25 DAYS OF CHRISTMAS MOVIES - HOLIDAY ROAD TRIP
Starring: Patrick Muldoon, Ashley Scott, Kip Pardue, Shelly Long and George Hamilton.
About the movie (from Christmas Wiki):
Co-workers at a high-profile pet supply store in Washington D.C., Pat
(Patrick Muldoon) and Maya (Ashley Scott) couldn't be more opposite.
Maya works in accounting, she’s a driven, ambitious businesswoman
looking to turn her job into a great career. He’s in the design
department and basically plays for a living, which is a perfect job for
the little kid who never really grew up. She wears Manolos, and he wears
Velcro.
When Maya's obscenely successful boyfriend, Davis (Kip Pardue) leaves her right before Christmas,
she begrudgingly decides to volunteer an RV tour along with Pat and the
star of the company, Scoots (Uggie the dog, "The Artist"). At first,
the road trip is a match made in hell. But the whole idea is the brain
child of the company founder Max (George Hamilton), who is Pat's dad.
Once on the road, opposites are put to the test. Pat eats nothing
but junk food, but she wants to be healthy. He listens to hard rock,
while she prefers jazz. He drives 95, while she coasts at a leisurely
55. She thinks he’s an uneducated man-child while he thinks she’s a
self-absorbed snob. But fate has a funny way of intervening. All the
while, Davis, who feels he made a terrible mistake breaking up with
Maya, is one step behind.
My Review:
Holiday Road Trip is one of those awkward yet sweet little Christmas movies that is intended to inspire some giggles and smiles. Polar opposites Pat and Maya head out on a road trip with Scoots the mascot of Pet Products. What starts out as a desperate attempt to just get away from home while nursing her wounded heart, develops into a friendship and romantic adventure.
I believe my favorite part of the film was actually seeing actors from my childhood like Susan Olsen (Cindy from the Brady Bunch), Mindy Cohn (THE Natalie my favorite Facts of Life girl), Donna Partow of Angie and of course Saturday Night Fever, and Shelly Long among others. It was a fun holiday romp that provided a nice evening's escape from shopping and planning for Christmas. Loved it for what it was. Do not expect "It's A Wonderful Life" do expect a sweet and quirky film.
25 DAYS OF CHRISTMAS MOVIES - MOVIE 3 - CHRISTMAS IN CONWAY
Is it Christmas without Hallmark Hall of Fame? Certainly not. So of course when "Christmas in Conway" was announced, I had to set the DVR for a viewing.
Christmas in Conway
Starring: Mary-Louise Parker, Andy Garcia, Mandy Moore, Riley Smith, Cheri Oteri, and Mark Jeffrey Miller.
About the film: Usually I share a plot summary from Amazon or IMDB, but I really didn't find a good summary there and the one at Hallmark might as well just blow the whole film for you. So here you go: Natalie a home-care hospice nurse moves in with Duncan and Suzy as Suzy returns from the hospital after deciding that she wants to forgo any further chemo and spend her last days at home. A distraught Duncan has to face that he cannot handle it all alone.
My review: Christmas in Conway is the typical Hallmark Hall of Fame Film in that it is absolutely dear with enough conflict to furrow your brow and enough soft moments to have you grasping for a tissue.
Initially I thought Christmas in Conway would focus on some sort of romance for young hospice nurse Natalie and while that is partially the case, the true romance is between Duncan and Suzy. Duncan first enters the film as a rude and arrogant man, but when you realize that his wife is dying and has decided to stop the fight and finish of the remainder of her days at home, it makes some sense that he might be a rough soul. As we learn more and more about Suzy and Duncan's romance, it becomes even more apparent that this man is tortured over the eventual loss of THE love of his life.
Being powerless to provide for certain aspects of her care, Duncan resigns himself to having a live-in hospice nurse, but he is hardly welcoming to Natalie or anyone else for that matter. It is a long road of healing for this man. The most important thing in Duncan's life is his wife, Suzy, and his decision to provide her with one last special gift is also the decision that just might bring healing to his broken heart.
Christmas in Conway is well written and acted. There are definitely some obvious moments, but I figure there are some things that really don't need to keep us guessing. The message of love is strong in this film and although loss is evidently going to rear its head, there is a joyful sadness in the film. It was truly beautiful.
Here's the trailer:
You can preorder the DVD from Hallmark if you missed it at this link.
PS I'm just adding that link in case you missed it. It really is charming, and if you like Christmas movies, this just might be one, you would enjoy owning.
CHRISTMAS MOVIE REVIEW
One of my favorite things about the Christmas season is the abundance of Christmas movies. I am not terribly sappy, but I love a good Christmas movie (especially if it causes me to get a little teary-eyed too). To keep myself in the glow, I've decided to watch a Christmas movie a day until Christmas, and do my best to share them here.
This past week, I picked up a new-to-me Christmas movie called "Christmas Child" at Family Christian Store. It seemed to be a great way to start. It is based on the book "The Christmas Cross" by Max Lucado. I had not heard of either so it seemed to be a great way to go.
About the film (from Amazon):
Jack, a Chicago journalist dealing with a midlife crisis and a troubled
marriage, is sent to Dallas, but a detour to a small Texas town that's
home to a life-size Nativity scene leads him to a discovery about his
past and the courage to face his future.
Starring: William R. Moses, Megan Follows, Steven Curtis Chapman, Tonya Bordeaux, Vicki Taylor Ross, and Muse Watson
Impact Productions and Bridgestone Multimedia Group
My Review:
Christmas Child brings us into the life of Jack Davenport, a journalist who is at a cross-roads in his life. Jack's adoptive father has passed away, his wife and he are simply not getting along and he is on the cusp of turning 40. With many heart questions and quite a bit of emptiness, Jack hits the road for another inconvenient assignment from his magazine. Leaving behind an upset wife who is simply ready to close up her own heart.
The small town that Jack stops in is exactly the small town you would envision in your mind. There is a large nativity in front of the church and the town is loaded with character and characters that brought me lots of smiles and a little bit of aggravation. Almost everyone in the town is extremely open and helpful to Jack who really needs the kindness at this time in his life. The genuineness of the townspeople caused me to hope that Jack would scrap it all, grab his wife, and move there....maybe in another film?
The actors were well cast though I must admit, Steven Curtis Chapman reminded me of Ned Flanders of the Simpsons (but I liked that about him). It was also nice seeing William R. Moses who I remember from my young...young...young years when he was on Falcon Crest.
Christmas Child is a story of searching, struggle and hope. It is a story that shows the importance of reaching out to others. There was a strong focus on adoption and redemption. I enjoyed it a great deal and highly recommend it.
If you can't find it in the store, I suggest you stream it. I saw it was available on Hulu. Myself, I'm glad I purchased it. It will definitely be a part of our Christmas traditions. Here's the trailer:
Christmas Child trailer from
American Family Association on
Vimeo.
I have been getting into the Christmas spirit with lots of forays into Christmas movies. I have been watching at least one a day, and it has been lots of fun. It has also been pretty easy thanks to Netflix and their instant streaming. I have been able to watch all kinds of fun holiday movies. I hope to share each one here. The good, the bad, and the merry.
Today it is movie number 4 - Christmas Town
Starring Nicole de Boer, Patrick Muldoon, and Gig Morton.
The film begins with Liz a very career oriented real estate agent heading off with her son Mason to visit her father Jack in a small town named Hollyville (also known as America's Christmas town). Liz's father is much like herself. A city person who was very focused on a very successful career. Now that he has taken up residence in Hollyville, Jack has tossed his life of a banker to a life in the sweetest little Christmas town around, and Liz is not thrilled with the changes in her dad nor the quirky little town.
One of the townies named Kevin shares with Liz that he was once a mess before he came into town and that Hollyville is like the land of misfit toys. All the residents had the need to be fixed. Liz definitely fits that description.
Young Mason is completely taken with the town. Mason is also intrigued with the small factory outside the town called NP Enterprises. Mason is convinced that the guy they call "the big guy" just could be Santa Claus.
My thoughts - Christmas Town is a sweet movie. There is a lot of fluff to it, but it has its moments. I liked that Liz and her father became close again, it was nice seeing a little town dedicated to Christmas, but it was also weird because there was no snow. I like snow in Christmas movies. This could seem kind of silly since I grew up in California for half of my life and where I lived there was no snow. The characters were all pretty sweet and on the dorky side, but they fit the movie. For me the only oddity was Patrick Muldoon. The dude's hair distracted me throughout the movie. This is what happens when your husband buys a very hi definition TV. :)
On a scale of 1 to 5 candy canes, I'd give it 2.5 candy canes.
