The Road Home For Christmas (2019)

Rated: G

Genres: Drama, Romance

Starring: Marla Sokoloff, Rob Mayes, and Marie Osmond

Synopsis: Two rival musicians, Lindsay and Wes who perform in a dueling piano show, suddenly find themselves without a gig on Christmas Eve and decide to road trip to their neighboring hometowns together.

Review: This love story is done so well with a lot of help from Sokoloff and Mayes.  The only parts I didn’t care for was there singing, because it was like lip-synching, and Marie Osmond.  Don’t get me wrong, I adore Osmond, but her part of the story was like pausing the real story.  It was a distraction from the emotion of the romance.  Despite that, this is one I will watch again because the rest is so good.

Scoring: 3

Road To Christmas AKA My Three Wise Men (2018)

Rated: G

Genres: Drama, Family, Romance 

Starring: Jesse Schram, Chad Michael Murray, and Teryl Rothery 

Synopsis: Los Angeles television producer Maggie Baker unwittingly falls for Danny Wise, the son and former producer of his mother's popular annual Christmas special, Julia Wise Lifestyle. When Maggie's secret plan to reunite Danny and his two brothers with Julia during the live broadcast in Vermont goes awry, Maggie is reminded that above all, it is the love for family and friends that makes the merriest of Christmas.

Review:  I loved this movie!  The plot is original and layered. The characters and their relationships are relatable. It includes wonderful Christmas traditions and a charming love story. 

Scoring: 4

The Road To Christmas (2006)

Rated:  PG

Genres: Comedy, Drama, Family 

Starring: Jennifer Grey and Clark Gregg

Synopsis: High-powered fashion photographer Claire Jameson finds herself stranded in middle America on the way to her dream Christmastime wedding in Aspen. Unable to get another flight or rent a car, Claire is reduced to begging for a ride. When the rugged former artist-turned-teacher Tom Pullman and his 13-year old daughter Hilly kindly offer to take her, none of them realize that their journey is just beginning, and it will leave them all in a place very different from where they began.

Review:  I believe that knowing the two leads are married in real life made this movie less enjoyable for me. It’s hard to get lost in a story when the actors keep bringing you back to reality. Other than that, I found it to be fairly bland and one I didn’t mind seeing once but wouldn’t want to watch again. 

Scoring: 2

Rock N’ Roll Christmas (aka A Christmas Comeback) (2019)

Rated: G

Genres: Comedy, Family, Musical

Starring: Catherine Mary Stewart and Beverley Mitchell

Synopsis: An estranged mother/daughter country music duo reunite after 10 years apart to release a Christmas single after a video of them goes viral. Now, they're going to need a lot of forgiveness and a little Christmas magic to write a song that perfectly captures the spirit of Christmas and brings their family back together.

Review: This movie is okay.  It’s just missing that special something.  The story is superficial and doesn’t really get into the emotions of the characters.  There’s too many times when the music seems like a filler rather than an important part of the story.  With all that, there’s still enough to make it okay but it wouldn’t be my first choice to watch.

                                                    Scoring: 2

Rodeo & Juliet (2015)

Rated:  PG

Genres: Family, Romance

Starring: Krista Allen

Synopsis: A young woman from the city is taught how to barrel race by a handsome cowboy.

Review: Other than this taking place over Christmas break, there’s no real Christmas here. It does have new love and old love, lots of horses, and some nice scenery. If you want a simple romance this is for you. If you want Christmas magic, not so much.

Scoring: 3

The Rooftop Christmas Tree (2016)

Rated: NR

Genres: Family, Romance 

Starring: Stephen Huszar, Michelle Morgan, and Tim Reid

Synopsis: It's Christmas and once again, Dale Landis places a tree on his roof and ends up in court. No one in the small town knows why he continues the practice, but idealistic attorney, Sarah Wright is determined to give Mr. Landis his Christmas wish and keep him out of jail. Judge Conner has different ideas when he puts Sarah and aggressive prosecutor John Keaton together to figure out the mystery behind the rooftop Christmas tree. The two must come together to find a solution and in the end find out more not only about Mr. Landis, but about each other. 

Review:  This movie has all the makings of the perfect feel-good Christmas movie except one, keeping my attention. It’s heartwarming, shows the true meaning of love, the true spirit of Christmas, it’s original, and it’s based on a true story. I think a lot of people will love this. It just dragged for me. 

Scoring: 3

A Royal Christmas Ball (2017)

Rated: PG

Genres: Drama, Romance 

Starring: Tara Reid and Ingo Rademacher

Synopsis: Dateless for the Christmas ball, 39-year-old bachelor King Charles of Baltamia tracks down his American college sweetheart only to discover that she has never married but raised a 17-year-old daughter who mathematically might be his biological princess. 

Review:  I’ll admit that Tara Reid being the star had me going in with low expectations but I was right. The story is a bad copy of “What A Girl Wants”. It might have been okay but Reid’s acting was horrible. It really ruined it. 

Scoring: 1

A Royal Christmas Engagement (2020)

Rated: PG

Genres: Family, Romance

Starring: Paige Bach, James Nitti, and John Schneider

Synopsis: A hard working advertising executive falls for a consultant who is actually a prince disguised as a commoner.

Review: Take your standard American girl falls for guy she doesn’t know is a prince, water it down, lower the quality of everything, and you’ll have this movie. There’s nothing new or interesting and it wasn’t done well. It’s a one and done for me. 

Scoring: 2

Royal Family Christmas (2015)

Rated: TV-MA

Genres: Drama, Family

Starring: Vivica A. Fox and Tichina Arnold

Synopsis: Siblings hatch a scheme to reunite their parents in time for Christmas.

Review: This movie is a sequel to A Royal Family Holiday.  I wasn’t able to watch that movie before this one.  From the beginning I felt lost.  It didn’t take into account the viewer that didn’t already know the story from the first movie.  As it continued, I liked some of the scenes but I never fully felt like I got what was happening. 

Scoring: 2

Rudolph and Frosty’s Christmas In July (1979)

Rated: G

Genres: Animation, Comedy, Fantasy, Musical

Starring: Red Buttons, Ethel Merman, and Mickey Rooney

Synopsis: Rudolph and Frosty are pitted against Winterbolt, an icy wizard who plots to make the North Pole his evil domain and enlist the help of Jack Frost and others to fight the Winterbolt.

Review: I know there are fans that will disagree but I don’t care for this. I found the plot difficult to follow. It feels like it was forced just to make another special. I’m not sure children will be able to follow the story but they may enjoy seeing the familiar characters. 

Scoring: 1

Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer (1964)

Rated: G

Genres: Animation, Fantasy

Starring: Burl Ives

Synopsis: A misfit reindeer and his friends look for a place that will accept them.

Review: Rudolph was an annual must-see for us growing up.  As an adult, I find it pretty boring.  I realize it’s not a popular opinion but it’s an honest one.  Don’t get me wrong.  I still watch it almost every year.  The story is just kind of blah to me.  I understand they needed to find other misfits to make it into a movie but to me it feels like they are just that rather than the basis of the movie.  This is a classic loved by many.  If you’ve never seen it, you have to see it at least once.

Scoring: 3

Rudolph’s Shiny New Year (1976)

Rated: G

Genres: Animation, Comedy, Fantasy

Starring: Red Skelton

Synopsis: Rudolph must find Happy, the baby New Year, before midnight on New Year's Eve.

Review: This is for children or those who have watched it every year and consider it a staple. As an adult, I found it a bit boring, even for a sequel. Children will probably see the magic and love seeing Rudolph again. 

Scoring: 2

Runaway Christmas Bride (2017)

Rated: PG

Genres: Comedy, Drama, Family, Romance 

Starring: Cindy Busby and Travis Milne

Synopsis: Kate is standing at the altar, when the groom, Alex, reveals a devastating family secret. Hurt and shocked by this betrayal, Kate leaves him at the altar. Needing time to heal, Kate goes on her honeymoon at a ski resort. At the resort she meets Jason, an Olympic downhill ski hopeful. Just when she thought she'd never love again, Kate and Jason get to know each other, and there is a mutual attraction. As things start to heat up between them, Alex and his family show up. Will Kate learn to finally make her own decisions or will she always just be the Runaway Christmas Bride?

Review:  It’s a typical Christmas movie with beautiful snowy mountains as the backdrop. There are a few twists and turns but nothing too surprising. I did like Kate’s hotel roommates. Don’t worry. No spoilers.  The movie is fun to watch. 

Scoring: 3