Where Are You, Christmas?

I have to confess, I am a big component of no Christmas until after Thanksgiving (and my husband and I are huge fans of Christmas music...so there is a big restraint not fa la la la-ing early). So, I have been resistant to watching Christmas movies when we haven't even celebrated Halloween yet...but I allowed a few to creep up on our to watch list and I have to say Hallmark is actually succeeding in getting me in the mood. My toes were dragging, but they have lifted my spirits and put a smile on my pumpkin spice chai latte self.

I really enjoyed this new twist on a Hallmark holiday romance. I don't know how they did the mixed black and white and color...but it was a fun concept and definitely one I hadn't seen before (the closest thing to it that I have seen visually is WandaVision).

The premise is busy achiever Addy comes home to her Christmas obsessed home town of Red Lake Falls only because her brother is going to propose to his girlfriend...otherwise she usually skips it and goes to a tropical island. She had been selling Christmas commercially and this year has just launched a Santa app for your phone. All these years Christmas has lost it's true meaning for Addy and in a moment she wishes Christmas away...only to have that work everyone and everything (including Addy) are black and white. No one, not even her very Christmas-centric father, knows or remembers what Christmas is. In fact they not only thing Addy is crazy, but that she is s trouble maker for bringing it up!

It starts with the local mechanic Hunter, who is a bit of a hermit, but slowly Addy brings color and Christmas back to Red Lake Falls.

"You got caught up in your stress and made a mistake."

Coming together and pitching in...that is what Christmas is about. I was initially concerned when they started to say that Christmas was about forgiving and healing what's inside you...but they brought it back to coming together, pitching in and family, which I really appreciated.

"It's like one of those Christmas movies...now we just need someone to fall in love and kiss"-mayor.

Trapped in the town of Red Lake Falls and unable to leave. I can't believe Addy doesn't figure out the answer sooner. I appreciated that it could poke a little fun of the genre itself and have some good current messages.

"Sometime speeding through life is a way of keeping people at arms distance."-dad

The life you want to or the life you are supposed to.

The message I appreciated the most though was one of ditching the phone and enjoying the moment.

Best line... "I have never, Kiss scared someone out of town."-Hunter

This is a recommendation to anyone who enjoys a good Christmas movie, especially the hallmark romance variety. Have patience through the beginning...you will enjoy it in the end.

This movie was, obviously, planned with great ambitions and its theme is perfect for Christmas. Addy, played by Lyndsy Fonseca, has lost proper balance in her life, focusing on material goals, and forgotten her Christmas spirit. Back to her hometown, once the epitome of Christmas yuletide, she finds her family and friends struggling with real life constraints that mar the seasonal joy. She wishes a life without Christmas and wakes up in a black and white world. The story leads us to understand that only finding real joy and love can bring (back) color to a drab life. In this production, the huge metaphor is carried far, perhaps too far. Situations are somewhat overblown and characters feel stereotyped, a bit empty. The love connection of Andy with the somber town mechanic, played by Michael Rady, is poorly developed and unconvincing, with minimal chemistry between the two. Essentially, the movie fails in the attempt to create the magic that could have resulted from the premises, with a more insightful script.

The wonderful metaphor of gray vs color life could have been a winning point, if it had not been stolen, and not so well played, from the successful 1998 movie 'Pleasantville'. In summary, I feel this film is watchable, family-friendly, great on intent, yet weakened by a less than inspired execution. Accepted that real sentiments and emotions provide color to our life, where are the colors in this movie?

First, nice story, very typical Hallmark (with can be a good thing). The two leads had great chem and were nice to watch together. Lyndsy was funny on her own and a better actor than some of the other Hallmark Heroines.

But there were too many problems to overcome for me to like this more.

1) Dad's constant passive aggressiveness toward his daughter. No wonder she doesn't come back more often. I know I wouldn't if I had face that barrage of attacks.

2) The green screen effects for a bunch of the fake backgrounds (in color or BW) were so cheap, I thought they were done with an iPhone. I guess if they had to blow their budget on the BW -> Color stuff, something else was going to suffer

3) Dad DOESN'T get his color after the heartfelt convo with daughter, but only when the rest of the town sings his praises... self-centered much?

4) Too much of a rip off of Pleasantville. My wife and I often play the "guess the movie it's based on", but this wasn't even subtle.

Good people in a less than good movie.

Addy is going home for Christmas after his brother asked for it. She usually doesn't go back during this season so this is quite exciting for everyone. While having problems with her car she meets Hunter, a mechanic who is dealing with stuff of his own. She accidentally wishes Christmas doesn't exist and he is the only one who can help her. Funny.

Such a imaginative plot, one that I wasn't expecting but quite liked. Michael Rady never fails (at least for me) and I think Lyndsy Fonseca is quite funny and I hope she gets to make more movies.

Something I really like is that this movie kind of mocked Hallmark with two lines: one about the NYE's movies starting in June and at the end about someone falling in love and kissing like in those movies. Nothing bad just the truth.

For once, the actors playing the parents could actually be the leads parents. They always are so young. I felt this movie wasn't so much about romance but the Christmas spirit. In my opinion, the leads had few scenes for them to fall in love.

Not a favorite regarding the romance but overall, nice Christmas movie.

Great hallmark movie. Yes it's cheesy but it's great and gets you into the Christmas spirit with whimsy and magic. It is a movie that brings joy, but also inspires. Michael Rady is a great actor and really makes you believe in the magic of Christmas and brings joy. Even though it's in true hallmark fashion of wild and far fetched but guess what it's a fictional story that just captivates if you allow yourself to be taken in. Take it in and enjoy the ride. You will not regret it if you allow yourself to enjoy it and give it a chance. It can easily be taken into reflect on life and how easy it can be to forget the meaning of Christmas.