Christmas in July is upon us so I’m starting this post earlier than expected! I’m back to review ALL the new Hallmark Christmas movies so you can sift through the noise, and only watch the best of the best. Last year I watched 28 movies and only two of them ended up earning 5/5 stars, and In 2022 I watched 22 movies with one 5/5 rating- but overall I would recommend anything that I gave a 4/5 to, so bookmark those for later!
Let’s get to it!
Five Gold Rings | Rating: 3/5
I think I set my expectations too high for this movie, because I enjoy both lead actors. I saw a lot of reviews saying that Nolan (as Finn) was very wooden and expressionless. For the most part I find this to be true of most Hallmark leading men, and it didn’t necessarily bother me in this movie, although I would have liked to see a little more emotion from Finn. It almost seemed like at times we was trying to counteract the cheesy script by playing down the emotion, because we know Nolan Funk can act! The storyline of finding the five gold rings was a little boring to me, but the characters made this enjoyable nonetheless.
Image c/o TV Insider
Santa Tell Me | Rating: 3.5/5
I am of the opinion that most Hallmark Christmas movies feel like watching a a play. The acting is very over the top, and that’s not necessarily a bad thing, but this movie solidified that opinion for me. The female lead was a good actress but some of the more dramatic scenes felt so forced. With that said, Olivia and Chris had great chemistry and I thought their relationship developed really naturally, even as Olivia was dating three other men. Overall I enjoyed this one, and really loved seeing the house come back to life!
Image c/o TV Insider
Trivia at St. Nick’s | Rating: 2/5
This movie seemed so promising to me- we have two leads that have worked together before (on Pretty Little Liars), and a bit of a modern storyline that centers around a Christmas trivia competition. I love an ensemble cast, so I appreciated that aspect, but the plot felt really forced and silly, and the leads didn’t have magnetic chemistry. I also found myself getting so annoyed at Celeste and how seriously she took everything, but I think that leads back to the plot feeling forced.
Image c/o TV Insider
Holiday Mismatch | Rating: 4/5
Another favorite this year! First of all, I LOVE to see these two ladies reunited. They have the absolute best chemistry and play enemies so well. I thought the storyline was innovative- we usually don’t get an enemies to friends storyline, or a plot that centers around middle aged characters. The son and daughter also had great chemistry and rounded out the foursome well. Only not giving it a 5/5 since I thought the fake dating troupe was unnecessary and clunky.
Image c/o TV Insider
Christmas Charade | Rating: 3/5
I usually don’t love an opposites attract romance, but Whitney and Josh had great chemistry, regardless of their differences. I felt like they complemented each other well- Josh made Whitney less risk averse, and Whitney made Josh less robotic. I didn’t mind the undercover aspect of this storyline, but they absolutely lost me during the whole heist scene at the party. It was way too over the top and cheesy. I did however love Whitney’s parents and felt like their presence (and the twist) was a welcomed distraction.
Image c/o TV Insider
Operation Nutcracker | Rating: 3/5
I knew by the premise that this movie would be a little silly, and my instincts were right. The plot focuses on two grown adults traipsing all over the city looking for a lost nutcracker. I wish they would have focused more on planning the charity event, and less on the lost nutcracker. I do like the two leads but overall this was a one and done for me.
Image c/o Hallmark
Twas the Date Before Christmas | Rating: 5/5
When I read the plot for this movie I was not excited about it, but it was an unexpectedly cute holiday watch! The two leads had great chemistry which really carried the movie. The holiday olympics that Jesse’s family put on kept the movie fun, and really balanced out Jesses past tragedy. All the supporting characters had purpose and I loved her friend’s cute candle store.
Image c/o Hallmark
Holiday Crashers | Rating: 3/5
This is the first Hallmark Christmas movie I dove into as part of their Countdown to Christmas. I like that it was more focused on two best friends, navigating their 30s, than a romantic relationship (although there’s that too, of course). Overall the premise of them crashing fancy Christmas parties was a fun plot, and I enjoyed this cast. I only wish they would have focused on the girls careers instead of them pursing romantic relationships. It felt a little disjointed and I wasn’t necessarily routing for either couple.
Image c/o TV Insider
Rescuing Christmas | Rating: 3/5
Same Page is one of my favorite Hallmark actors (I loved him on The Bold Type) so I think he can usually save any movie. The plot of this one wasn’t my fave but it was fine- it follows Christmas curmudgeon, Erin, as she’s granted three wishes by Santa’s elves and inadvertently does away with Christmas. Sam meets Erin through mutual friends and they work to bring back Christmas. I thought the leads has some chemistry and the sets in this one were super cozy and screamed Christmas.
Image c/o Amazon
Falling Like Snowflakes | Rating: 1/5
This film follows a photographer who recruits her ex-boyfriend to help her find a rare snowflake to photograph. A SNOWFLAKE. I felt like this plot was so far from reality and the two leads lacked chemistry. This is harsh but often times the children in these movies aren’t great actors and it can ruin the whole movie for me. I found this to be the case with the girl who plays Noah’s daughter. Not a great start!
Image c/o Hallmark
What’s your favorite Hallmark Christmas movie?
xx, Britta