User reviews

When I first read the overview of this movie I thought that it sounded familiar. I checked my Christmas movies and it turned out that Remember the Night from 1940 written by Preston Sturges was the film. Here is IMDb's overview of that film which starred Barbara Stanwyck and Fred MacMurray "Just before Christmas, Lee Leander is caught shoplifting. It is her third offense. She is prosecuted by John Sargent. He postpones the trial because it is hard to get a conviction at Christmas time. But he feels sorry for her and arranges for her bail, and ends up taking her home to his mother for Christmas" And once again they fall in love... If you enjoyed "On the 2nd Day of Christmas" then you might enjoy this older B&W film with a similar theme.

Bert (Mark Ruffalo) comes from a family of police officers and had aspirations for the profession himself. Unfortunately, his eyes are not perfect enough for the job. Therefore, he has settled into a security guard's position in a major department store. Meanwhile, Trish (Mary Stuart Masterson) and her niece Patsy run street cons where they pickpocket and trick folks out of their wallets. The duo comes to Bert's store where they endeavor to take a gentleman's wallet. But, Bert spies the action. Despite Trish saying that she was merely trying to find the owner of the wallet, the store owner orders her and her niece to the authorities. Yet, its Christmas Eve, as Bert points out. The image of the store will suffer to have a CHILD arrested on the holiday. Therefore, the owner commands Bert to take the two back to his, Bert's, apartment and keep an eye on the them until the day AFTER Christmas. Ho ho ho, this should be fun. Trish and Patsy try to run away at least a couple of times, but Bert matches wits with them. Since the two adults are single and good-looking, can a thief and a guard fall for each other? You bet! This sweet, somewhat derivative film has two attractive, talented lead actors who carry the film along nicely. All other actors, including Howard Hesseman, are fine while the film has good sets, costumes, and plot concepts. Are you the type who loves holiday romances? This one will work its warm and fuzzy charm on you.

"On the 2nd Day of Christmas" is absolute torture. It is the cinematic equivalent of coal in your stocking. Here is a movie so unpleasant and manipulative that you will have to take a cold shower just to remove the swarminess.

I have never disliked a Christmas movie so much. It tries to shamelessly manipulate our feelings. This is the kind of movie that Roger Ebert would describe as "taking tears by liposuction". That's how desperate these filmmakers are to move us. Well, it moved me. Off the couch at the halfway point. I usually sit through an entire movie, no matter how bad. But an hour and 10 minutes of this tripe was more than I could bear.

With a more organized and thoughtful screenplay, this could have been a good movie. But this script has several fatal flaws. First, there are no sympathetic or likable characters. When by the twenty minute mark, you want to throw your female lead out the window, you know you're in trouble. Second, the film is overly predictable. We know what's going to happen and sure enough, I successfully predicted everything that happened after the opening ten minutes. Third, the performances feel by the numbers. There's no life or flavor, just routine unpleasantness.

Do yourself a favor. Instead of wasting two hours of your life, read a book, do a jigsaw puzzle, go out for a walk. Just don't watch this movie.

zero stars (out of four)

"On the 2nd Day of Christmas" starts like the Charles Dickens' novel "Oliver Twist": a pickpocket has enlisted a small child in the profession of stealing! As appalling as this scenario sounds, the film then progressed to a rather charming and romantic Christmas story.

The film's modest success is due primarily to the chemistry between the lead performers Mark Ruffalo and Mary Stuart Masterson. Ruffalo's character Bert, who works security in a department store, is given the assignment of guarding the pickpocket Patsy (Masterson) over the Christmas holidays until she may be turned over to the police. Of course, the romantic sparks begin to fly between Bert and Patsy!

To support the principal relationship of Bert and Patsy, there could have been better character developments in the large family of Bert. Arlene Meadows turned in good work as the mother, but the other family members seemed one-dimensional. When Bert and Patsy visit his family members on Christmas, we learn that the entire clan consists of police officers! During the Christmas meal, the banter could have been more lively and the characters more colorful.

Still, there were some touching and tender moments in this film due to the two likable leads. Only one question sticks in my craw: Was it really necessary to make Patsy's character a modern-day Dickensian pickpocket? If Bert had been the department store's security guard and Patsy had been employed as a salesperson, this story would have played out just as effectively as a heartwarming holiday film.

This is one of the most illogical TV movies ever made -- and that is saying a lot.

(1) Some of the actors play their parts straight, and some play their parts like baffoonish clowns. (2) Pick-pocketing is ethical. (3) Our hero sees a bike stolen and sold for cash. The bike is gone, but he catches the thief with cash in hand, but he does not attempt to claim the money. (4) Closet light bulbs remain switched-on 24 hours a day. (5) City people leave their apartment without locking their apartment door which has many deadbolt locks begging to be used. (6) An income is needed to live in an apartment, but it is assumed that no income is needed to buy and run a house. (7) Decorations are purchased for a Christmas tree that does not exist. Later, at the drop of a hat, a police officer-wanna be steals a Christmas tree. No one in the world would know this would ever happen except for the writer of the movie. (8) Throughout the period the lead female characters desire to escape, they do not do so. For example, at one point the police guard wanna-be guy has both of his hands handcuffed to a handrail inside a bus. He is locked up and has no key, but no one escapes from him. (9) A violent child snatcher is released only because the movie needs him to snatch the child a second time later in the movie. (10) A silly man wearing a cast and a thick Santa's suit spends most of the movie outrunning assorted adults only two or three feet behind him.

The only good part of "On the 2nd Day of Christmas" is the vigilant perfume sales lady on duty in the department store.

I thought that the movie was cute and heartfelt. I thought of it more than a romance. Of course, the movie was as predictable as can be. You felt bad for the little girl. The ending to the movie was pretty funny. The way that the security guard kept having all kinds of things happen to him while he was in charge of watching the woman and the little girl. I wish that they would make more movies like this. They need to come out with more holiday movies like this. Mary Stuart Masterson was excellent in the movie. Mark Ruffalo was sort of a Scrooge type in the movie, but played it very well. I wish they would bring the movie out on DVD. Two Thumbs Up!

This movie starts off as a spoof reference of 'Oliver Twist', it features a professional theft who releases a kid to steal things. Then, Bert comes in, right before Christmas, who agrees to spend time with the little girl to prevent her from the social services.

Now when I had my first experience with 'On the 2nd Day of Christmas', I wasn't astounded but impressed. It featured a lot of good moments, tenderness, happiness, and sometimes mischief but touching scenes. I remember this from 2002 when I was only a kid about nine.

I had to watch it again this year, and thought it was too harsh for kids to watch. There is too much stealing, whining, and attempts to run away and that's not fair. I know this is a family movie but please.

O.K. enough with the comments, but this movie was actually O.K. Nothing special, but I still like the old Santa Clause movie better.

6/10

"The Second Day of Christmas" is a standard but enjoyable holiday film. It is cast well. Mary Stuart Masterson portrays the pickpocket aunt. She's great yet again. (She's an under-appreciated actress in my opinion.) Mark Ruffalo showed off his acting and musical talents.

Howard Hessman has a pointless role. I can't believe he took it either. Come on! He was Dr. Johnny Fever. Now he is David / Santa's Helper.

I would recommend this film but don't expect any great social or spiritual commentary.

I had a hard time liking this movie. I thought the leads had good chemistry but I never trusted Trish. Even at the end of the movie I thought she would bolt now that she wasn't in trouble anymore. I was really annoyed by the scene where the little girl's annoying and constant whining convinces him to steal a tree, who does that? It almost seemed to send a message that stealing is okay. I feel like the movie didn't do enough to convince me that Trish had changed her ways. The little girl was selfish and annoying the whole time too. Also, who falls in love in two days? Cheesy! So they end up together unemployed never making their stealing wrongs right, she should have been punished for it; and people call it a cute holiday flick?

This is absolutely one of my all-time favorite movies. Ever since it came out in 1997, "On the 2nd Day of Christmas" has aired on television every year, and I have yet to miss it. It's such a great movie. Mary Stuart Masterson and Mark Ruffalo have such a great chemistry on-screen. It's a cute storyline and a truly enjoyable film. This one's a definite must-see!

BEWARE OF FALSE REVIEWS & REVIEWERS. SOME REVIEWERS HAVE ONLY ONE REVIEW TO THEIR NAME. NOW WHEN ITS A POSITIVE REVIEW THAT TELLS ME THEY WERE INVOLVED WITH THE MOVIE. IF ITS A NEGATIVE REVIEW THEN THEY MIGHT HAVE A GRUDGE AGAINST THE FILM . I HAVE REVIEWED OVER 200 HOLIDAY FILMS. I HAVE NO AGENDA.

Here is my first "Discovery" of a good Christmas film for 2017. The film is called"On The 2nd Day of Christmas". In this film Trish (Mary Stuart Masterson) and her six-year-old niece, Patsy, make their living by picking pockets. But when they try to take advantage of holiday shoppers with fat wallets, they run into a little snag—a department store security guard named Bert (Mark Ruffalo) catches them in the act. The store owner wants them arrested, but decides to wait until Christmas is over. To ensure they don't make a run for it, he entrusts their care to Bert. With jail on the horizon, Trish and Patsy are scared for their future. But as the holiday nears its end, it looks as though a budding romance might just save them after all.

The film is about 2nd chances and most of all forgiveness. Nice film! However this film is a rip-off of "Remember the Night".

Mine and my 7 year old daughters favorite movie we watch it over and over