Hallmark For All Seasons

“Holiday Date” originally aired on December 14 on Hallmark Channel, starring one of Hallmark’s most famous “2nd leading” ladies, Brittany Bristow.  For the past several year she has always played the best friend, or the sister, or the co-worker, the proverbial bridesmaid to whatever woman had the bride role.  Finally, after many, many movies, Bristow got her lead role.  Her co-star was the downright effervescent Matt Cohen, who is famous for roles on “Supernatural” and “How to Get Away with Murder,” but not Hallmark.  This movie was set in Pennsylvania, but it was really Vancouver, Canada doing all the heavy lifting.  Again.  I’m going to write a Hallmark script and have it take place in Vancouver.

In a nutshell

You guys.  Let’s talk about how much we loved this movie.  It was ADORABLE.

Plot (from Hallmark Movies & Mysteries Channel website)

Brooke (Bristow) is dumped right before Christmas and enlists the help of actor Joel (Cohen) to play the role of her boyfriend for the holidays. Brooke had described her ex-boyfriend as “Mr. Christmas” to her family and worries about keeping up the ruse when she discovers Joel is Jewish. When her family eventually finds out his background, they happily incorporate his Hanukkah traditions into their plans. Christmas and Hanukkah are celebrated side by side as they all learn more about the other’s holiday. But when their relationship ruse comes to light, the two have some explaining to do as well as figure out if they’re ready to admit their true feelings.

Actors

This cast could not have been more perfect.  Bubbly Brittany Bristow?  Check!  Charming Matt Cohen?  Check!  Brusque Bruce Boxleitner?  Check!  Radiant Teryl Rothery?  Check!  Brilliant Peter Benson?  Check!  Venerable Anna Van Hooft? Check! Adorable Ava Grace Cooper?  Check!

Hallmark completely stacked the deck with this amazing cast.

Six Degrees of Kris Polaha: I could go the easy route and just say, “Peter Benson appeared on an episode of ‘Backstrom,” but I feel like that would be too easy!  So let’s do our leading lady instead and take Peter Benson out of the mix.  Bristow is three steps away.   Honestly, with all the Hallmark movies they’ve both been in, I thought for sure I’d find a closer connection. Brittany co-stars with Ava Grace Cooper in “Holiday Date.”  Cooper co-starred with Lindsay Wagner in 2018’s “Mingle all the Way.” Wagner had a role in 2008’s “Billy: The Early Years” with Polaha.

Chemistry

This entire cast was amazing together. The ENTIRE CAST.  Folks, that never happens. Am I right?  I loved how into Hanukkah Teryl Rothery’s Donna became (in particular I loved the “Oy Vey” apron she wore).  I loved how cranky Bruce Boxleitner’s Walter was, and how he ended most of his scenes with a dismayed grunt.  Jack initially worried me with how perky he was when he first arrived at Brooke’s house, but Matt Cohen settled back into the role and made Jack much more calm and less like an excited puppy with his first toy.  Peter Benson played Glen the brother-in-law with such great comedic (and tragic) timing – at times he was my favorite character in the whole movie.  It’s time to make Peter Benson a leading man, Hallmark!

I just think that Hallmark could not have picked a better ensemble for this movie.  Every single person brought their A game and the result was a super-fun holiday movie.  I especially loved the fact that Matt Cohen and Bruce Boxleitner are clearly tone-deaf, but that did not stop them from singing with gusto throughout the movie.  Insert heart emoji here!!

Tropes

You want tropes?  They had tropes!  The movie opened with the obligatory big city drone shot, followed quickly by the Bad Boyfriend making an appearance at a fancy restaurant.  Brooke decides to fake a relationship so that her parents are disappointed during the holidays.  Brooke then takes Joel tree shopping (and he later decorates the tree).  They build a seriously jacked up gingerbread house, and there was a lot of singing in this movie.

At one point there was a snowball fight which led to a slip & fall (which then led to one of my favorite moments, when Brooke pretty much picks up snow and rubs it on Joel’s face before she gets up).  They kiss under the mistletoe (which is not a trope since they were “forced” to kiss by Brooke’s family) but later on have an almost kiss that is unforced.  There’s a misunderstanding – not only about Joel being an actor, but with Joel misunderstanding her hug goodbye to the real Ethan.  Brooke’s niece participates in a children’s pageant.  And lastly, at some point Brooke wipes away something on Joel’s face (or was it the other way around?  My notes don’t say).

Bingo Card Score for “Holiday Date”

You’d think with all those tropes I’d score a bingo, but my card only had 5 spots covered at the end of this movie.  How is that even possible???

Did I Hear/See That Right?

My major question revolved around the whole subterfuge of the fake relationship.  Surely Brooke was posting pictures of herself and the real Ethan on social media?  Surely her family saw those pictures?

I was also concerned that in the first hour there was no real romantic spark between Brooke and Jack.  I think if there had been a couple scenes where they had more of a spark early on would have made me enjoy “Holiday Date” even more than I did.

Feelgoods

The whole movie made me feel good.  I was so happy during the whole thing.  One moment that made me say, “Awwww…” was when Brooke’s dad told Glen he could carve the turkey.  And of course, the comedic followup of Glen basically asking Walter, “Ummm…how do you carve a turkey?”

Re-watchability

Oh yeah.  I’m definitely watching this one again and it is probably become something I will watch annually.

The Ranking

“Holiday Date” is in the Top 20 for the year, and I’m not surprised.  It was charming and fun! Not only that, but it’s now in my Top 5 for the holiday movies with only a few more movies left for the year.  Not bad!

Oh, and speaking of BAD, a movie that I will NOT be reviewing but just providing a score for is “A Cheerful Christmas.”  It was so awful that I almost turned it off at the 53 minute mark.  It is the 2nd worst Hallmark movie of the year, and the worst of the holiday batch.  If you missed it, you should count yourself lucky.

1. Two Turtle Doves (air date: Nov 1) – 742 pts – weighted score: 123.7 (86.8%)
2. Christmas Wishes and Mistletoe Kisses (air date: Oct 26) – 719 pts – weighted score: 121.0 (84.9%)
3. Love to the Rescue RE-RANKED (air date: March 23) – 708 pts – weighted score: 120.6 (84.6%)
4. Winter Love Story (air date: January 19) – 685 pts – weighted score: 115.8 (81.2%)
5. Mystery 101 (air date: January 27 (HMM)) – 454 pts – weighted score: 94.2 (80.5%)
6. Love on the Menu (air date: February 23) – 642 pts – weighted score: 113.8 (79.9%)
7. Holiday Hearts (air date: Nov 23) – 663 pts – weighted score: 113.0 (79.3%)
8. Bottled With Love (air date: April 13) – 649 pts – weighted score: 112.2 (78.7%)
9. Love Takes Flight (air date: April 27) – 670 pts – weighted score: 111.0 (77.9%)
10. Love, Romance & Chocolate (air date: February 16) – 627 pts – weighted score: 110.2 (77.3%)
11. The Last Bridesmaid (air date: June 22) – 643 pts – weighted score: 109.2 (76.6%)
12. Love, Fall and Order (air date: Oct 12) – 636 pts – weighted score: 109.0 (76.5%)
13. Paris, Wine & Romance (air date: May 4) – 638 pts – weighted score: 108.3 (76.0%)
14. Holiday Date (air date: Dec 14) – 647 pts – weighted score: 108.2 (75.9%)
15. My Boyfriend’s Back: Wedding March 5 (air date: June 8) – 635 pts – weighted score: 108.0 (75.8%)
16. Christmas in Evergreen: Tidings of Joy (air date: Nov 29) – 627 pts – weighted score: 107.0 (75.1%)
17. Over the Moon in Love (air date: Oct 5) – 613 pts – weighted score: 106.3 (74.6%)
18. Flip That Romance (air date: March 16) – 597 pts – weighted score: 105.8 (74.2%)
19. Check Inn to Christmas (air date: Nov 26) – 619 pts – weighted score: 105.7 (74.1%)
20. My One and Only (air date: Aug 31) – 597 pts – weighted score: 105.6 (74.1%)
21. Mystery 101: Playing Dead (air date: June 23 (HMM)) – 425 pts – weighted score: 86.5 (73.9%)
22. A Summer Romance (air date: Aug 17) – 577 pts – weighted score: 103.7 (72.7%)
23. The Christmas Club (air date: Nov 27) – 588 pts – weighted score: 103.5 (72.6%)
24. True Love Blooms (air date: April 6) – 598 pts – weighted score: 103.1 (72.3%)
25. Forever in My Heart (air date: Sept 14) – 560 pts – weighted score: 102.4 (71.8%)
26. The Mistletoe Secret (air date: Nov 11) – 585 pts – weighted score: 102.2 (71.7%)
27. Christmas Under the Stars (air date: Nov 16) – 576 pts – weighted score: 101.8 (71.4%)
28. The Story of Us (air date: February 9) – 605 pts – weighted score: 101.3 (71.1%)
29. Holiday for Heroes (air date: Nov 8) – 566 pts – weighted score: 99.8 (70.0%)
30. Time for You to Come Home for Christmas (air date: Dec 8) – 582 pts – weighted score: 98.4 (69.1%)
31. A Brush with Love (air date: March 30) – 563 pts – weighted score: 97.7 (68.6%)
32. Christmas at Graceland: Home for the Holidays – 558 pts – weighted score: 97.7 (68.6%)
33. A Godwink Christmas: Meant for Love (air date: Nov 17) – 548 pts – weighted score: 96.9 (68.0%)
34. Ruby Herring: Silent Witness (air date: January 20 (HMM)) – 357 pts – weighted score: 79.5 (67.9%)
35. Love, Unleashed (air date: July 6, 2019) – 559 pts – weighted score: 96.2 (67.5%)
36. Sense Sensibility & Snowmen (air date: Nov 30) – 560 pts – weighted score: 96.1 (67.4%)
37. Love Under the Rainbow (air date: March 9) – 581 pts – weighted score: 96.0 (67.4%)
38. One Winter Proposal (air date: January 12) – 535 pts – weighted score: 95.8 (67.2%)
39. Just Add Romance (air date: March 2) – 548 pts – weighted score: 95.6 (67.1%)
40. Christmas Scavenger Hunt (air date: Nov 3) – 561 pts – weighted score: 95.4 (66.9%)
41. From Friend to Fiance (air date: May 25) – 555 pts – weighted score: 94.8% (66.5%)
42. Christmas at Dollywood (air date: Dec 8) – 553 pts – weighted score: 94.6 (66.4%)
43. Picture a Perfect Christmas (air date: Nov 10) – 529 pts – weighted score: 94.6 (66.4%)
44. A Christmas Duet (air date: Nov 25) – 540 pts – weighted score: 94.1 (66.0%)
45. Write Before Christmas (air date: Nov 17) – 529 pts – weighted score: 94.1 (66.0%)
46. Christmas Camp (air date: July 11) – 530 pts – weighted score: 93.9 (65.9%)
47. Our Christmas Love Song (air date: Nov 24) – 537 pts – weighted score: 93.4 (65.5%)
48. Love and Sunshine (air date: Aug 3) – 504 pts – weighted score: 91.7 (64.3%)
49. Crossword Mysteries: A Puzzle to Die For (air date: March 10 (HMM) – 354 pts – weighted score: 74.1 (63.3%)
50. A Christmas Miracle (air date: Nov 14) – 494 pts – weighted score: 90.1 (63.2%)
51. Christmas at the Plaza (air date: Nov 28) – 517 pts – weighted score: 90.0 (63.1%)
52. Sister of the Bride (air date: June 29) – 516 pts – weighted score: 89.8 (63.0%)
53. Valentine in the Vineyard (air date: February 2) – 503 pts – weighted score: 89.5 (62.8%)
54. Love, Take Two (air date: June 15) – 507 pts – weighted score: 87.8 (61.6%)
55. All Summer Long (air date: Aug 24) – 512 pts – weighted score: 87.7 (61.5%)
56. Snowcoming (air date: January 26) – 485 pts – weighted score: 87.3 (61.2%)
57. Christmas in Rome (air date: Nov 30) – 494 pts – weighted score: 86.8 (60.9%)
58. The Winter Castle (air date: January 5) – 475 pts – weighted score: 85.9 (60.2%)
59. A Christmas Love Story (air date: Dec 7) – 525 pts – weighted score: 85.1 (59.7%)
60. Merry & Bright (air date: Nov 2) – 483 pts – weighted score: 84.4 (59.2%)
61. Christmas Town (air date: Dec 7) – 508 pts – weighted score: 83.8 (58.8%)
62. Cherished Memories: A Gift to Remember 2 (air date: Nov 24) – 465 pts – weighted score: 83.4 (58.5%)
63. Nostalgic Christmas (air date: Oct 31) – 446 pts – weighted score: 79.2 (55.6%)
64. A Merry Christmas Match (air date: Oct 25) – 455 pts – weighted score: 78.3 (54.9%)
65. Sailing Into Love (air date: May 18) – 455 pts – weighted score: 78.0 (54.7%)
66. Rome in Love (air date: July 27) – 436 pts – weighted score: 76.7 (53.8%)
67. A Homecoming for the Holidays (air date: Dec 7) – 458 pts – weighted score: 75.9 (53.2%)
68. A Blue Ridge Mountain Christmas (air date: Nov 7) – 398 pts – weighted score: 72.3 (50.7%)
69. A Taste of Summer (air date: Aug 10) – 403 pts – weighted score: 70.9 (49.7%)
70. A Winter Princess (air date: January 18) – 380 pts – weighted score: 70.5 (49.5%)
71. A Feeling of Home (air date: May 11) – 386 pts – weighted score: 69.7% (48.9%)
72. A Cheerful Christmas (air date: Dec 15) – 410 pts – weighted score: 69.5 (48.8%)
73. Love in the Sun (air date: June 1) – 361 pts – weighted score: 62.5 (43.8%)

To see where this movie lands in my overall rankings of Hallmark movies, visit my Hallmark Movie Rankings page!

What did you think of “Holiday Date”?  Comment below and let me know!

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