The Walton’s Homecoming (2021)

Rated: TV-14

Genres: Drama, Family

Starring: Richard Thomas and Bellamy Young

Synopsis: John Boy and his family prepare for John Sr. homecoming to spend Christmas together, but after a storm comes in the way, John Boy has to find his father and the journey through it will change his life forever.

Review: I absolutely loved this. It’s the true spirit of Christmas. They are flawed like us but they appreciate each other. I hope they make more movies like this. 

Scoring: 4

We Need a Little Christmas (2022)

Rated: G

Genres: Drama, Family

Starring: Erica Durance, Lynn Whitfield, and Azriel Dalman

Synopsis: Facing her first Christmas as a single mother, Julie develops an unexpected friendship with an older neighbor.

Review: I loved this movie. From start to finish I was absorbed. The characters are engaging and relatable. The story gives just enough drama to evoke emotion without it making you sad. The casting was perfect, especially the little boy. A must see. 

Scoring: 4

We Wish You A Married Christmas (2022)

Rated: G

Genres: Family, Romance

Starring: Marisa Nichols and Kristoffer Polaha

Synopsis: Taking advice from their marriage coach, a couple visits a quiet town to reconnect during Christmastime.

Review: The beginning felt very slow.  Because of their difficult relationship, the moments were heavy.  As they became more involved in the town and their relationship improved, it became more interesting.  There was more going on than their misery.  I adored the inn owners.  Overall, it was sweet enough that I’ll watch again next year.

Scoring: 3

We Wish You A Merry Christmas (1999)

Rated: G

Genres: Animation, Fantasy, Musical

Starring: Nell Carter, Lacey Chabert, John Forsythe, Tahj Mowry, and Travis Tritt

Synopsis: Three orphans searching for a gift to give the town of Melody, write and share their song.

Review: A very sweet story about children who have so little being so thoughtful and selfless.  A very good message for children.  Children, especially, will enjoy the characters.  Mrs. Claus pays a visit.  Very delightful movie.

Scoring: 3

A Wedding For Christmas (2018)

Rated: PG

Genres: Drama, Family, Romance

Starring: Cristine Prosperi, William McNamara, Lesli Kay, and Vivica A. Fox

Synopsis: Hayley escapes her small town and builds a life in Los Angeles as a wedding planner. When her sister asks her to plan her wedding, Hayley returns to her childhood town and reunites with a childhood flame. 

Review:  This is definitely a B-movie. The lead isn’t the best actress. Despite that, it’s still a cute movie. It falls into the I didn’t mind seeing it once but probably won’t watch again category. 

Scoring: 2.5

A Welcome Home Christmas (2020)

Rated: PG

Genres: Family, Romance

Starring: Jana Kramer, Brandon Quinn, and Tim Reid

Synopsis: Army counselor Chloe helps Michael return home to civilian life by recruiting him along with other veterans and military personnel for the Army Christmas toy drive.

Review: From the start this movie was filled with Christmas but especially the Christmas spirit. It’s about family, community, volunteering, and giving to others. I got goosebumps towards the end. I loved it. An amazing story with perfect casting and a little Santa magic

Scoring: 4

Welcome To Christmas (2018)

Rated: G

Genres: Drama, Family

Starring: Eric Mabius and Jennifer Finnigan

Synopsis: A real estate developer finds romance with a charming sheriff in a small town. 

Review:  This was a truly special movie. From stop to start it had beautiful scenery, a lovely story, and amazing acting (Mabius never disappoints). The town has fun and unique Christmas traditions, like the ornament hunt. I can’t wait to watch it again. 

Scoring: 4

Welcome To The Christmas Family Reunion (2021)

Rated: PG

Genres: Drama, Family, Romance

Starring: Michelle Argyris and Alonzo B. Slater

Synopsis: When ambitious event designer Amy is hired by famous pop singer Tiffanie Christmas to put together her large family’s fabulous ten-year family reunion, she unexpectedly begins to fall for Tiffanie’s cousin Calvin, who decides to team up with her to help put on the best family reunion ever.

Review: A movie about a loving family, full of strong women, who have special Christmas traditions and embody the Christmas spirit. The romance is a layer of the movie but the family is the heart. It’s a very sweet enjoyable movie. 

***Update*** I watched it again. I still think it’s a sweet movie but this isn’t one that I’ll watch over and over again. I enjoyed it more the first time. 

Scoring: 3

Well Suited for Christmas (2022)

Rating: PG

Genre: Romance

Starring: Mercedes de la Verda and Franco lo Presti

Synopsis: Follows Rachel Rocca, a fashion designer who must create a tuxedo for city's eligible bachelor Brett Stone, for a Christmas charity gala. As she works on it, she finds out the actual reason behind his charity, and end up falling in love.

Review: It started a little slow and blah. As it went on, I got more interested. It kept the emotions on the surface and doesn’t deliver on the drama but it’s a sweet romcom. I’ll watch again. 

Scoring: 3

We’re Scrooged (2023)

Rated: G

Genres: Fantasy, Romance

Starring: Tamara Duarte and Andrew Bushell

Synopsis: Sarah and Scott, high school sweethearts, parted ways after college. They return to their hometown to attend their 10-year high school reunion. Three ghosts will visit them over the next three nights, showing them what they gave up.

Review: This was a refreshingly new take on the Dicken’s classic. Having a pair and the reunion made it unique.  I was completely engaged from the very beginning. While the story isn’t overly complicated, it has everything it needs to have the Christmas spirit. 

Scoring: 4

A Wesley Christmas (2022)

Rated: TV-14

Genres: Drama, Family

Starring: Dorien Wilson, Jasmine Guy, and Terrence Carson

Synopsis: Adult siblings travel to their childhood home to celebrate Christmas with their parents.

Review: It’s not a super original family Christmas story but it’s really enjoyable. My favorite part was how the twins bonded with the veteran and got him to come out of his shell and join them for Christmas. There’s lots of love in this family. 

Scoring: 3

What I Did For Love (2006)

Rated: G

Genres: Drama, Family, Romance

Starring: Jeremy London and Doris Barton

Synopsis: Rising L.A. lawyer James White is going home for the holidays with his fiancée, Sadie Ryder, to finally meet her family in rural Pine Gap. After a bad first impression, James attempts to win over Sadie's lawyer-loathing father Karl by pretending to be a country boy. But a pair of worn jeans and a ten-gallon hat don't make a cowboy, and it's going to take more than mere posturing to charm Mr. Ryder...in fact, it just may take a miracle.

Review:  This is another movie that takes place at Christmas but doesn’t feel like a Christmas movie. It’s more about the ranch and the city boy in the country. A lot of it is expected but it’s still fun. 

Scoring: 3

What She Wants For Christmas (2012)

Rated: NR

Genre: Family

Starring: Brianna Dufrene

Synopsis: Ten-year-old Abigail has written to the North Pole and asked for something very special this year, to see her father, which she's kept secret from her mother.

Review: Abigail’s father has been working overseas and out of contact with her.  She creates a plan to catch Santa and keep him hostage until she gets her wish.  At the same time, her dad dresses up as Santa and breaks into the house hoping seeing Santa will keep her believing.  Amazingly, she somehow does it.  There are other details, like every window being open in the house, that are just odd. The acting is fairly poor, mostly on the part of the children.  It’s very distracting.  I think children will enjoy it.

Scoring: 2

When Calls The Heart: The Greatest Christmas Blessing (2018)

Rated: PG

Genres: Drama, Romance

Starring: Erin Krakow, Lori Loughlin, Jack Wagner, Pascale Hutton, Kavan Smith, Paul Greene

Synopsis: When a group of orphans become stranded in Hope Valley for Christmas, their caretakers — sisters who have a mysterious backstory — lead Bill to investigate the circumstances of their arrival. He discovers the sisters and their orphanage are in jeopardy, so Abigail and the other residents rally to make it a Christmas to remember for the orphans. Elizabeth, who is preparing for the birth of her child, organizes her students to engage in selfless gift-giving. That, along with a Christmas miracle, help bring wonder, hope, joy, and love to all this Christmas season.

Review:  If you don’t watch the series you should be able to follow along. It is meant for fans of the show as it continues the story. It has the same loving and giving feeling of togetherness as the show always does. The theme of being selfless was especially poignant. 

Scoring: 3

When Calls The Heart: Home For Christmas (2019)

Rated: G

Genres: Drama, Romance

Starring: Erin Krakow, Pascale Hutton, Kevin McGarry, Kavan Smith, and Jack Wagner

Synopsis: The residents of Hope Valley celebrate the spirit of Christmas and their connection to one another during the holiday season.

Review: Like the other movies, this is a continuation of the series and will be best appreciated by people who see the show.  It has the same feeling of friendship, community, and giving from the heart that we’ve come to know and love.  The simplicity of early rural life and the amazing people of Hope Valley.

Scoring: 3

When Christmas Was Young (2022)

Rated: PG

Genres: Drama, Family

Starring: Tyler Hilton and Karen David

Synopsis: A music manager, recently fired and left with one client, returns home to secure the rights to a Christmas song.

Review: This was fine but even though there was Christmas everywhere, I didn’t get that Christmas feeling. It was a lot of back and forth and emotions that didn’t have a sufficient backstory. The focus was on too many things.  Was it about Melody’s relationship with her mom, the restaurant, her music, her community service, her daughter, or what?  It lacked focus. It was okay but not my favorite. It may be one you need to watch more than once to really get it. 

Scoring: 1.5

When Hope Calls Christmas Part 1 (2021)

Rated: G

Genres: Drama, Family, Romance

Starring: Morgan Kohan, Wendy Crewson, Ryan-James Hatanaka, Lori Loughlin, and Neil Crone

Synopsis: The residents of Brookfield prepare a holiday festival in the hopes of winning the title of America’s No. 1 country Christmas town.

Review: I believe you have to have seen the show to truly follow the characters and their stories.  I watch the show and still had trouble as I slowly remembered what happened.  I loved the introduction of Abigail, the return of familiar characters, and all the town preparing for the holidays.

Scoring: 3

When Hope Calls Christmas Part 2 (2021)

Rated: G

Genres: Drama, Family, Romance

Starring: Morgan Kohan, Wendy Crewson, Ryan-James Hatanaka, Lori Loughlin, Neil Crone, and Daniel Lissing

Synopsis: The residents of Brookfield prepare a holiday festival in the hopes of winning the title of America’s No. 1 country Christmas town.

Review: When I saw Jack tears came to my eyes and I got goosebumps.  That moment alone was worth watching this.  I loved that the happy ending happened naturally and wasn’t forced.  I can’t wait to watch more episodes of the show after these Christmas specials.

Scoring: 3

When I Think of Christmas (2022)

Rated: G

Genres: Comedy, Romance

Starring: Niall Matter, Beth Broderick, Peter Benson, and Shenae Grimes-Beech

Synopsis: Sara returns to her hometown and is surprised when her ex-boyfriend Josh is back home. She and Josh hatch a plan for the Christmas concert that will take them all back to their musical roots and make this a holiday to remember.

Review: The whole first half is weighed down with the negativity of regrets, grieving, and hurt feelings. It gets a little better as they resolve some issues but it’s still heavy. It’s a nice story but I prefer lighthearted movies. It was okay to see once but I probably wouldn’t watch again. **I watched a second time. I didn’t feel any differently. 

Scoring: 2

Where Are You Christmas? (2023)

Rated: G

Genres: Fantasy, Romance

Starring: Lyndsy Fonseca and Michael Rady

Synopsis: Addy wishes for a year without Christmas, and she wakes up in a world of black and white.  She must work together with the town mechanic to restore Christmas.

Review: I appreciated the slightly different twist on the typical movie.  The difference between characters being in color and black and white was interesting.  I liked that they needed their memories and feelings.  I think we so often get caught up in the trappings of the season that we forget Christmas is about love and togetherness.  Overall, it’s a good movie with great casting.  I’ll have to watch it again to see if it’s one of those I’ll rewatch every year.

Scoring: 3

White Reindeer (2013)

Rated: TV-MA

Genre: Drama

Starring: Anna Margaret Hollyman

Synopsis: Suzanne struggle to put her life back together after a tragedy at Christmas time.

Review: This movie made three main errors.  First, they expected us to go on an emotional journey with Suzanne but they didn’t take the time to give us enough backstory.  How can we go with her when we don’t know where she’s coming from?  Secondly, the sex and drugs were gratuitous.  They didn’t add to the story.  If anything, they took away from it.  Thirdly, everything that happened was superficial.  It didn’t help us know how she was feeling.  You could make your own assumptions but they really missed an opportunity to connect with their audience.  The movie had potential but they wasted it.

Scoring: 1