Christmas Beneath the Stars

The story is very much like Christmas Land all the way through. I think there's another also but can't think of it.

The climatic double secret is clumsy on both ends.

The acting is barely fair. There might have been a little chemistry between the leads.

Even though the place was supposed to be a little run down, the sets and props were obviously budget. For instance, the town Christmas tree was pretty small.

Setting is all-important when supposedly in the bush of Alaska. Where's the darkness? When there is light, there is no Aurora. I loved how the horse tripped over the cotton blob of snow. I feel for the actors having to pretend it's winter when there's obviously no signs of winter, but then again, the acting was as mediocre as the fake Alaska. Oh yeah, open windows in winter while they're sitting around a table? And who drinks hot chocolate when it's warm? Someone should have actually visited Alaska before releasing this sad and laughable movie. Hannah and her aunt should have stayed in Sacramento.

Something must be wrong with me as I actually enjoyed this movie. I guess it's because it doesn't follow the typical holiday movie scenario of beautifully decorated homes, baking cookies, Christmas tree lighting in the town square etc., etc. I'm so bored with all of that. I liked these characters and that's where a lot if my enjoyment comes from.

Where to start? Alaska right before Christmas. Where's the snow, it looks like a few pieces of cotton laying around. It looks like the sun shines many hours a day? I thought Alaska only has about 6 hours of sunlight in winter.

The girl is out a night with a light jacket, unzipped. Did anyone review this before it went on TV?

Every ounce of joy and energy is sapped from this deeply substandard TV movie. It's fifteen minutes of script hyperextended into a feature-length TV movie, each scene a molasses trickle. It feels like a Hallmark movie that was left out in the sun to bleach and dry up. The actors take deep breaths between each line of dialog and repeat plot points (scant as they are) over and over. The two leads are obviously under heavy sedation. The main character's aunt reads every line as catty. Even the actors' hairstyles (or wigs?) are strange. The acclaimed local cafe serves what appear to be Hungry Man turkey frozen dinners with a side of cocoa. The father and son at the heart of the story seem to be estranged at the start of the film for reasons never explained and evidently instantly resolved. WHAT EVEN IS THIS.