A Holiday Spectacular

So happy to see Broadway uber talented Stars Ginna Claire Mason (Wicked) & Derek Klena (Moulin Rouge) and first rate supporting cast in a wonderful Christmas movie! Finally pleased to see a movie about a dancer with an actress who can dance... Still, you do leave the film wishing there was more Rockettes content. Overall a very good period piece, gladly surprised with the recreation of the fifties, the wardrobe, hair and makeup is stunning for Hallmark standards... indeed a charming romance flick, fantastic chemistry between the leads, this one is definitely a keeper. Great job on this one; Hallmark: please keep casting Broadway actors, we love them!

This is an excellent production, with sets, costumes, and dialogue that really captures the late 1950's era. I have paid to see movies at the cinema that do not have the richness of the look of this film. Hallmark and the producers are to be credited with hiring Director John Putch to bring this story to life. He has done a really fine job here. It is hard to single out cast members because they all are excellent and have their terrific moments, but Ginna Marie Mason has the chore of carrying the film's story and she does so very effectively as Maggie, a young, well-to-do woman who realizes her dream of being a dancer. I am surprised at some of the negative reviews here that focus on the fact that the Rockettes had no black dancers in the 1950's. Does everything have to be turned around and focus on race nowadays ? Why can't an actress or actor be hired for a part whether they are black, white, red, or green? As nicely written by Julie Sherman Wolfe, this story is about women in an era where they had to struggle for independence. The script does not deal with racial issues that existed at the time. The part of Alice is about a seasoned Rockette who is feeling that her time as a dancer is coming to an end. The producers hired a black actress to play the part and Tiffany Denise Hobbs is just wonderful in it. I can remember reading articles in the Hollywood Reporter and other journals during the last 10 years that bemoaned the fact that actors of color were not hired enough for parts that could be played by any race. Well, here you have it. Alice just so happens to be played by a really fine black actress. Some other movie can explore the history of women of color breaking into the Rockettes. That is not what this movie is meant to do. It's meant to entertain us and tell us about women of any color who are realizing their dreams in the late 1950's.

The only disappointment here is the limited use of Ann-Margret. She is not given much to do, but, still, it is always a pleasure to see her charming presence in any movie, no matter how limited. Maybe next time.

As for the Rockettes, Director Putch filmed their routines very effectively here and they are pretty amazing. A joy to watch. We saw them in the real Christmas Spectacular at Radio City Music Hall about 20 years ago and were sort of disappointed with the show. The Rockettes were only on stage for about 20 minutes, and the rest of the show is a silly play for children that, to tell the truth, our kids were bored with. But, the Rockettes had their full attention and they were wide-eyed with wonder, so it was worth the price of admission. So, if you can't get to Radio City, this movie is a wonderful way to see the Rockettes - up close to boot.

I admitt, I was seduced by this very special, some different Hallmark movie. The first, great, precious and rare virtue is the atmosphere, admirable crafted, from costumes to the dialogue . Second, no doubts, the frame, a venerable lady telling her first steps in dance career to her granddaughter. Not the last, the beautiful acting, offering a sort of innocence of a generation not far by post war idealism , the dreams coming true, the relation with family and the honesty to themselves. And Ginna Marie Mason, like.derek Klena are perfects in their roles.

The accuracy ? Is it real - real important in this case , the story , touching at whole being more significant, for me, than a pledge agains racism ?

I loved seeing Ann-Margret and Eve Plumb, Loved the vintage costumes and sets, loved seeing the Rockettes, and the story being set in 1957. I even liked the story of a rich girl escaping from her pampered life and following her heart while learning to live outside the ivory tower.

It is a story of following one's dreams, standing on one's own feet, and the power of friendship. It is not the story of what life was really like in the 1950s for non-white people in New York City. In a right-minded effort to correct their past lack of diversity in their movies, I feel, with this one, Hallmark has done a disservice to their viewership and to the truth of the African American experience. It shows an integrated dance troupe with a black dancer who is even promoted over the other girls at the end. In truth, the Rockettes did not have even one non-white dancer until 1985. And she was Japanese. It wasn't until 1987 that a black dancer was famously accepted. As much as I appreciate Hallmark's efforts at inclusion, falsifying history is just wrong and harmful. And I don't think you can just gloss over this situation by glibly proclaiming "It's the Hallmark Channel, not the History Channel!!!". There's a quote about being doomed to repeat history that might apply here. Not to belabor a point, but something similar happened in 2016's A Journey Back to Christmas. In that one, a nurse fresh from segregated 1945 is transported to 2016 and is treated and questioned by a black doctor and interrogated by a black Chief of Police. No incredulity, nor even a blink on her part. What a lost opportunity for a short but dramatic (or comedic!) history lesson! And it would have taken all of 10 seconds and a line or two. Not sure how I would have fixed this one, but even an expository paragraph at the beginning or end about the truth of the matter would have gone a long way toward remedying the problem while still giving a talented black actress a job.

Margaret wants to join the Rockettes and perform in front of an audicience. So, one day, she lies to her parents and fiance and she just goes for it and auditions: she gets the part and moves to NYC just for the season. There she meets handsome John who also has a dream: go to NYU and become a photographer journalist.

It is unreal that they keep meeting everywhere in a city that is so big, but anyway... I read that a few of the details regarding the Rockettes are also off but we can let them slide when we are presented with such a beautiful story, right? Other than love, this story has friendship, it encourages people to follow their dreams, and being themselves. I also appreciate that none of the girls were made "the popular girl/villain".

Lovely movie, lovely cast. The leads had chemistry and honestly? I was charmed by both of them, specially Derek Klena and I'm gonna need him in a modern day Hallmark movie. Maybe he can even sing?

It is different than the usual movies Hallmark offers, you even forget you are watching that channel.