Operation Christmas

It was a great story that accurately captured the apprehension and stress that military families face, something that non-military families will never understand nor completely appreciate. Hats off to the writer and to Hallmark for presenting this in such a compelling manner.

That said, it was downright insulting to see the total lack of attention paid to the actual details of any and all things military. The total ignorance of anything related to military uniforms, in particular, was beyond irritating and took away from an otherwise heartwarming story. Shame on everyone involved.

I loved this one! I've seen a lot of Hallmark military-themed Christmas movies, and Operation Christmas might be my favorite. With great chemistry between the leads, an important message, a love story to root for, and a tear at the end, what else is there?

Whenever you see Marc Blucas's name in a Hallmark, it's a good clue that the tv movie will feel more like a big screen movie than most of the others. He's a Hollywood-turned-Hallmark who treats every film as though it's the most important of his career. Plus he's a cutie, too! And Hallmark has a great type-cast for him as a strong soldier with a big heart. Tricia Helfer completely holds her own and doesn't let him take up all the energy on the screen. She's also strong, a career woman and single mom, but when she meets Marc on a Christmas vacation, she lets her girly sensibilities take over. He loses her number, she doesn't get his message, and a one big misunderstanding later, they're given a second chance.

What's the conflict? Even the lightest of Hallmarks has a conflict, right? This movie teaches about the sacrifice needed to become a military spouse. Tricia doesn't know if she has what it takes, and even though she's falling in love with him, she can't stand certain things about his job. When he has to leave, he has to leave. He can't tell her where or for how long, and she'll never know if she'll even see him again.

Will love conquer all? Watch this touching Hallmark Christmas flick to find out. Any military family, or any girl with a boyfriend in the service, will need their hankies at the end of the movie. I highly recommend this one; my family looks forward to it every year.

I saw this one for the first time this year and wasn't sure if I would like it for some reason. But I was pleasantly surprised. Emotions are up and down but overall it's a feel good movie with a tearjerker ending. I'm not sure how it happened but these two lead actors were new to me but WOW Tricia and Marc were great together. I have since seen them each in other movies and they have both become favorites.

This show is for anyone who wants to still believe in beauty in this crazy world and who recognise that we are each part of something so much bigger than any one person.

Tricia, the lead actress is luminous in her role and she is as warm and human as anyone can get. Marc is amazing and completely convincing in the role he plays. And the children are beautiful kids, even the slightly snarky teen.

After watching (and dissolving into a puddle of grateful tears), I realised that it is a real option to choose to have a good man or woman in your life for part of the year than to not have them at all. Love is so fleeting anyway so if it comes your way today, love as much as you can now. Tomorrow is not a guarantee for anyone.

And Marc really portrays a very good man. I was thinking gee, if you don't want him, I'll take him! Hahahaaa (kidding, sort of)

Thank you Hallmark for this wonderful show that is not about a young and annoying Bridezilla trying to get her perfect wedding in the perfect month at the perfect place (bleah!) or trying to run away from a wedding (double bleah!).

Thank you for making a show about a love that even we believe will last and tonight I will sleep remembering there is beauty in this world.

To all servicemen and women who sacrifice so much so that we may live free, we salute you with the liberty of the flags of all the nations, flags that can fly free because of you. Thank you, we will never forget your service.

I'll start off with saying that I really liked this film. It was obviously shot in the summer, which made all of the snow (other than the glacier scene) a little comical. The unending sunshine is also only possible in the summer in the Pacific Northwest. It's all stuff we can overlook.

The idea of meeting someone whom puts themselves in danger for the greater good is a theme used throughout the years, and for good reason. It's an underlying theme of Christmas as well. Tricia Helfer knocked her role out of the park in this film, and I'd have never found this film had it not been for her mentioning it on Twitter.

The military stuff was entirely annoying as a veteran, but I understand that most writers have only a cursory knowledge of the military when doing their writing. Firefighters say the same thing when watching firefighting movies. Writers are rarely experts in their subject matter. I'd like to have seen active duty military there to advise on dress & appearance. I'd also wished that deployments were more accurately depicted, but this isn't a film about the military. It's a film about giving, and what it means to come together as a community for Christmas. One has to understand that distinction. I, as a veteran, understand that. They did a great job with this film once you get past nit-picking, and I'll watch it every Christmas from here on out.