A Fabled Holiday

Brook d Orsay and Ryan Paevey.

In a sweet fairy tale, with charming, familiar beginning, with smart references to the dreams about future in childhood, lost parent and the mature wake up. And about way to work of a book in exactly the manner expected/ hoped by so many bookworms.

The result - just a fascinating travel - cure of a couple in profound crisis of marriage, a widower dominated by grief and nostalgia and regrets after the death of his beloved wife , saved by a witch and two childhood friends who, after three decades , descover , in right light, the feelings for each other.

So, charming is fair term for define it, not ignoring the cliches or the too old recipe.

Deep in the woods there lies a sleepy little village with the biggest Christmas spirit. Look for it on a map and you won't be able to find it. It is said that only those in need of the village's particular joy can find their way to it's quiet welcoming streets and once these special visitors arrive in this magical little place they experience a holiday season like no other and are reminded of who they really are and the true joy and peace that is the meaning of Christmas...

And so starts this unusual Hallmark holiday romance. A father gives a daughter a beautiful picture book about a special village called Wunderbroke. The imaginative Talia, played by Brooke D'Orsay, dreams of being a writer one day herself. Coincidences align and Talia ends up in the magical Wunderbrook of the story with a friend from the past...Anderson who has become a surgeon but is questioning his calling...just like Talia.

"So which section is yours? Do you use a nom de plume?"-Anderson "More like a nom de calculator. This is actually my store. Which you know requires a surprising amount of math and sadly not as many clever turns of phrase."-Talia

They both end up staying at "The Gingerbread Inn" for the holidays...can both rekindle their passion and their callings with a little help from their hosts in Wunderbrook.

The narration was sweet and I like how the children's storybook was woven throughout the film. I liked the touch of magic...but the best part is the end. I love both Brooke D'Orsay and especially Ryan Paevey who played Anderson. Synergy or kismet...these two have great chemistry amongst this holiday backdrop. Can they keep Wunderbrook alive, rekindle it's magic and their friendship?

This was sweet and well worth the watch. Very family friendly, I recommend this to those with a good imagination and a love of Hallmark holiday films.

I've been so looking forward to this movie since two of my favorite actors are in it, the adorable Brooke D'Orsay and the Oh so handsome Ryan Paevey with his sexy voice! They did not disappoint. Everyone did a great job acting in this which is a big plus for this or any movie.

This movie deviates quite a bit from the normal Hallmark fare, yes there is Romance 3 romances to be exact but there is a supernatural/fairytale bent to the story, unlike anything they've done before. I liked that this movie had the other couple and Charles who also had issues to overcome instead of the movie solely focusing on Talia and Anderson. It added substance instead of taking away from the main characters.

This movie reminded me a lot of the ABC TV show Once Upon a Time. Nothing is as it seems at least it's not for our 2 couples and the older gentleman who just lost his wife. I really enjoyed the fairy tale feeling of this movie. From the narrator to the hand-drawn looking book pages and chapter introductions, this movie took its name to heart. Which I found endearing.

The town of Wunderbrook, specifically its inhabitants, are so fascinating and raise so many questions - questions far beyond ones I've ever asked about a Hallmark movie. In fact, too many questions are raised about the origins and rules of Wunderbrook to be answered in one Hallmark movie, it also seems a bit rushed especially at the end, this would have been better if it was either a 3 hour movie or a movie with a sequel. I'm crossing my fingers and hoping there is a follow-up next year that explores more of the wonders and mysteries of Wunderbrook and also an update on Talia & Anderson and Charles!

They did wrap the movie up pretty well and most of the questions are answered by the end. You really need to pay attention to what everyone does and says especially the first 15 minutes or so to figure out why things are the way they are. I truly enjoyed it but like I said I think it would have been more enjoyable in two parts, also I think they needed to add more Christmas decorations and more Christmas fun activities it did start to feel a little slow with too much dialogue and not enough activity! In essence, it felt a bit rushed to try and get everyone's story explained and wound up in a tidy bow within 2 hours.

Despite some shortcomings, I did find it a great way to spend 2 hours, I really liked the movie and I do recommend it.

I knew they were in trouble when Lindsey Stirling was featured in the previews. Turns out, that was pretty much her entire participation.

This is a story about people in crisis magically visiting a fairy tale land they had all read about as children.

It is very hard to pull off a fairy land in a two hour Christmas movie, and as it turns out, other than an occasional bell ringing, there is very little else to suggest anything special is going on.

A knowing look occasionally is about it.

Ryan Paevey is good in almost everything, and he's pulled some movies out of the fire before. But not this one I'm afraid.

I didn't care for the chemistry with the still-gorgeous Brooke D'Orsay, and I thought her acting was a little spotty in this.

Admittedly hard to do a film like this, but the result was nothing special.

Six.

While not everything about this movie Wow'd me to a high rating, it was so creative I have to reward it. The Chapter format with fairly tale pages to begin and end each 12 minute segment (commercials, don't you know) was very cool, and the entire idea for the story simply broke the mold. Not often do we get an enchanted town. :-)

The town comes from a fairy tale book all the guests of the town owned and loved as children, and the premise is that those who have broken places in their lives come to the town to heal. It's really a very nice idea and they pulled it off. The relationships and the mystery might have been sold harder, but I can enjoy what they did, and we'll watch it again.