The Holiday Fix Up

Jana is a HGTV type star who is being pushed aside by an up and comer whose social media presence is better. She is out of work until the new year and is at loose ends until She is asked by Jack to renovate and rebuild his Inn which was demolished by a tree. He asks her ex, Coop, to work with her to restore the building and save Harbor Fest.

I liked the chemistry between Ryan McPartin and Jana Kramer. The conflict in their two styles pushed this a long. Jana, used to taking short cuts and and getting the job done as fast as possible for television and not always using the best materials versus Ryan, who was all in for a quality product. His career was based on reclaiming wood and reusing it. He was all about the craft. He wins her over to his way of thinking.

She films the renovation project for social media, and people love the more personal input and especially like Coop and her together. They seem like a good team. Why did Coop dump her to begin with? When the truth comes out Jana gets even angrier with Coop and I can't say I blame her. Eventually Jana's popularity wins over her bosses and offer her a big opportunity. Coop thinks she was just helping with the renovation to boost her career. Yikes.

Will they ever get this mess straightened out? Not sure I liked the resolution but they seemed happy with it.

Greetings, salutations, and a seasonal welcome to all you movie aficionados. Here are my considerations and recommendation for The Christmas Fix-Up.

Story: 1.25/2 - Direction and Pace: 2.25/4 - Performances: 1.25/2 - Enjoyment: 1.25/2

Total 6.00/10

This Christmas Romance is in the Girl Re-meets Boy vein. After being a couple, they part ways because life became bumpy; and because they'd lost the ability to talk and string a competent sentence together. Now, years later, the couple's paths cross once again. Of course, they do, as Noddy Holder screams, "It's Christmas". Sam is an architectural designer asked by an old friend to help rebuild a part of his lodge damaged in a storm. She tells him she's happy to help, but she'll require a contractor. Luckily, one has stepped forward. Coop, the old flame, who'd previously left her love lights dangling years before. Maybe this year, they can rectify their problems, and he can finally get those lights suitably hung.

We know the outcome of this story from the get-go, so how's the journey to the forgone conclusion? Overall, the writer does a great job of keeping their re-blossoming romance entertaining and light-hearted - There's no need for any hankies in this piccy. She develops them into robust and credible individuals, though a tad more depth wouldn't have gone amiss. Her dialogue is believable and works well to keep everything light and build the heart-warming atmosphere to the finale, where it's most prominent. The scenarios her characters find themselves in are also realistic, though I would've liked Sam to use her camera in Landscape mode when shooting her media footage. She's supposedly a professional, and portrait videos are so amateur. The director should've also spotted this fubar.

The director could've done a little better with his cinematography. He has some nicely composed shots, but there aren't many: The finale cried out for more. It would've added more potency to the film. For me, the filming style was your average pedestrian run-of-the-mill TV fayre and could've done with some zinging up to give it a more festive feel.

The cast is superb. Ryan McPartlin, who I first saw in Chuck as Mr Perfect, was perfect for the role of Coop. Though he's undoubtedly handsome, he brings a Joe Averageness to the role, which makes him easier to relate to. And Jana Kramer was the ideal choice to star opposite him as Sam. These two work well together. When they first meet and realise they're going to be working together, you can feel the prickly relationship. Coop is hesitant, whilst Sam is a tad belligerent. But as they progress, their relationship softens.

All-in-all, Christmas Fix-Up is an entertaining movie to cuddle up with your beloved and a tipple of your choice on a wet afternoon or cold evening. I may even revisit the ravaged lodge sometime, as the film made me smile, and that is always a good thing.

Please check out my HO! HO! HO! Christmas Belles list to see where I ranked the movie.

Take Care, Stay Well, And Best Wishes For A Merry Christmas.

Plenty of fun activities, plenty of good chemistry by all, Ryan and Jana smoke it in this show. Lots of plot twists to keep you entertained and guessing. Jana who always does well in these outdoors type movies excelled. And Ryan found more of his softer qualities to put it all together nicely.

Well done. I will be watching this a couple more times as I always like a good fixer upper type of show with romance thrown in.

It's a lifetime movie so expect a lifetime quality movie. I can see this being really great for a pre teen girl. It's not sexual or preachy & the storyline is simple ( & dumb, but, again, it's a lifetime movie). Other than that, it's great to watch with an edible if you're an adult. If your high, it's non- stop laughs and a new must- see holiday movie. You can go to the bathroom and grab snacks through out and you'll never miss a thing. Although, I recommend watching the whole thing in its entirety as it's truly a wild ride. Personally, my favorite character was creepy uncle jack. A fun party game would be to take a shot ever time uncle jack shows up for no reason other than to be a weirdo. Happy watching!

Well they could not have picked two more attractive individuals for this holiday romance...these two are gorgeous! I can see why everyone wants #soop for Christmas, although I am with Coop-whatever that means.

When Rita and Jack moved in to Bel Harbor it was just four walls, it is the people that make it a home.

Sam has a fixer-upper show on something like the DIY network and has been very successful for the last five years. She has avoided going home to Bel Harbor, where it all started, for Christmas by doing an annual Christmas show...which this year they have given to an up and coming fixer upper because her social media presence is off the charts. Then Sam sees that a storm caused damage to her beloved Bel Harbor Inn and she calls her surrogate father to see if he needs help...and indeed he does. Which is how Sam ends up doing a fixer upper in Bel Harbor for Christmas. There she must work with her ex boyfriend Coop and discovers their breakup was not what it seemed five years ago.

This was a fairly run of the mill romance that added both Christmas and a woman doing DIY. If you are in to that...you may enjoy this film. The two leads are very attractive, if that is a draw.