Christmas in Montana

I thought I won't like this movie but I was young the actors were amazing and the story was amazing with no cliches

Some may raise their eyebrows and look upon me with scorn whenever seeing me rating a Hallmark festive film quite highly and reviewing it mostly positively. Will say right now that Hallmark's output, whether to do with Christmas or with nothing to do with it, is very inconsistent. Their festive output in 2019 was very much so too, most it being in between mediocre and slightly above average. Kellie Martin and Colin Ferguson have been good in other things, Ferguson especially is nearly always a redeeming quality and is well above a lot of what is given to him.

'Christmas in Montana', and do concur with what others have said, is one of the hits as far as 2019 Christmas Hallmark efforts go. A surprise one. 'Christmas in Montana' absolutely is predictable as heck (said that as a word of warning for those that don't like that) and has a couple of things that can be seen in a good deal of Hallmark's output, but is still engaging, is well performed and it looks good. Which cannot be said for some of Hallmark Christmas films. This is coming from someone that loves film of all decades and genres (even if a fair share of decades and genres have misses there are many classics too), so always watches their output with an open mind and knowing what to expect.

As said, the story has no innovative ideas, all seen before in a vast majority of their output, and the film doesn't really do anything new with them. Making everything feel obvious and very foreseeable before it happens. This is including the ending, which also felt a bit convenient.

Like other Hallmark festive efforts, the music could have done with a toning down. It didn't need to be used as much as it was and at times was too loud. Some of the pacing lags in some uneventful stretches in the middle and the supporting characters are sketchily developed.

Despite those not so good things, an even larger part of me could not be too hard on 'Christmas in Montana'. It is beautifully filmed and the scenery is nothing short of magical, the film also capturing the feel of the setting and the occasion. The script flows naturally and doesn't have as much of the corn and cheese that other Hallmark Christmas films do, it has subtly amusing moments and doesn't go overboard on the sentiment.

The story is very predictable, but it is also incredibly charming and very heart-warming. The feel good vibe is also strong and the pace generally isn't too slow. The direction has breathing space but doesn't wallow too much thankfully and does a nice job with the character interaction. Martin performs with cute and heartfelt understatement, with no signs of overplaying or going through the motions. Ferguson is a solid as rocks and charming partner and they do have genuine spark together. Their relationship is sweet without being saccharine and doesn't suffer from taking too long to develop or events happening out of the blue.

Overall, nicely done and one of Hallmark's better 2019 Christmas films. 7/10

If this were the only Christmas movie of the year, it would be fine. This is exactly the same story as countless other Christmas movies on most of the regular Christmas movie channels. There is very little tension beyond save-our-ranch. There isn't even a romantic rival. There is no one to hate. What conflict exists is manufactured in one character's head. Even the resolution has been done many times. Take any of the previous save-our-something stories and pull out plot threads and lump them into this movie. The viewer can almost outline the story in detail.

What makes these movies enjoyable for me is the relationships. Kellie Martin and Colin Ferguson are reliable stars in this type of movie and they do fine in this one. The chemistry between them starts almost from the beginning and changes nature but continues over the movie. Even when there is an adversarial nature in the beginning, the two are connecting. Ferguson is especially well cast as a laid back good-natured rancher. I liked the dialogue, especially some of the quips early on which extended even to the surrounding family members. I also really liked Ava Preston as Chloe.

One thing that usually impresses me in Hallmark movies is breathtaking scenery. This movie is about Montana. I expected a lot more than there was. There were a few shots, but is seemed stingy.

I can see why many avid Christmas movie fans were hard on this movie, but it wasn't so much that the movie was bad as it just didn't have anything different.

I know people have low rated this but I loved it! This was a great Hallmark movie. Great characters, good story, lovely scenery, dreams coming true.. it had it all. This is what a Christmas movie is all about. If you have a dream (even a little one) watch this......

I don't think I'll ever see Kellie Martin overact in any movie - quite the contrary! Nevertheless, I couldn't finish this on my first watch, it seemed so boring. I'm glad I gave it a second, now third, watch; with pleasant chemistry amongst the cast, it moves at a relaxed pace that is lacking in so much of life today, and it accomplishes for me what I hope any Hallmark movie could do for the viewer: to make them feel better than they did before watching it.