Silver Bells

My Christmas film viewings over-time have been a very mixed bag. With some surprisingly good hits, where regardless of how predictable they are succeed in being full of charm, warmth and heart so succeeding in being light-hearted and undemanding fun. But also some quite big misses, where the characters are not likeable, everything is forced and shallow with implausibility too in some of the worst cases, the acting and writing being weak and basically with just nothing to them.

Despite being a long way from perfect or being a complete hit, 'Silver Bells' is thankfully closer to the former category if not quite. Certainly not a film to humbug on. As far as the Christmas films seen overtime go, 'Silver Bells' is somewhere around high middle, which is not too bad a position to be in actually. Especially considering how much of a mixed bag some recently seen Christmas film viewings have been. Expectations were mixed, but the execution was better than expected.

'Silver Bells' isn't perfect. Maybe it does take a while to get going and the messaging could have been more subtle, if the truth had been revealed a little earlier than it was that may have made a difference.

There also could have been more development to Christy, who is too much of a jerk, and also didn't like how long it took for Catherine to come out with the truth or how obnoxious the son sometimes is.

However, a lot is good. It pleases visually, lovely festive locations attractively and never drably or garishly shot. The music isn't as intrusive as it tends to be with Hallmark while the direction gets the job done well. The script doesn't get too cheesy or sentimental and does have a more natural flow when it becomes more settled. The story is not too heavy while taking itself seriously and is both warm-hearted and has a light touch when necessary.

On the whole as well it isn't too predictable, there are elements that are different than the usual Hallmark Christmas film and they are elements that feature a lot but not rammed down the throat. Did find later on that the characters were generally worth caring about. Anne Heche and Tate Donovan both give honest committed performances, particularly Heche.

In conclusion, decent if not great. 6/10.

Hallmark presented their typical Holiday story that involved a young teenage boy who was very confused and trying to find himself in this big world. He lost his mother and his father did his very best to guide his son, however, there was a conflict between the father and son and he simply took off to the Big Apple and disappeared while the father was selling his Christmas Trees in Manhattan. Ann Heche appears in the film and helps the young runaway establish himself with at least a place to sleep and earn a few bucks. As I was watching this TV film, I began to wonder about the Silver Bells and found this story typical for the Holiday Season, too Sweet for me.

"Silver Bells" was billed as the 225th presentation in the Hallmark Hall of Fame made-for-television film series. Sadly, this effort was not among the strongest of their offerings.

The likable cast included Anne Heche and Tate Donovan, whose characters were a widow and widower, and who inevitably became the central romantic couple. Unfortunately, the plot focused on a teenager runaway problem, as opposed to joys of the holidays, which should have been the film's central preoccupation.

As played by Donovan, the young runaway's father was a hard-working Christmas-tree dealer and decent man, and it made no sense that the boy would take to the streets of New York City following an argument with his father. The runaway story bogged down the film as a lugubrious, mechanical plot device.

The film should have celebrated the holidays with more joy in the lives of the characters. The most heart-warming scenes were the ice-skating sequence and the singing of the children in the church choir. The son Danny (Michael Mitchell) was an aspiring photographer. The film should have been about the photos, the great New York scenery, and the young man's love of photography, not the maudlin, melodramatic, and ultimately unconvincing story of a runaway.

I just finished reading the novel "Silver Bells," by LuAnne Rice this last Friday while on vacation in the woods of Tennessee (and by a roaring fire in the fireplace!). I really liked the book, and was anticipating the TV movie. Normally, the Hallmark Hall of Fame productions are enjoyable; and, and I knew they probably would digress from the book a bit to get it into the television time frame. However, as I sit watching this (as I type, in fact!), I find myself very disappointed in how much the movie digresses from the novel. And, while I have nothing against the acting skills of Anne Heche or Tate Donovan, I wouldn't have pictured either of them for the roles they were given. If I had not read the book, I probably would have rated this movie higher; the movie itself is okay, but if it had stuck closer to the original story, it would have been much better.

My suggestion? Skip the movie and read the book--it's magical!

I just love Chistmas stories, all Christmas stories. The photography is excellent. You can almost feel the wonderful chilly weather. This is a film for the entire family having to deal with today's problems: Parent & Child Communication. We have to listen to what our children are saying to us. Often times parents insist on living out their dreams through their children, and not letting their children live out their own dreams. All children are gifted in some way. We as parents have to help our children realize their own dreams. We want to cushion the falls that our little ones are going to have along the way, but experience is an excellent teacher. No matter how old we are, we still keep learning even when we are old and gray. I do wish the full cast would've been listed in the credits. Often times these little films are shown only once, so it is best to plan on watching to see if it will be a "little diamond in the rough". Since I had my trusty VCR working, I'll be able to look at it a second time. There are more of life's lessons to learn in "Silver Bells".