If You Watch One Holiday Movie This Weekend: Great American Family’s Bringing Christmas Home Is Our Pick
- Oops!Something went wrong.Please try again later.
True, we haven’t bought our Halloween candy yet, but as loyal fans of the holiday romance genre, we are prepared to start the most wonderful time of the year today. With Hallmark Channel’s annual Countdown to Christmas and Great American Family’s Great American Christmas now in full swing, and Lifetime and other networks loading their sleighs, we’re here to help you choose between the season’s many offerings. Each Thursday, we’ll spotlight the movie that should be at the top of your weekend list and preview why other debuts will make you merry.
THE ONE TO WATCH
More from TVLine
Jodie Sweetin 'Disappointed' New Film Will Air on 'Traditional' Great American Family Channel
Sarah Drew to Headline Hallmark Movie Guiding Emily - Eric McCormack to Voice Guide Dog (Exclusive)
Bringing Christmas Home
(Premieres Saturday, Oct. 28 at 8 pm on Great American Family)
The holiday movie genre has made a tradition of honoring veterans for their service, and this film is another worthy salute — with mystery and romance to boot. Jill Wagner stars as army intelligence officer-turned-military history professor Caroline, whom antique shop owner Russell (Paul Greene) enlists to help return a recently-acquired WWII dress uniform jacket to the hero’s family in time for Christmas. A love letter and photo found in a pocket sweeten their mission to uncover who this man was, what happened to him after he was listed MIA, and whether he ever reunited with the gal who wrote him endlessly (juicy twist alert!).
Fans of the Mystery 101 franchise will enjoy seeing Wagner play another smart sleuth. But beyond that, she’s riveting in the scenes where Caroline, who’s trying to adjust to civilian life with help from her army buddy Alton (Simon Arblaster), recounts a Christmas Eve they spent in the desert. As always, Greene’s vibe is as warm and soothing as a cup of cocoa. You believe that Russell would be chill enough to leave his plucky sister Jules (Jess Brown) alone at their store during the holiday rush, and that he’d be patient with Caroline, who’s afraid her past will scare off future happiness. As Caroline points out, not every story has a happy ending; you’ll root for hers to.
Runner-Up: Ms. Christmas Comes to Town
Keep those tissues handy! In our runner-up pick, Ms. Christmas Comes to Town (premiering Thursday, Oct. 26 at 8 pm, repeating Saturday, Oct. 28 at 10 pm on Hallmark Movies & Mysteries), Barbara Niven plays Gale, a beloved host of the Holiday Shopping Channel, who receives a terminal diagnosis and decides to retire — but not before taking her “Ms. Christmas” act on the road for a farewell tour. She wants to train Amanda (Erica Durance), the daughter she never had, to be her on-air successor, Ms. Holiday. And since Gale is hiding her illness, she makes Travis (Brennan Elliott), the nurse traveling with them, pull a double shift as Mr. Winters. It’s great to see Niven, a scene-stealer in the network’s Hannah Swensen movies, take center stage. She and Durance have co-starred before, so their affection for each other feels real, as do their eventual tears. Just know the movie brings tidings of comfort and joy, not sorrow.
The Best of the Rest…
Mystic Christmas (premieres Saturday, Oct. 28 at 8 pm on Hallmark Channel)
When globe-trotting marine veterinarian Juniper (Jessy Schram) spends the holidays in Mystic, Connecticut helping her college roommate Candace (Patti Murin) rehab Peppermint the harbor seal, it’s also a chance for Juniper to reignite her spark with Candace’s brother, George Bailey-esque pizza restauranteur Sawyer (Chandler Massey). Schram and Massey have the weekend’s winningest chemistry, and you’ll definitely want to add a boat parade to your yuletide itinerary after this.
Christmas By Design (premieres Friday, Oct. 27 at 8 pm on Hallmark Channel)
In need of inspiration for a Christmas Eve fashion show/contest, luxury designer Charlotte (Rebecca Dalton) reluctantly heads home and agrees to attend the town’s “Elfcapades” events with mechanic/mannequin Spencer (Jonathan Keltz). In exchange, the thoughtful, handsome widower gets a buffer between him and the local single ladies whose engines he rightfully revs.
Joyeux Noel (premieres Sunday, Oct. 29 at 8 pm on Hallmark Channel)
Two newspaper colleagues, green idealist Lea (Jaicy Elliot) and seasoned Grinch Mark (Brant Daugherty), are sent to France to unearth the untold love story behind a popular painting of a holiday market where, legend says, people meet their soulmates. As they retrace the enigmatic artist’s steps…well, you can guess!
Journey to Christmas (premieres Sunday, Oct. 29 at 8 pm on Great American Family)
Kindhearted model Cali (Ash Tsai, charming even when delivering the weekend’s most stilted dialogue) embarks on a cross-country road trip with hired driver Jack (Joey Heyworth), who took the gig to avoid spending the holidays with his family and ex-fiancée. Unfortunately, a storm strands them in Illinois with his relatives. Unsurprisingly, it’s the diversion they both needed.
2023 Christmas Movie Schedule
Best of TVLine
Get more from TVLine.com: Follow us on Twitter, Facebook, Newsletter
