Christmas on Honeysuckle Lane

I like it ! For house, letters, ornaments of Christmas tree, for supporting actors and for the connection with past. In rest, it is only a Hallmark Christmas film, not impressive but nice , not memorable but sweet, the chemistry between the main character being, in nice manner, replaced , by a fair complementarity, working not just bad. The soft confusions as obstacles against relation are a good point. The result, beautiful , first for the flavors of a lost time and family spirit.

Well, I have to say that the title of this 2018 Christmas movie and the cover wasn't exactly great selling points, and I was having some doubts about the movie. But still, with it being the holiday season and all, and me not having already seen "Christmas on Honeysuckle Lane", of course I opted to sit down to watch what writer Caitlin D. Fryers managed to concoct.

Needless to say that I was expecting this to be another over-the-top sappy cheesy romantic Christmas movie, you know, the ones that come a dime a dozen. But writer Caitlin D. Fryers and director Maggie Greenwald actually managed to surprise me with what they delivered here. Why? Well, simply because the storyline told in "Christmas on Honeysuckle Lane" was actually one that transcended the usual Christmas romantic cheese. And I found the storyline to be every bit as entertaining as it was well-written.

So if you enjoy Christmas movies and want to watch something that is more than the usual girl hates boy but is forced to work together and falls in love type of Christmas movie, then by all means give "Christmas on Honeysuckle Lane" a chance.

I wasn't familiar with the majority of the cast in this 2018 Christmas movie. I only recognized Laura Leighton actually, and she wasn't the lead actress. But I will say that the actors and actresses in the movie put on good performances in bringing the movie to life on the screen. Lead actress Alicia Witt (playing Emma) and lead actor Colin Ferguson (playing Morgan) really carried the movie quite well and had a good on-screen chemistry.

"Christmas on Honeysuckle Lane" is the type of Christmas movie that definitely has a feel-good atmosphere to it, and it definitely put me in a good mood. So this is certainly a Christmas movie that I can and will warmly recommend you sit down to watch if you like Christmas movies and if you have the chance.

Actually, "Christmas on Honeysuckle Lane" is one of the better Christmas movies that I have sat down to watch thus far in 2021. And I've seen more than twenty so far, only ten days into December.

My rating of "Christmas on Honeysuckle Lane" lands on a most well-deserved seven out of ten stars. It is a good movie, though it is not going to become a Christmas classic for me. Nor do I think I will actually ever sit down to watch it a second time.

7.6 stars.

Emma is an attorney who returns from New York to visit her family over the holidays. Her parents passed away recently and now she must sell the estate with the aid of her older sister and brother. She meets Morgan, an antique store owner, and they have a lot in common. She is currently in an on again off again relationship with a man from the city, but at this point, it's off.

Does she have strong feelings for Morgan? Does he reciprocate? Of course, it's Hallmark. Now we must watch as they work out the kinks in their fledgling relationship and meanwhile her "ex" boyfriend wants her back. She is conflicted, but Morgan is not the type to wholeheartedly commit and pursue her with reckless abandon. He weighs the options and is a perfect gentleman about the ordeal. But then a mystery arises, they find out there was an unknown man from her mother's past. They embark on a hunt to uncover the identity of this figure and along the journey they grow closer. Concurrently, her older sister is having issues with her daughter who is going to college, and they have some disagreements. Her brother is married with two children, and they also contribute some wonderful drama. They are all preparing to celebrate one last Christmas at the Honeysuckle House and many townsfolk, including Morgan, are intertwined into this fun time over the holidays.

The final act is a but rushed and the romance too. Overall, I enjoyed this movie, but it could have been improved with some better time management and more opportunity to marinate in the glee of the happily ever after.

Alicia Witt never fails to entertain. She has a very endearing subtle exuberance, and it always shines through. She can make a film a fun experience just being present in the room. And wouldn't you know, just by coincidence, Colin Ferguson was also cast in the movie. This is certainly a bonus, because he exudes the same kind of mystique. He has a charisma unlike most male actors I've come to like in these romance movies, which explains why he was the lead in his own television show for multiple seasons. Together they are radiant and positive and nothing could possibly go awry. You can feel the magic with the energy they share and it envelops the story with pure joyfulness and maybe a little mischief (even though there is absolutely nothing light or mischievious about this story).

The story is average, but the two leads have an on-screen spark which makes this flick engaging.

What most impressed me was the beautiful house (where the story is mainly staged); and the overall Christmas decor/snow-laden setting (beautiful interiors with many trees & lights) which is sophisticated and understated - without an inflatable Snowman/Santa-Claus in sight.

Very pretty to look at - I've scored 7/10 for festive charm alone.

That may sound harsh, and apologies, but 'Christmas on Honeysuckle Lane' just didn't work for me. Liked the concept, which was hardly an original one but seemed nice enough. The title sounded cute if corny. Not all Hallmark Christmas films are bad, actually think a good deal of them are watchable but was pleasantly surprised by some. Colin Ferguson is seldom less than watchable and more often than not is more than that.

Was though not completely excited in seeing it, having struggled with watching some of Alicia Witt's performances in her other Christmas films and from the synopsis and what has been said about the film it sounded like it would be another variation on the type of character that she often overacts. While not quite one of the worst Hallmark Christmas films, 'Christmas on Honeysuckle Lane' had a lot of very glaring flaws bad enough to completely disallow me from getting any enjoyment out of it.

'Christmas on Honeysuckle Lane' is not all bad. Ferguson is very engaging and does a great job with what he's given, which is not enough and not worthy of Ferguson's talent. Jill Larson is also a joy as one of the few characters in the film to be properly worth investing in.

It looks good, the settings are beautiful to watch and are lovingly festive, nicely photographed. Count me in as another person who loves the house, one of the nicest houses for any Hallmark Christmas film.

However, Witt badly overacts her role, coming over as very affected, and exaggerates her character's negative traits (i.e. pomposity) to a very grating degree. There is no chemistry or spark between her and Ferguson, no warmth whatsoever and very disconnected. Other than Morgan and Rachel, none of the characters are particularly likeable and only Rachel is interesting, Ferguson's material is too weak and he has too little to his role.

Dialogue ranges from laughably bad to downright painful, very childish with a lot of forced sentimentality and constant awkwardness. The story is lifeless with a glacially slow pace throughout, especially the very hard to sit through first half, and has no charm, warmth or heart. Boredom and annoyance were the only two feelings that came from watching this film. The music for my liking was too constant and too intrusive. The direction is pedestrian throughout.

On the whole, mediocre. 4/10