Enchanted Christmas

At first this movie was heading in the wrong direction....but it does come around to being likable. Alexa Panvega is super hot...but not on the same level as Chelsie Hightower. Hightower makes the movie for me. Blonde in a leather jacket...Boom! I kept wondering how is a fountain working in the winter time?

TheSTORY-1.25

The Christmas Magic in this story is the coincidence which brings our romantic leads together. Though this has been done many times before, what writers, Catherine Fridey and Rick Garmen add into the mix help to expand and add depth to the tale.

Family: Laura's Father and Daughter add stability to the proceedings. The way they act and react to each other is relatable and believable. The truth about Laura's Daughter, Nikki's, father adds mystery to the romantic duo's past.

Intrigue: There's something not quite copacetic about Laura's boyfriend. What is it? What is he up to?

These help plenty to make the story more engaging for the audience.

theDIRECTION-1

I had hoped for much better here. The dance sequences should have been handled with more flair and elegance. Subtle lighting and camera angles to frame and show off the dance and the dancers would have been perfect. It needed to be more like Strictly Come Dancing or Dancing With the Stars in this respect.

theTEMPO-1

There are times when the story called for a slightly faster and lighter pace, especially in the romantic sequences. However, the heart-to-heart scenes are perfect at this speed.

theACTING-1.25

There are no small roles here as everybody gives their all to their performances. I particularly liked Rene Rivera as Manuel, Laura's Dad. This is down to both the facts of good acting and good character building by the writers. Another one who stands out is Jaynee-Lynne Kinchen as Nikki for the same reasons. The writers have done such a great job here because you can see elements of both Mother and Grandfather in her.

theGRATIFICATION-1.25

The added elements the writers added do make this a more interesting and enjoyable movie. It's not the best Christmas romance out there, but it sure isn't the worst.

I would easily recommend this to romance lovers and Christmas freaks alike. You'll enjoy it in the glow from your Fairy Lights while sipping your hot cocoa.

theSCORE-5.5

Ho! Ho! Ho! come on over and check out my Ho! Ho! Ho! Christmas Belles list to see where this film landed. Merry Christmas Film Fans.

I HAVE REVIEWED OVER 400 Christmas MOVIES.

BEWARE OF BOGUS REVIEWS. SOME REVIEWERS HAVE ONLY ONE REVIEW. WHEN ITS A POSITIVE REVIEW THAT TELLS ME THEY WERE INVOLVED WITH THE PRODUCTION. NOW I HAVE NO AGENDA! I AM HONEST! I REVIEW Christmas MOVIES AS A WAY TO KEEP TRACK OF WHAT I HAVE SEEN!

Interior designer Laura returns to Utah to spearhead the renovation of an old hotel in time for the annual Christmas Eve show run by Ricardo, her ex-boyfriend and dance partner. When Laura steps in to dance in the finale with Ricardo, she is pulled between her job, her family, and more. The runnig Christmas theme in this film is "Christmas Magic". The magic is in a fountain and people's wishes seem to be coming true.

This is a cute little film that offers that you can go home again and that may not be a bad thing after all. Its nothing great but it gives us new Hallmark Leading Lady. Her name is Alexa Pena Vega,

A one time child actor who burst onto the scene with the "Spy Kids" films. Now an adult she proves handles this role with charm and ease. If she wasn't good the film might not of been watchable!

I watched because Alexa and Carlos Penavega were the starring actors.

A real life couple that previously competed on Dancing with the Stars, so you know they have the dancing chops!

Cute Christmas film, a solid six on the scale.

I was a fan of the TV show big time rush so I was looking forward to this movie. I was not disappointed.

I think four factors influence the quality of the Halmark Christmas movie.

Was the romance believable? I thought it was here without any huge does of melodrama.

Did it relate to Christmas? I thought the movie was very well done visually and I thought it had some nice family and tradition themes as well. The kid and kids were cute too, so that has to count for something. (the kid also was not really the matchmaker which I enjoyed because I find that plot creepy generally) What about the minor characters and subplots? Not many subplots here, but I thought the bit parts were well played and added to the movie.

Four, was it funny? Not so much. It was sweet in parts but not really funny.

So all told I felt it was a better than average Hallmark Christmas movie.