handy for this tear-jerker. 

Scoring: 4

Christmas On Holly Lane (2018)

Rated: PG

Genres: Drama, Family

Starring: Sarah Lancaster, Karen Holness, and Gina Holden

Synopsis: Three childhood friends, Sarah, Riley and Cat, with fond memories of Christmas at Sarah's house, come together as adults to save Sarah's home in the hopes of having many more beautiful Christmases together.

Review: The synopsis doesn’t begin to cover every situation and circumstance in the movie. I did know how it would end but there were some twists along the way. It’s a charming story of recovering from past and present pain in order to have a better future. I hope there’s a sequel. 

Scoring: 3

Christmas On Honeysuckle Lane (2018)

Rated: G

Genres: Drama, Family, Romance

Starring: Colin Ferguson, Laura Leighton, and Alicia Witt

Synopsis: Emma returns home to celebrate Christmas for the last time with her siblings in the house they grew up in. After their parents' recent passing, the siblings reluctantly agree to sell the family home on Honeysuckle Lane.

Review:  This movie was quite surprising. Rather than a typical love story it was siblings sharing Christmas and Emma solving a mystery. It's hard to explain without spoilers just know I thought it was really charming. 

Scoring: 3

Christmas On Ice (2020)

Rated: G

Genre: Romance

Starring: Abigail Klein and Ryan Cooper

Synopsis: A former figure skater and a former hockey player work together to void the mayor from closing the local skating rink.

Review: Did I know how it was going to end from the beginning?  Pretty much.  That didn’t stop them from throwing in a few surprises and keeping it interesting.  It had some really touching moments.  The conversation about the angel on the tree will stay with me.  Lovely movie.

Scoring: 3

Christmas on Mistletoe Lake (2022)

Rated: PG

Genres: Family, Romance

Starring: Genelle Williams and Corey Sevier

Synopsis: Interior designer Reilly finds herself this Christmas in the town of Mistletoe Lake with no place to stay. She accepts an offer from Ray to stay in his boat, helping him renovate the boat for the town's Christmas Harbor Festival.

Review: I loved this movie.  I knew it would work out and have a happy ending but I wasn’t sure how they would get there.  There were some twists and turns.  Ray and Reilly, played by Williams and Sevier, are brilliant characters and the actors have great chemistry.  There’s almost a growing sense of unspoken magic as the story goes on.  Naturally, the little girl playing Emma adds a wonderful layer.  This is one I’ll watch many times.  

Scoring: 4

Christmas On My Mind (2019)

Rated: G

Genres: Drama, Family, Romance

Starring: Ashley Greene, Andrew Walker, and Jackée Harry

Synopsis: When Lucy wakes up with a wedding dress in hand, she believes that she is late to her wedding with her ex-boyfriend Zac. However, she has no recollection of the past 2 years, including the fact that she is engaged to another man.

Review: From the synopsis, I wasn’t sure what to expect.  The story wasn’t cheesy or slow.  It was interesting.  I enjoyed how the story unfolded.  I started to get worried that they were building up how the couple broke up so much that it would be anticlimactic and ruin the story.  It didn’t but it wasn’t exactly clear either.  I still loved the romance and the Christmas traditions here.  Greene and Walker have great chemistry. 

Scoring: 3

Christmas on Repeat (2022)

Rated: NR

Genres: Comedy, Family, Fantasy

Starring: Matthew Lawrence and Jennifer Taylor

Synopsis: An ad executive gets more than she bargained for when Santa grants her wish for a Christmas do-over, and she realizes she's been missing precious time with her family.

Review: While it’s another “Groundhog Day” plot, I enjoyed this version. It’s not just about the lead character. It’s about the people around her and learning about them and how her actions affect them. It’s a little corny at the end and silly at times but fun. 

Scoring: 3

Christmas On Salvation Street (2015)

Rated: PG

Genres: Family, Religion

Starring: Joe Pacheco

Synopsis: Noah Davis is a Pastor in an affluent community. Depressed after losing his wife to illness, he is contacted by an old friend who has opened a mission in a rough inner-city neighborhood. With Christmas approaching, he packs up and together with his two daughters, moves into Salvation Street Mission. Now the family must struggle with the challenges they face in the crime ridden community.

Review: The movie had an overall nice message of faith and family.  Besides that, it was filled with racial stereotypes, a father who put himself before his children, and unrealistic personal transformations.  If you just want the Christian message, you may like it.  Other than that, skip it.

Scoring: 2

Christmas On The Menu (2020)

Rated: PG

Genres: Family, Romance

Starring: Kim Shaw, Clayton James, Cynthia Gibb

Synopsis: Celebrated chef Josie heads home for the holidays and creates a special festive menu for her mom’s new bed and breakfast bistro, where she runs into Tanner, the famous food critic who panned her old bakery in a review. 

Review: The story is cute and sweet but falls a little flat. There aren’t many layers to it. Even moments like the mother and daughter talking as they remember their late husband/father fails to evoke strong emotions. It’s a sweet enjoyable love story but that’s about it. 

Scoring: 3

Christmas On The Range (2019)

Rated: NR

Genres: Comedy, Drama, Family, Romance

Starring: Erin Cahill, Nicholas Gonzalez, Lindsay Wagner, and A Martinez

Synopsis: Kendall's one holiday wish is to keep the family ranch solvent. Her rival's charming son offers help-and maybe more-but can he be trusted?

Review: This movie has it all. I felt sad, happy, sentimental, and pretty much all the feels. I even laughed out loud numerous times. The beauty salon scenes are hysterical. The dramatic scenes are riveting.  The romance is beautiful. I won’t ruin the ending but this is one to watch. 

Scoring: 4

Christmas on the Slopes (2022)

Rated: G

Genre: Romance

Starring: Soma Chhaya and Olivier Renaud 

Synopsis: A chef goes on vacation trying to get away from a series of disappointments both on personal and his professional life, but there he gets into a clash with the resort's grumpy chef.

Review:  This movie was just so very blah. From start to finish there was no real emotion. The sad part is the story had some real potential. It’s not bad but I’d skip it. 

Scoring: 2

Christmas On The Vine (2020)

Rated: PG

Genres: Family, Romance

Starring: Julianna Guill, Jon Cor, and Meredith Baxter

Synopsis: A young marketing executive is assigned to help a struggling family-owned winery.

Review: I was disappointed in how lackluster this movie was. I don’t know if it was how abstract the concept of the villain was (it didn’t have the tug of war for the vineyard the movie needed), the lack of chemistry between the romantic leads, or the story getting bogged down in wine facts. It’s worth watching once but I may not watch again. 

Scoring: 2

Christmas on Wheels (2020)

Rated: PG

Genre: Romance

Starring: Tiya Sircar and Michael Xavier

Synopsis: Ashley enlists the help of her uncle’s attorney to find her mom’s convertible after it was sold.

Review: Insert dumb car pun here. I’ll spare you. Lol. The movie is fairly ho hum despite a wonderful performance by Sircar. The meaning behind the car and the good her mother did was sweet but it wasn’t enough to drive the movie (oops I did it again). It felt like there were lots of puzzle pieces missing and we couldn’t see the whole picture. It was okay to watch once but I probably won’t watch it again.

Scoring: 2

The Christmas Ornament (2013)

Rated:  G

Genres: Drama, Romance

Starring: Kellie Martin and Cameron Mathison 

Synopsis: A widow plans to give Christmas festivities a miss, as they bring back too many memories of her late husband.

Review:  A very moving and sweet film. Kathy’s dealing with letting her husband go and moving forward with her life with the love and support of others is touching. I appreciated that they handled such a heavy subject with many positive and inspirational moments. 

Scoring: 4

The Christmas Pact (2018)

Rated: PG

Genres: Drama, Romance

Starring: Kyla Pratt and Jasmine Guy

Synopsis: As childhood friends and neighbors, Sadie and Ben planted a scrawny Christmas tree and promised to always keep the spirit of Christmas alive in their hearts. 

Review:  The story is interesting but Pratt’s disingenuous performance distracts from the tale. It’s good but had the potential to be much better. ***Update*** I think I was a little hard on Pratt. It’s not so much disingenuous as not as layered as it should be. I enjoyed watching it the second time. 

Scoring: 3

Christmas Pen Pals (2018)

Rated: PG

Genres: Drama, Romance

Starring: Niall Matter, Sarah Drew, and Michael Gross

Synopsis: Following an unexpected breakup week’s before Christmas, a tech wiz heads back to her hometown for the holidays. She signs up for an anonymous pen pal service and becomes enchanted by each beautifully written letter she receives. 

Review:  This movie is more about finding a soulmate than it is Christmas. It’s still an original and enchanting movie. No spoilers but it’s a happy ending for all. 

Scoring: 4

Christmas Perfection (2018)

Rated: PG

Genres: Comedy, Drama, Fantasy, Romance

Starring: Caitlin Thompson

Synopsis: As a kid, Darcy had no control over her family's holidays and thus, has grown up to be a Christmas control freak - so much so that she loses sight of what the holidays actually mean. Suddenly, she finds herself magically transported into her idea of the perfect Christmas Village and learns that 'perfection' isn't all it's cracked up to be.

Review:  This is sort of like Groundhog Day and the Wizard of Oz meshed. The main idea is one that’s overused but it’s done so well in this movie it feels fresh and new. Truly enjoyable. My favorite part was random Christmas words coming out when she tried to curse.

Scoring: 4

The Christmas Pitch (2021)

Rated: PG

Genres: Comedy, Romance

Starring: Joseph Morales and Alexa Maria Huerta

Synopsis: When two executives, Becca and William, at a top marketing firm in Chicago are sent to William’s hometown of Kringle Lake to rediscover the spirit of Christmas-they begin to find it, and more.

Review: This movie is chock full of Christmas. It’s sometimes silly and reminds me of the joy of family getting together. The romance is a forgone conclusion but it’s still fun watching it unfold. Loved it. 

Scoring: 4

A Christmas Present (2022)

Rated: G

Genres: Drama, Family, Religion

Starring: Candace Cameron Bure and Marc Blucas

Synopsis: Real-estate mom Maggie Larson takes her family to spend Christmas with her brother and his daughter, who have different expectations for their holidays.

Review: Let me start by saying there’s a real focus on religion so if you don’t like that, skip this one.  I enjoyed the family’s Christmas activities and learning to not plan every minute and just enjoy each other.  They also talk about coping with grief and having faith to get through the hard times.

Scoring: 3

A Christmas Prince (2017)

Rated: PG

Genres: Comedy, Drama, Romance

Starring: Rose McIver and Ben Lamb

Synopsis: When a reporter goes undercover as a tutor to get the inside scoop on a playboy prince, she gets tangled in some royal intrigue and ends up finding love - but will she be able to keep up her lie?

Review:  This movie was the hit of 2017. There were articles about people watching it over and over again. Because of this, I went into it with high expectations and I wasn’t disappointed. Yes, there’s lots of girl marries a prince movies but this one is special and one I’ll watch again. 

Scoring: 4

A Christmas Prince: The Royal Baby (2019)

Rated: PG

Genres: Drama, Family, Romance

Starring: Rose McIver and Ben Lamb

Synopsis: Christmas brings the ultimate gift to Aldovia: a royal baby. But first, Queen Amber must save her family and kingdom by unwrapping a monarchy mystery. 

Review: Being the third in the series, I wasn’t sure how they’d make the story new. Adding in another country, their monarchy, the stolen truce, and and a possible curse, it felt like a new story. It was more mystery than romance but still held the same feel as the first two. Thanks to a thorough recap at the beginning, you don’t have to watch the first two to appreciate this one but I would suggest it for the full emotional story and impact. 

Scoring: 3

A Christmas Prince: The Royal Wedding (2018)

Rated: PG

Genres: Comedy, Drama, Romance

Starring: Rose McIver and Ben Lamb

Synopsis: A year after helping Richard get to the throne, Amber is about to become his wife. But is she really made to be queen?

Review:  This had the same feeling as the original and it was as predictable. That being said, I enjoyed it. It delivers the American commoner marrying into the royal family of some small European nation love story as promised. It could’ve done without the over the top stereotype of a New Yorker dad and the ridiculous wedding planner. 

Scoring: 3

A Christmas Princess (2019)

Rated: G

Genre: Romance

Starring: Shein Mompremier, Erin Gray, and Travis Burns

Synopsis: A prince from a small European country arrives in New York City to plan his family’s annual Christmas charity dinner. 

Review: This movie is okay. Yes, it’s the standard commoner meets Prince and she’s the only one who doesn’t know who he is and romance ensues. And, of course, his parents don’t approve. I did like the catering aspect and it was interesting enough. It just needed a little more oomph. It’s still not a bad watch. The reunion at the end was a tearjerker. 

Scoring: 3

The Christmas Project (2016)

Rated: PG

Genres: Comedy, Family

Starring: Jacob Buster

Synopsis: A writer looks back on his memorable 1986 Christmas, dealing with brothers, bullies, first love, pregnancy and family "elving."

Review:  A sad attempt to recreate A Christmas story including Mom, younger brother, and grouchy dad. It might have been a decent movie if the imitation wasn’t so blatant. 

Scoring: 1

A Christmas Project Reunion (2020)

Rated: NR

Genres: Family, Comedy

Starring: Corbin Bernsen, Daniel Baldwin, and Brian Bosworth

Synopsis: An awkward high school boy is forced to break out of his shell, when his elementary school nemesis moves back into town and tries to steal his girlfriend.

Review: While still cheesy, corny, and juvenile, this is much better than the first movie.  It starts out borderline ridiculous but it actually gets pretty good towards the end.  It has a great message about family and giving to others.

Scoring: 2

The Christmas Promise (2021)

Rated: G

Genres: Drama, Family

Starring: Torrey DeVitto, Dylan Bruce, and Patrick Duffy

Synopsis: Nicole learns to deal with grief, with the help of her grandfather and a carpenter she hires to renovate the home that was once meant for her and her fiancé.

Review: I expected a movie about grief to be dark and sad. This so wasn’t. It was beautiful. It was filled with love and hope and friendship. It was about moving forward and living your life with love. I was completely absorbed in the movie.  How we can include the past with our present and future.

Scoring: 4 

A Christmas Proposal (2021)

Rated: G

Genres: Family, Romance

Starring: Adam Rodriguez and Jessica Camacho

Synopsis: A chef who dreams of having her own food trucks agrees to pose as the girlfriend of an attorney.  Working together they try to prove he’s the ideal candidate to take over the family firm, but it’s complicated as real sparks begin to fly.

Review: I really liked this one. It’s got characters that feel like people you know. It kept my attention waiting to see how the deception would be discovered. 

Scoring: 3

Christmas On The Coast (2018)

Rated: G

Genres: Drama, Romance

Starring: Julie Ann Emery, Burgess Jenkins, and Bonnie Bedelia 

Synopsis: Hard-hearted New York novelist Dru Cassadine...known for her holiday romance stories (even though she is antilove and anti-Christmas)...is desperate to get her mojo back after a string of flops (and a not-so-subtle threat by her publisher that he'll drop her if she has another failure). She decides that a change of scenery might get her creative juices flowing and heads south for the winter, landing in a place known as Harbor Pointe. She doesn't quite get what she came for. She gets much more.

Review:  The first time I watched this movie I was quite bored.  The second time I enjoyed it a lot more.  I wish there was a little more focus on the relationship between Dru and her mother but I enjoyed watching her rediscover herself.  This isn't one I'd watch over and over again but it's worth  a view.

Scoring: 2