User reviews

The widowed Jamie is inspired by her niece's comment about needing her late husband around town for Christmas. So she takes it upon herself to be a secret Santa and help those in need around her hometown coopersville. This attracts the attention of the morning news show and tv celebrity Scott, who goes from interviewing her randomly to dating her. While Scott is trying to solve the secret Santa mystery, Jamie as secret Santa is inspiring others to give to those less fortunate...helping out their neighbors.

This was a sweet story and I love Cameron Matthison, he and Jenny Garth looked great together...of course he compliments everyone he is with.

Not a lot of family in this offering, but it really plays up the gift of giving.

There is a lot more to see of the relatively new GAC Family's work, but what has been seen so far has been a mixed bag. 'Much Ado About Christmas' was very well done and nearly great. 'The Great Christmas Switch' on the other hand was the complete anti-thesis of great, and was a big misfire despite its interesting premise. A big main reason for seeing 'Kindhearted Christmas' was the always worth watching Cameron Mathison, he has a very up and down filmography but his performances have generally been consistent.

'Kindhearted Christmas' sees him on good form, regardless of my feelings on his character, and it is an even better representation of Jamie Garth. Comparing it to GAC Family's other work seen, 'Kindhearted Christmas' is not as good as 'Much Ado About Christmas' but is miles better than 'The Great Christmas Switch'. It does have flaws, which is not unexpected (haven't seen any Christmas film from Hallmark, Lifetime, UPTV, ION or GAC Family that has been perfect), but it is well intentioned, charming and well done in a lot of areas.

Am going to mention the issues first. Actually had no problems with Mathison's performance, but his character was inconsistently written for my tastes. He was amiable to begin with, but do agree that his character is too naive and that his sudden and overly aggressive jerk-like personality change during the conflict makes the character go really down in one's estimations.

Did think too that the ending, while sweet, was a little too on the neat side, and that the chemistry isn't quite there or as strong in the conflict, which could have had more tension and felt a little less abrupt.

However, 'Kindhearted Christmas' has a lot that is recommendable. Garth gives a very honest performance that is restrained but never phoned in or affected. Mathison is easy going and amiable and he is not to blame for the inconsistent writing for his character, other than overdoing the aggression a little. On the whole, their chemistry is very natural and genuine, with some nice development and is not rushed or aimless. The supporting cast are solid.

Furthermore, it is nicely filmed, fittingly scored and solidly directed. The writing flows and is not too sentimental in the more dramatic moments and has snap and wit in the comedic ones (that are not contrived or forced). The story is formulaic, but is also touching and heart-warming, and on the whole the characters were worth engaging with, misfiring only with Mathison's character's personality change.

In conclusion, very nicely done if not wow worthy. 7/10.

I do enjoy Christmas movies, the Hallmark variety that is. Sometimes when life gets tough, we just need to escape, to breathe in a bit of hope and positive outcomes, even some predictability. This movie delivers. The premise is wider than the typical romance that is found in most movies of this genre. While the 'secret santa' concept is also a popular one, this movie does play it well. I found the characters sufficiently three-dimensional. Their relationships are credible (well, within the realm of the genre). The plot is to be expected, but it is fun to see it develop. I would recommend the movie.

Such a sweet story. A Samaritan from little town Cooperville acts as a secret Santa to help the needy and put a huge smile on their faces. This inspires the town to give back to the community.

A great movie and Scott - the reporter was absolutely charming as the tv host, and the lonely traveller who runs away to wander the world during Christmas time.

Jamie is the reason this movie gets only 6 stars. Her dialogs are good, but her eyes and expressions are all wrong. She comes off as a stalker or psychopath with those expressions. I almost thought this was going to turn into a thriller who would torture Scott after kidnapping him.

A great movie let down due to weird expressions.

Jennie Garth's eye rolling and opening eyes wide was distracting. Not a lot of range. I've seen her in other movies where she hasn't done it - she really accentuated it in this movie. Cameron Mathison's anger seemed out of place. Why was he so mad? Couldn't figure it out. He still got his stories.

It was good. Jennie Garth was great. Cameron is always good but they had chemistry. I will watch again this year but will definitely rewatch. Gac needs more of this duo as they finally had one that worked.

A lovelt film with the real spirit of Christmas feeling. It's nothing mind-blowing, just a warm, feel good easy to watch film for a cosy evening.

Was also good to see Garth again, she's actually looking more beautiful than her younger years and the rest of the cast are great.

However...Christmas crackers are to be pulled with someone else, it's part of the fun. And traditionally, whoever gets the large part keeps the gift inside..although usually you make it fair and give any extra you win to someone else.

So put your feet up, get a cup of your favourite hot beverage and enjoy. Merry Christmas to all a good night.

This plot has been done sooo many times. If it had been done well, I might not complain. But it was slow, full of cliches, and Cameron and Jennie had no real chemistry. I was hoping for more. So far, Hallmark have had the far better movies this year with more original, emotional and magical story lines.

This movie is uplifting. So why is Jennie Garth so restrained? I would expect Jamie to be bursting with holiday cheer, positively bubbly. I think her restraint lessened the chemistry with Cameron Mathison. Mathison was fine.

The story was pretty much by formula for most of it. It picks up a bit of the pay-it-forward theme as it goes on and others join in. I will say the climax has a nice little twist. Then comes the conflict that you know is inevitable. I love the way the memory flashbacks resolve it.

Another reviewer commented the irony that Jennie Garth previously played a reporter in Holidaze sent to unmask a Secret Santa. That's not exactly how the synopsis reads on that movie, but notice that she costarred with Mathison in that movie. And Mathison was in Christmas Club which had a similar uplifting pay it forward theme even though it wasn't quite Secret Santa.

7.0 stars.

This is a clumsy film with many errors and awkward scenes. Garth's character is deliberately portrayed as scatterbrained and naive, and she does it too convincingly. The theme is about as elevated and "holy" as can be, about a secret Santa benefactor who is giving large and amazing gifts to many needy people in town. These are selfless and righteous acts of kindness, from a "kindhearted" soul. We all suspect immediately who the mysterious donor is and that's the point. We are supposed to know from early on. I just wish the presentation would have been less awkward and more smooth.

I've always liked Jennie Garth who became a "household name" as the ever-so-gentle Kelly in 'Beverly Hills 90210'. She will never escape that stigma or honor, whichever applies. I've mentioned in other reviews I had a love hate relationship with her in the era of 90210, 'Melrose Place', 'Models Inc', etc. (it was an era for sure), which spawned a plethora of watered down clones like 'Dawson's Creek', 'The O. C.', 'One Tree Hill', and then morphed into amalgamations of teen drama and supernatural phenomena: 'Smallville', 'Supernatural', 'Vampire Diaries' and simultaneously 'Gossip Girl', 'Pretty Little Liars', 'Teen Wolf', 'The 100'. I know that if you've seen one of the above shows, YOU'VE SEEN THEM ALL, and literally you've seen them all, because they are so darned addictive guilty pleasures. And so I now refer you back to where I started: Jennie Garth was one of the "originals" for this force of a new genre that we like to call teen romance drama. I was transfixed being introduced to the ultra high society rich snooty teenagers and young adults that were actually portraying good and wonderful rich kids, spoiled, but likable and deep down nice people. This is the caricature I will always think of when I see Garth in a movie. But she is still able to stand on her merits as an actress without the mark or merit of 90210 on her record.

So this guy talks the talk on English tradition on crackers. Then he proceeds to tell her how to open the crackers, which is wrong. You pull between two people. Then the winner is the one the the larger end, which typically has a paper hat, bottle opener (or whatever something small) and a joke and or fact. I had to watch it twice and me and my partner were shocked. I laughed so much at how stupid it was.

Also...terrible over the top acting.

A lot of wide eyed acting.

The facial expressions don't match the moods of the scenes.

Such a terrible movie. It's very...awful.

Get to know English traditions before showing it on tv.

I really, realy love this story. It was a very sweet and touching movie. I like this kind of movies which bring inspiration to you and make you do something good for other people.

This movie is a usual Christmas cheesy romance, but I'm afraid to say that it isn't one of the better ones. The characters are pretty one dimensional and I didn't like any of them. There were a lot of wide eyed, over exaggerated facial expressions going on and overacting that was downright annoying.

The main guy is an annoying mansplainer who clearly thinks he knows more than he does. There is one scene where he books out a whole restaurant and then introduces the Christmas cracker from England (like it's the most exotic place in the world)- Da-Dah!!! - and then proceeds to show her how to pull it wrongly. He missed the whole concept of the Christmas cracker! I must admit it's hilarious and I laughed at loud. It was so ridiculous. He's just so pleased with himself. For me that was the most entertaining bit of the film.

Let me start by saying it's hard for me not to love any movie starring Cameron Mathison so I'm a little biased. He always plays such a kind, genuine, caring, person, in all his movies.

I enjoyed the premise about an anonymous person giving help and kindness to those in need. Another reviewer said "This plot has been done sooo many times" and this person thought it was boring. I felt the opposite! I haven't seen many movies with this plot on GAC, Hallmark, or Lifetime. I've watched over 500 Hallmark movies. There are few here and there with the "Secret Santa" premise but not to many. Maybe I've missed them somehow. A movie by Lifetime called, A Christmas Angel, was a great movie about a "secret Santa" and I highly recommend it! Don't confuse it with the Hallmark movie and Angel for Christmas. Both great movies.

My only issue was Jennie Garth's character. Could she eke out a smile? Her character did not exude kindness and empathy at all. She never looked Mathison in the eye or responded with a smile when he complimented her.

This was an enjoyable movie presented in a genuine way! Jennie Garth and Cameron Mathison were superb in their roles. My only little complaint is that they should not have made Mathison character get a little too irritated when he found out who was the secret santa. I think the different ways that people were helped are unique. I have done things anonymously for people before and to see how it blesses their lifes is very rewarding. This movie makes me want to do more this year as well.

Let's all remember what this time of the year means. There are those out there who are struggling now and all year long. So important to help these people. This movie really pointed this out in a wonderful way!

If people give this an average 6.3, as it stands now, it makes you wonder about the averages of other films. I recently saw both Falling for Christmas and I believe in Santa, the new Netflix Christmas movies. They currently stand at 5.2 and 4.5 respectively. If you compare this to those two, this should definitely have a higher average.

Better, more natural acting. And yes, that includes Jamie/Jennie. I see some people mentioning her eyes, but trust me, if you've just seen I believe in Santa, Jennie's acting is nice and real (indulge me - watch ten minutes of I believe in Santa, I dare you). In my opinion, that more natural acting also applies to the 'restrained' vibe Jamie has in the view of a reviewer. That reviewer said they would expect Jamie "bursting with holiday cheer", but if you expected that, you don't understand the premise. I found it very logical and realistic, her not being an over the top Christmas lover is part of the point of the film, I have no idea what premise would make one expect otherwise. It's this realism, this authenticity, this not overdoing it that appeals to me. The film is Christmassy in a more tasteful way with more natural decorations, not the incredibly tacky plastic AliExpress versions that i see in most new films. Surprised at the criticism about him being hurt by her not telling him; I thought that was well done and logical. If they hadn't been so involved, if it was just a neighbour or something, that hurt would have been misplaced. But dating and continuously talking about the secret Santa and not telling would not feel right to me either, from both perspectives. Nicely shot and produced, with everything looking real, including the shop/office, snow, scenery, etc. (that is one of my biggest issues with Christmas films and a realistic looking film without fake car rides, fake snow, fake backgrounds, fake streets, etc. Immediately gets a few extra points from me). Predictable, yes (I think we want our Christmas movies to be), but not overly corny or over the top. I was afraid people wouldn't respect her wish to remain anonymous, which would surely have happened not only in other Christmas movies but also in real life, because usually others decide what that person wants instead of the person itself, and was very pleased it didn't happen here.

There are only a few small things I would have done differently. The morning show logo is very 'my dad who has just started to use a computer made it'. There's no need to mansplain how crackers work and if you do, do it correctly. Apparently, they were meant to stand underneath mistletoe, but it wasn't mistletoe. It looked like holly but with white berries. The people who surprised the struggling family were standing way too close to the house to not be seen, and the video they supposedly took was done from much closer than that even. But if my only criticisms are these small things, they did well, in my opinion.

Pay it forward this Christmas, everyone.