The Noel Diary

A famous author learns his mom has died and returns to his hometown to clean up her house. In the process he meets a woman looking for her birth mom and believes she had ties to his family.

I liked this movie a lot other than the pretty quick ending. Justin Hartley is really underrated as an actor. It was nice to see him out of Randall's shadow on This Is Us. The Vermont and Massachusetts winter scenery was beautiful and the cast dynamic was solid. The plot was simple but mostly believable.

As I said, my only complaint was the shotgun ending. Act 3 felt criminally short in comparison to the rest of the movie.

Firstly, this movie wasn't actually filmed in winter time and the green screen and CGI really took me out of the story. This isn't Hallmark - what gives?

Secondly, this movie had so much to work with, but just didn't have the guts to go there. Everything was kept at such a surface level that it was hard to care or relate to the characters. I cry over pretty much anything, but I didn't shed a tear watching a movie about a woman searching for her birth mother and a man dealing with trauma and abandonment. There was no heart, no passion, no drama. No love. Rachel's decision didn't satisfy, the "closure" of Jacob's relationship with his father was anticlimactic, and the romance gave nothing. No conversation or kiss or anything that made it feel complete or earned at the end. Basically, it's a pass as far as Christmas movies go.

There are some likable aspects to this film, but also some things I wasn't such a big fan of. What I liked most was Justin Hartley. He's a commanding presence on the small screen. You can count on good acting and charisma with him. He's a consistently believable character all throughout this story. Interestingly, The Noel Diary showed restraint in places where it could have really stirred up those feel-good, warm and fuzzy feelings in us. And then in other places, it didn't show restraint where it should have. For example, the primary romance isn't the sweetest as it feels a bit wrong at times given that one of the two protagonists is engaged to someone else throughout the whole movie. The deceit and cheating taking place definitely weakens the romantic aspect of the film, which is a major aspect. The other major aspect is the theme of abandonment and reconciliation with parents. This is handled better, though not utilized to its full potential. Still, with all the Christmas decorations and snowy scenery, it's very watchable if you're in the mood for a simple little Christmassy film to enjoy at the end of the day.

I'll admit, after Lindsay Lohan and Freddie Prinze Jr, Netflix was really dropping the ball on this year's cookie cutter Christmas films. But I am a glutton for punishment, so I, of course, had to watch this one immediately. The cast is great. I loved Bonnie Bedelia's character especially. I enjoyed the storyline. The acting was mostly good. The one major negative for me was the terrible editing. There were some really awkward camera zooms and just choppiness throughout and the cgi was unbearable at times. It was really distracting for me. I also really didn't buy the romantic chemistry between the main characters at all. Still, I was happy to see something a little different from the typical holiday film, as this movie delved into some heavier emotions; grief, abandonment, etc, which was a change of pace needed in this genre I think. All in all, worth a watch in my opinion.

I was binging some cheesy Christmas movies and I saw this and I thought ok sounds like another typical 4, 5 average I'll pass the time.

I was surprised, it was a really very nice movie. I even shed a tear there at the end.

I really liked it. Great movie, great acting. It touches on so many painful subjects but not in a heavy way. The actors are all great, nothing cheesy and it does have a Christmas vibe to it. Ok well maybe a few scenes were slightly cheesy but the rest is really good and sad , that I was really thrilled and smiled at those cheesy moments. I finished the movie having a lot of thoughts about my own life and the people in it, so relatable. Definitely not what i expected feeling after a Christmas movie.