Christmas Beneath the Stars

Oh my word! No words can describe how unimpressed I was with the scenery. The movie is supposedly set in Alaska. I could be wrong but have always assumed most if not all of Alaska has snow on the ground during the Christmas season. I am almost certain the trees, unless evergreens, do not have green leaves. In the movie, there was minimal snow, fake or otherwise, no pretense of the weather being cold and green leaves on trees. The actual story line was very similar to most "romantic" movies ... girl meets boy, girl is not interested in boy, boy likes girl, girl and boy have misunderstanding and in the end, after only a few days / weeks, girl and boy are madly in love.

Supposedly set in Alaska, around Christmas. Where's the cold? Snow? Darkness? And what's with the green leaves on maple trees? It's all just too much to take. The 'B' list Canadian cast tries, but the direction and script make that an uphill battle. This film is filler for holiday cable schedules.

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.

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.

Not sure if it was bad writing, or bad acting, or just bad. But got 3 stars for being something that kids could watch without needing to change the channel.