The Christmas Doctor

Truth be told, as I sat down to watch the 2020 Hallmark Christmas movie, I was sort of expecting that I would most likely be in for another run-of-the-mill-and-over-the-top sappy romantic Christmas movie. Why? Well, Hallmark does have a track record for producing these cheesy Christmas movies, don't they? But every now and again, Hallmark does surprise by releasing something that breaks their usual formula. So I opted to sit down and watch "The Christmas Doctor".

And actually "The Christmas Doctor" turned out to be one of those instances where Hallmark breaks away from their usual sappy, cheesy formula and surprise the audience. As it turned out, then writers Neal H. Dobrofsky and Tippi Dobrofsky churned out a storyline that was entertaining and enjoyable. It wasn't a movie driven by the usual romantic sap, which was a relief. Sure, "The Christmas Doctor" does have elements of romance to it, of course it does, but it wasn't the force that drove the movie forward.

So the writers definitely gave director Kevin Fair something wholesome, wholehearted and entertaining to work with, and that turned out to become "The Christmas Doctor".

They had a good cast ensemble for the movie, with lead actress Holly Robinson Peete (playing Dr. Zoey) and Adrian Holmes (playing Luke). I wasn't familiar with Adrian Holmes, but he carried the movie quite well alongside with Holly Robinson Peete. The movie also had the likes of Fred Henderson, Bronwen Smith, Nicole Anthony and Marlie Collins on the cast list, whom also contributed well to the movie.

Now, if you enjoy a Christmas movie that transcends the usual Christmas cheese of a man-and-a-woman-with-differences-and-some-dislike-between-them-having-to-work-together-for-a-mutual-goal-and-end-up-falling-in-love type of movie, then give "The Christmas Doctor" a chance. I genuinely enjoyed watching this one.

My rating of "The Christmas Doctor" lands on a seven out of ten stars.

7/10 - what can I say, I'm a sucker for a doctor in a small town Christmas story

This movie just like any other standard movie brings all the things you expect Christmas magic and romance but it's worth a watch

This is an interesting story about life, family, finding love and a place to call home. Holly Robinson Peete does a great job playing a restless Doctor, constantly running in hopes of making amends from past regrets. She lands in a small town where she meets Adrian Holmes who along with some of the towns residents, heals the good Doctor as she heals others. The leads have good chemistry together and banter between them that's fun to watch. There also a mysterious thread running through the movie that concludes with a touching moment that's well worth watching.

Nobody should watch Hallmark films with massively high expectations, their Christmas output particularly. If a Hallmark fan or wanting to see as many Christmas films as possible, expectations would understandably be higher. They are very formulaic with most of them being more of the same narratively and structurally, apart from sporadic attempts at changes of pace. There are a fair share of them though that are surprisingly above average and even good amidst the many average and less ones.

The 2020 output from Hallmark did vary in quality but was not near as bad or wildly uneven as it could have been. None of the films from the batch were really terrible, and a small handful of them were actually very good. 'The Christmas Doctor' is one of the good, if not quite great, ones and definitely one of the better 2020 Hallmark Christmas films. Perfect it isn't, far from it, but 'The Christmas Doctor' is a good example of why Hallmark shouldn't immediately be judged negatively.

Am going to start with what could have been done better. It drags a little early on where the film takes a little time to get going. The final quarter is on the contrived and very formulaic side, not unexpected as that is common with Hallmark.

Did think that more could have been done with the big twist, which is introduced too suddenly and felt rushed through.

However, a lot is done right. It is visually pleasing and has a professional look. The appropriately festive locations especially. Enough of the soundtrack is nostalgic and pleasant enough. The direction is accomodating while not going through the motions. Holly Robinson Peete doesn't overplay, any mannerisms are not overdone, and neither does hold back too much. She has a genuine well matched chemistry with an equally good Adrian Holmes, who is leagues better than he was in 'You Light Up My Christmas'. The supporting cast are very good too.

Moreover, the dialogue is tighter and less stilted than a lot of Hallmark Christmas films and the cheese and sentiment isn't as much. The story raises some important relevant issues in a tactful manner, making the film heartfelt at points, it also engaged me and was charming and heart-warming while not taking itself too seriously. Did appreciate too that there was more to usual. The characters may be well worn cliches, but they came over to me as likeable enough and any negative character traits didn't come over as over the top like can be the case in Hallmark Christmas films. Actually cared for these characters, not the case with a lot of recently seen Christmas films. The ending is touching.

Concluding, nicely done. 7/10.