Christmas by Design

8.1 stars.

Same old formula with fairly new players. This is simply a repeat of a half-dozen other Hallmark films, the only difference is the pajamas. Any guy would love the overalls pajama design as long as they are comfortable. Stamp a brand name on 'em and you have a winner.

Charlotte owns a boutique clothing store in New York City, she is career driven, hasn't really come home since her father died several years ago. Yes, I know, I know, this trope has been beaten to death.

She goes home for Christmas because her shop and also, coincidentally, her apartment must close down for repairs. She has no choice, so she drives home, accidentally gets into a fender bender with a mechanic named Spencer, a real heartbreaker, all the women in town swoon over him. Maybe he's not interested in anyone for now, because he lost his wife a few years ago, but Charlotte could be a contender...let the romance spring forth.

As with any movie that gets a rating 8.0 or higher, I need not elaborate any further. It's entertaining, the romance is fresh, the family is likable, there is even some drama. Charlotte sabotages her life on multiple occasions. She needs an attitude adjustment and Spencer is the only person that can help her.

On the annual watchlist? Affirmative.

It's always nice to see Rebecca Dalton as the lead. She's more than capable, always delivers and doesn't over- or under-act, as a few of Hallmark's leading ladies sometimes do.

The sneak-peek commercials of this movie didn't show me much in terms of an original plot line, but the writers did a good job, and Dalton and Jonathan Keltz were engaging leads who had pretty good chemistry. A few of the small details of the storyline weren't tied up as cleanly as I would've liked (it would've been nice to see Charlotte's dad's truck restored, which is not a spoiler in any way), but overall I bought the storyline and found myself totally rooting for Charlotte.

The actors portraying Charlotte's family members were believable. Her cute kid nephew was refreshingly rambunctious and acted like how kids do in real life, which was a nice departure from the usual total obedience seen in kids in these movies.

I was pleasantly surprised how much I enjoyed this movie and I would recommend watching it.

Rebecca Dalton has been in some real rom/com bombs, but she has had a few good ones. This is a good one. One problem I have seen in the past is flat acting. She seemed totally natural in this one. She also had great chemistry with Jonathan Keltz. Their banter was great. I really enjoyed the development of their relationship.

Another theme throughout the movie is family alienation. She has some chip on her shoulder with her step dad which gets illuminated later. In fact she has friction with her entire family. There are highs and lows there.

There isn't much in the story that sets this movie apart.

This is a great movie that I thoroughly enjoyed as an any-season view. It IS a Christmas movie, but there was enough substance to make it interesting outside of the Christmas/holiday theme.

The movie is a simple premise - as summarized already on this site - but the subtleties that I found enjoyable differentiate it from most Hallmark Christmas movies.

There is a fair amount of underlying tension throughout the movie, which may not bode well for a family night, but is certainly relatable to most people living in the real world. We all are facing issues or concerns, if not with our own family, perhaps with friendships. People can be self-centered, and they can also have the best intentions, but not meet the needs of those they want to please.

In this movie, the mom is the most amazing, supportive mom possible. Stepdad is a very invisible part until the last quarter of the movie. The sister plays a strong role, and this is where a lot of the tension happens. She is clearly the person who feels she has been there for her family, through thick and thin, but her younger sister fled to NYC, fulfilling her dreams.

This tension is evident from the start, as the moment they reunite at their Mom's house, it's snippy-quip-and-side-eye-galore.

I understand this tension, as I AM that younger sister, the one who left the hometown, and to this day, there is palpable tension from my older sister. I saw - in Charlotte - a little of myself. Wondering, 'what did I do that's so wrong? I tried to make the most of what our parents taught in us, but now I am the bad person because I didn't make my life in this town?" - -- the part about how, when their father was sick, Charlotte was not there -- this really hit home for me, as the same situation happened in my own life. I was desperate to be home, but did not understand that there are rules to preserve jobs if you leave (FMLA in the US) -- and so, I stayed in my new area, working while worrying about my father.

The situations aren't exactly parallel, but these painful feelings don't disappear, and it helps me tremendously to see that other families deal with them too. Yes, it's a HM movie, but these are movies that seem to be based on realistic situations. I definitely don't want to see a movie with the "worst" of life depicted, but this movie had a solid balance of positive and "reality", without it being a downer, in my opinion.

I also loved how she (Char) was not perfect at all; she made stupid comments about Spencer's profession, and even worse, ruthlessly snapped at her stepdad, who was so gentle and kind. Her mom's reaction was so healthy: she wasn't going to tolerate that sort of talk, but also had empathy for her daughter's obvious inner conflict.

I loved that Spencer was a real guy: he didn't just grovel for her to love him. He had his pride, a sense of self-dignity, which is the reality for most young men, as well it should be. It took work for her to earn his trust again, and he wasn't just waiting with roses for her to come back. This is reality for most couples.

The downsides of this movie were few, but typical: some unexplored story points (how did Elfcapades stay afloat in the end, or did it?) and the suspension of reality that only Hallmark can pull off -- but this movie is among my favorites in all of Hallmark history, simply because I could see parts of my own life, and it helped me reflect further on how I can be a better person.

I loved Viggo Hanvelt, who played her nephew - what a total delight and talent. I also loved Dee Dee's role/the actress, as she seems like the perfect backdrop to "cozy Christmas movie" (we all need a Dee Dee to be our comrade).

Highly recommend this movie for the viewer that is looking for a little more complexity and isn't put off by reminders of reality. It's not the best movie for watching with Grandma, or while decorating or making cookies, but a great movie for a couple of good friends to watch and to dissect a bit afterward.

Movie story was actually worth 10 stars BUT the lead male actor Jonathan Keltz was TERRIBLE and we rated him (F). He was a total MISMATCH as a lead male. Make sure you don't use him in 2024. Your Producers and Directors have to do better evaluations of male actors. I had to comment on a web site for Hallmark and Hallmark Mystery channels and we listed a few more that need to be removed in 2024. Joey Heyworth rated (F)-- Torrance Coombs rated (F)--Brendah Fehr- rated (F)-Sam Page rated (D)--Jilan Vanover rated (F)--Chad Murray- rated (C)-Jesse Metcalfe- rated (D)--- Dillion Casey rated (C)--Neal Bledsue rated (C)---