Hank Zipper’s Christmas Catastrophe (2022)

Rated: Y-7

Genres: Comedy, Family

Starring: Henry Winkler and Nick James

Synopsis: No one loves yuletide like Hank but this year he'll have to deal with a new baby brother AND exploding Xmas trees. Plus his best friends have been arrested and he's lost the love of his life. How will he get out of this one?

Review: I’ve never seen the tv series this is a sequel to. I found it to be boring and silly in a non-entertaining over the top way. If you can handle slapstick that’s kooky give it a try. 

Scoring: 2 

Hanukkah on Rye (2022)

Rated: G

Genres: Family, Romance

Starring: Yael Grobglas and Jeremy Jordan

Synopsis: Can a Hanukkah miracle keep fresh couple Molly and Jacob together after they realize that they are actually competing delicatessen owners?

Review: I really loved this movie.  They did a good job incorporating Hanukkah as a natural part of their lives.  The romance had predictable stages but still felt fresh.  It was interesting from the very start and left me feeling happy and ready to watch again.

Scoring: 3.5

Happiest Season (2020)

Rated: PG-13

Genres: Comedy, Romance

Starring: Dan Levy, Alison Brie, Kristen Stewart, Aubrey Plaza, Mary Steenburgen, Victor Garber, and Ana Gasteyer

Synopsis: This holiday, everyone’s secrets are coming out.

Review: I don’t know if it’s the title, it being a Dan Levy movie, or both, but I thought this was a comedy. It had a few humorous moments but it’s really a drama. It’s a microscopic look at the average American family with its loving dysfunction complete with one daughter who disappointed her parents, one who lives in fear of their disappointment, and one who would like them to care enough about her to be disappointed. It’s an enjoyable and relatable movie.

Scoring: 4

Happy Christmas (2014)

Rated: R

Genres: Drama, Family

Starring: Anna Kendrick, Melanie Lynskey, Lena Dunham, Mark Webber, and Joe Swanberg

Synopsis: A hard-partying 20-something moves in with her brother’s family to get over a breakup, turning their everyday lives upside down.

Review: Given the star power, I expected a great movie.  Instead I got awkward situation after awkward situation with poor transitioning between scenes.  It was well acted but still boring.  I think part of the problem was the story didn’t give us time to know and care about the characters.  Rather than being about the characters, it was about the scenarios they experienced.  Baby Jude was sheer perfection.  He made sitting through the rest a better experience.

Scoring: 2

The Happy Elf (2005)

Rated: G

Genres: Animation, Fantasy, Musical

Starring: Harry Connick, Jr., Carol Kane, Mickey Rooney, Mae Whitman

Synopsis: Eubie tries to bring Christmas joy to a dreary town called Bluesville.

Review: Is it corny and overly silly?  Yes.  It’s also utterly charming and the elf’s joy is contagious.  Add in music by Harry Connick, Jr. and it’s just delightful.  I really enjoyed it.  I found myself smiling.  Fun for the whole family.

Scoring: 4

Hashtag Blessed (2022)

Rated: G

Genres: Drama, Family, Fantasy

Synopsis: Losing her job after a bad breakup, Jesse desperately needs a Christmas miracle if she’s going to make it through this holiday season. 

Review: This movie took me on a roller coaster of emotions. I related to Jessi in so many ways. We all get lost in what we don’t have which is magnified by everyone sharing all they have on social media. The message of hope is subtlety woven throughout the movie. I actually had goosebumps at one point. A good reminder that we aren’t alone, and we all have blessings. 

Scoring: 4

Haul Out The Holly (2022)

Rated: G

Genres: Comedy, Fantasy

Starring: Lacey Chabert, Melissa Peterman, and Wes Brown

Synopsis: Emily arrives home hoping to visit her parents, only to find that they are going on a trip of their own. While she stays at her house for the holidays, her HOA is determined to get Emily involved in the neighborhood Christmas festivities.

Review: The whole first half of the movie made me feel stressed out.  I usually find Hallmark movies to be relaxing.  Wes Brown’s character is so overly intense and completely uncaring about people.  He only cares about rules.    Once they started having fun instead of stressing over it and making Emily miserable, it become more enjoyable. ***Edited***   I watched it again. Know that I knew why everyone was doing what they were doing, I enjoyed it much more.  I will probably watch again.

Scoring: 3

Haul Out the Holly: Lit Up (2023)

Rated: G

Genre: Comedy

Starring: Lacey Chabert and Wes Brown

Synopsis: As the holidays approach, Emily and Jared are looking forward to celebrating the holidays together again until the reality stars known for Christmas move in next door. 

Review:  If you liked the first one you should like this. It’s corny and a little extra but I love the way the community joins together. It’s one I will watch again. 

Scoring: 3

Headed South for Christmas (2013)

Rated: NR

Genres: Drama, Family

Starring: Abby Corrigan

Synopsis: A troubled teen and her single dad spend Christmas with family members they hardly know.

Review: I enjoyed this movie.  A girl grappling with her mother dying when she was born which makes her feel responsible and means she’s grown up without her.  A single dad trying to maneuver through the rough teen years alone.  Add an eccentric aunt and a genius young cousin and you have a complete story.  They main plot is the journey of the Mac but all the characters are relatable in their own way.  It wasn’t super deep but it was moving.

Scoring: 3

The Heart Of Christmas (2011)

Rated: G

Genres: Drama, Family, Religion

Starring: Candace Cameron Bure and George Newbern

Synopsis: The Locke family are devastated when they learn their 2-year-old son, Dax, has leukemia.

Review:  I appreciate that this is based on a true story and that’s the only reason I felt the emotions of it. It was poorly acted except for Bure and Newbern. It’s very dark and sad because of the story but it’s an example of priorities and people supporting each other. It also seemed very slow. I believe people will love it or hate it. 

Scoring: 2.5

Heart of the Holidays (2020)

Rated: G

Genres: Romance

Starring: Jayne Eastwood, Vanessa Lengies, and Corey Sevier

Synopsis: A career driven woman reunites with her high school boyfriend after returning home for the holidays.

Review: While the story of Sam and Noah, as well as Sam’s backstory, needed to be more detailed in order to fully appreciate that part of the story, the community involvement part of the story seems to level it out.  It’s a nice story that’s full of Christmas spirit and I enjoyed it enough.

Scoring: 3

A Heidelberg Holiday (2023)

Rated: G

Genres: Family, Romance

Starring: Ginna Claire Mason and Frederic Brossier

Synopsis: Heidi heads to the Heidelberg Christmas market to sell her hand-painted ornaments. While there she falls for a local artisan who helps her reconnect with her lost heritage.

Review: I have to start by saying going to German Christmas markets is on my bucket list and my dad’s family is from Germany, so I went into this movie already excited. I was disappointed that they didn’t show the market and city in detail and the ending wasn’t clear, but I loved the movie. The romance alone makes it worth watching. The other characters and learning a small bit about German traditions are icing on the cake. 

Scoring: 4.5

A Hip Hop Family Christmas (2021)

Rated: TV-14

Genres: Drama, Family

Starring: Serayah and Jodi Lyn O’Keefe

Synopsis: Follows hip hop’s most famous family, as they address negative press and soften their image in a live Christmas television special.

Review: The movie felt sort of stale and predictable in the beginning. It’s stayed predictable but got more enjoyable as it went on and I got to know the characters. The ending is clear from the beginning but still sweet. 

Scoring: 3

Hip Hop Family Christmas Wedding (2022)

Rated: TV-14

Genres: Comedy, Drama, Family

Starring: Ne-Yo and Keri Hilson, 

Synopsis: Christmas wedding bells are ringing for Jessica and Jayson as their mothers Tina and Nancy are fighting it out for wedding planning supremacy. Blare is running his own music label, and when he meets his formidable, beautiful new boss, Jai.

Review: I didn’t really enjoy the parts of the movie dealing with music. The parts related to the wedding were the best. It’s the relationships, even when they clash like the mothers, that provide the heart and comedy. 

Scoring: 2

Hip Hop Holiday (2019)

Rated: NR

Genres: Comedy, Fantasy

Starring: Ta’Rhonda Jones

Synopsis: Larger than life hip hop diva, Leesa J, rekindles an old friendship over Christmas and her walk down memory lane forces her to reexamine her life, her habits and the real reason for the dislike for the holiday that she once loved so dearly.

Review: Leesa J. is so dislikable for so much of the movie and they don’t take the time to really let us see why she is the way she is.  Also, the changes for her come too late in the story.  Her assistant and cousin are there but there isn’t enough attention paid to how they are affected by Leesa’s behavior.

Scoring: 2

The Hip Hop Nutcracker (2022)

Rated: PG

Genres: Comedy, Family, Fantasy, Musical

Starring: Stephen Boss, Allison Holker, Mikhail Baryshnikov, and Joseph Simmons

Synopsis: Features Rev Run as he brings audiences on a hip-hop reimagining of The Nutcracker ballet set in NYC.

Review: This takes the music and story of The Nutcracker and gives it a hip hop twist but still includes some ballet. For hip hop fans and children this would be a good introduction to the music and story. I’m not a fan of hip hop and I still enjoyed most of it. 

Scoring: 3