Hallmark
Rating: 🎄🎄
Description: Maren (Groening) is a busy single mother to her adopted daughter, Leah (Taylor Blake). As the owner of her late father’s beloved hardware store, she is often found helping repair just about anything for her fellow locals, leaving very little time for herself. When the chance to participate in the Christmas Companions program at Jolly Acres, a new-yet-thriving retirement community in town, Leah excitedly jumps at the chance as she misses having a grandfather in her life. Much to Leah’s delight, she is paired with Kris (Randy Apostle), a jolly resident who bears an uncanny resemblance to Santa Claus. While there, Maren crosses paths with the nomadic Reid (Rady), the center’s Director of Community Launch and Operations whose job has him traveling from facility to facility to launch new branches. But the Christmas Companions program is soon jeopardized as the contractor for the center’s community room suddenly pulls out. Seeing how much joy the program brings Leah and Kris, the always helpful Maren offers to help finish the project. As she spends more time at the center with Reid, Maren slowly realizes it’s okay to let others in, accept help and stop shouldering the entire load. Reid starts questioning whether to accept his next assignment which will take him far away from the people and center that have begun to feel like home. With the help of some Christmas magic – and a little assist from Kris – everyone finds where they belong. Starring Amy Groening and Michael Rady.
Overall Review: I’ve complained about Christmas movies not having enough decorations. I’ve also complained about Christmas movies having enough decorations, but that they lack quality. Apparently, someone heard me and decided to swing the pendulum to the other end. Adopting St. Nick had ALL the Christmas decorations. At one point, there were three Christmas trees in someone’s living room.
Here’s the thing: the decorations themselves were pretty good. There were just so many of them. Somewhere, a Hallmark set decorator is having a panic attack because this production used up the entire regional supply of fake Christmas trees.
Unfortunately, this movie also seemed determined to remind us that artificial intelligence exists. The amount of AI-generated imagery, graphics, and flyers was ridiculous. I understand that budgets are tight, but pay someone on Fiverr to do the same thing without AI and maintain some integrity.
As for the actual movie? It was fine. And I mean that in the least enthusiastic way possible.
The plot was serviceable. The acting was acceptable. Nobody was particularly terrible, and nothing was especially offensive. But the entire production just felt flat. It had all the ingredients of a Christmas movie, yet somehow managed to assemble them into something with the emotional depth of a throw pillow.
This was another one of those movies that benefited enormously from the fact that I watched it live. Had I been streaming it, my fast-forward button would have gotten quite a workout. Unfortunately, the broadcast schedule forced me to experience every single minute. This movie only gets two trees because they used up the rest of them in the movie itself.
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