I watch a lot of TV holiday movies in December. Most of them are pretty predictable--two nice looking people who meet and like each other, but then something goes haywire and one of them hurts the other or leaves or somehow they end up on the outs, only to reunite for a happy ending and the perfect Christmas. This movie was so refreshing because none of that happened.
For one thing, it's based on a true story. Jackie Turner is played by Amber Riley, who really does a outstanding job in that role. Jackie Turner is a young woman who had a rough childhood and a rough adolescence, but she managed to pick up the pieces and work towards a future. This movie follows her as Christmas approaches. She's a college student, in the church choir, works, etc. So we see her as she interacts with college friends, work friends, church friends, a teachers, etc. And while it looks like she has it all together to everyone who knows her, we find out that she doesn't have any family to enjoy Christmas with. So, she places an ad for a family to spend Christmas with. The fallout of that ad is the heartbreak and joy of real life, and how this college woman handled it. It's a very moving and inspiring story. It really made me think of how those who do not have loved ones to spend Christmas with feel. Definitely worth watching.
