Hallmark For All Seasons

Countdown to Christmas 2021

The Christmas House 2: Deck Those Halls

Last night I opted to watch a newer release from this past weekend. “The Christmas House 2: Deck Those Halls,” which brought back the whole gang: Robert Buckley, Ana Ayora, Jonathan Bennett, with Sharon Lawrence, Treat Williams and Brad Harder. The movie premiered on December 18 during 2021’s Countdown to Christmas on Hallmark Channel. Robert Buckley and Erin Rodman tackled the script, while R.C. Newey directed.

Once again the movie was set in Rhineland, NY but was filmed in Victoria, Canada. They used many of the same locations from the first movie.

This movie poster is fun. It shows that this time around the movie is more about the brothers than a romance. And while there’s no evidence of house decorations ANYwhere on that poster, it has snowballs and sweaters along with red and green tree ornaments!

In a nutshell

I was really looking forward to this one, considering how much I adored the first one last year. I loved the first one so much it’s STILL on my Tivo from last year – I won’t delete it! So this movie had a lot to live up to, and I’m happy to report it did not disappoint one bit!

Music: The only song of any importance was Kelly Clarkson and Chris Stapleton’s song Glow (affiliate link), which played at the end of the movie.

The Plot of “The Christmas House 2: Deck Those Halls”

The Mitchell brothers compete to see who can create the best Christmas House.

Can’t get more concise and clear than that!

Actors & Chemistry

This cast was magic in last year’s movie, and this year they did not disappoint. But what I loved is that we got to know everyone even more this time around. Mike wants to be a father figure to Andi’s son, Noah AND have the perfect marriage proposal plan in place. Brandon just wants to be perfect at everything from baker owner to husband and dad, but feels like he’s failing. Andi is dealing with her flake of an ex Zane sniffing around claiming he wants to be back in his son’s life. And watching it all happen are Mike and Brandon’s parents, who just want to get back to enjoying their retirement.

The chemistry of the cast continued to shine, but really – there were a couple standouts. First, Treat Williams was unexpectedly HILARIOUS this time around. Last time he was more of a straight man while the comedy went on mostly around him, but this time around he was given the opportunity to really ham it up, and he was great. Conversely, I really appreciated the vulnerability that Jonathan Bennett brought to Brandon, who was focusing hard on the competition in order to avoid his fears about being present in his own immediate family life. The scene where Brandon admits to his husband the feeling he needs to **BE THE BEST** (for two specific reasons) was fantastically done by both Bennett and Brad Harder.

Tropes

Oh I’m sure there were plenty of tropes, but I took no notes during this movie and just enjoyed it for what it was without writing everything down.

Did I Hear/See That Right?

So the magic shop guy – are we to believe that he is actual MAGIC now? Plot twist! And completely unnecessary. No, it didn’t ruin the movie for me, but for a sequel whose first chapter was solely set in reality, it was a weird choice to have an “is he magic” character.

Feelgoods

The whole thing was one big feelgood. I’m nuts about big house decorations at Christmas, and I love this cast, so I had a stupid smile on my face throughout most of this movie.

Re-watchability of “The Christmas House 2: Deck Those Halls”

Of course this is re-watchable! In fact, it’s tempting to watch them back to back in a couple weeks when Christmas is over and the decorations are disappearing from the lawns in my neighborhood.

The Ranking

“The Christmas House 2: Deck Those Halls” easily cracked the Top 10 for the year. Not surprised in the slightest.

An Unexpected Christmas (air date: Nov 26) – 736 pts – weighted score: 123.0 (86.3%)
A Dickens of a Holiday! (air date: Dec 11) – 735 pts – weighted score: 122.3 (85.8%)
The Santa Stakeout (air date: Oct 24) – 730 pts – weighted score: 122.3 (85.8%)
A Christmas Family Tree (air date: Nov 14) – 730 pts – weighted score: 121.9 (85.5%)
You, Me and The Christmas Trees (air date: Oct 22) – 716 pts – weighted score: 121.3 (85.1%)
The Christmas House 2: Deck Those Halls (air date: Dec 18) – 710 pts – weighted score: 118.8 (83.4%)
Crashing Through The Snow (air date: July 10) – 705 pts – weighted score: 118.1 (82.8%)
The Nine Kittens of Christmas (air date: Nov 25) – 690 pts – weighted score: 116.5 (81.8%)
One December Night (air date: Nov 13) – 695 pts – weighted score: 116.3 (81.6%)
A Mrs. Miracle Christmas (air date: Nov 6) – 688 pts – weighted score: 116.2 (81.5%)
Every Time a Bell Rings (air date: Nov 1) – 687 pts – weighted score: 116.2 (81.5%)
Boyfriends of Christmas Past (air date: Oct 23) – 673 pts – weighted score: 116.1 (81.5%)
Next Stop, Christmas (air date: Nov 6) – 682 pts – weighted score: 114.7 (80.5%)
It Was Always You (air date: Feb 27) – 668 pts – weighted score: 114.2 (80.1%)
The Christmas Promise (air date: Oct 30) – 675 pts – weighted score: 114.1 (80.0%)
Gingerbread Miracle (air date: Nov 5) – 671 pts – weighted score: 114.0 (80.0%)
Christmas In My Heart (air date: Oct 23) – 675 pts – weighted score: 113.9 (79.9%)
A Kiss Before Christmas (air date: Nov 21) – 671 pts – weighted score: 111.9 (78.5%)
Open at Christmas (air date: Nov 12) – 658 pts – weighted score: 111.6 (78.3%)
You Had Me At Aloha (air date: June 5) – 675 pts – weighted score: 111.4 (78.1%)
A Christmas Together With You (air date: Nov 20) – 645 pts – weighed score: 110.9 (77.8%)
Five More Minutes (air date: Nov 21) – 645 pts – weighted score: 110.8 (77.7%)
Sweet Carolina (air date: May 15) – 648 pts – weighted score: 110.1 (77.2%)
A Very Merry Bridesmaid (air date: Dec 4) – 644 pts – weighted score: 109.5 (76.8%)
Taking a Shot at Love (air date: Jan 2) – 641 pts – weighted score: 108.9 (76.4%)
Christmas in Tahoe (air date: Nov 28) – 653 pts – weighted score: 108.7 (76.3%)
Don’t Go Breaking My Heart (air date: Mar 27) – 636 pts – weighted score: 108.5 (76.1%)
Christmas at Castle Hart (air date: Nov 27) – 639 pts – weighted score: 108.0 (75.8%)
Right in Front of Me (air date: Apr 18) – 637 pts – weighted score: 108.0 (75.8%)
As Luck Would Have It (air date: Apr 10) – 638 pts – weighted score: 107.7 (75.5%)
Her Pen Pal (air date: June 19) – 636 pts – weighted score: 107.1 (75.1%)
Time for Them to Come Home for Christmas (air date: Nov 27) – 638 pts – weighted score: 106.8 (74.9%)
The Baker’s Son (air date: June 13) – 637 pts – weighted score: 106.3 (74.6%)
The Christmas Contest (air date: Nov 28) – 628 pts – weighted score: 105.9 (74.3%)
South Beach Love (air date: Oct 9) – 615 pts – weighted score: 105.8 (74.2%)
Love Strikes Twice (air date: Oct 2) – 608 pts – weighted score: 105.2 (73.8%)
A Holiday in Harlem (air date: Nov 7) – 628 pts – weighted score: 105.1 (73.7%)
Christmas Sail (air date: Oct 31) – 606 pts – weighted score: 105.1 (73.7%)
Christmas in Harmony (air date: Oct 29) – 605 pts – weighted score: 104.8 (73.5%)
A Christmas Treasure (air date: Nov 7) – 625 pts – weighted score: 104.6 (73.4%)
A Winter Getaway (air date: Jan 23) – 620 pts – weighted score: 104.4 (73.3%)
A Godwink Christmas: Miracle of Love (air date: Dec 11) – 610 pts – weighted score: 104.4 (73.2%)
Coyote Creek Christmas (air date: Oct 30) – 614 pts – weighted score: 104.3 (73.2%)
Love, For Real (air date: July 31) – 607 pts – weighted score: 103.6 (72.7%)
Christmas CEO (air date: Nov 26) – 596 pts – weighted score: 103.5 (72.6%)
Rise and Shine, Benedict Stone (air date: Oct 1) – 595 pts – weighted score: 103.0 (72.2%)
Mix Up in the Mediterranean (air date: Feb 20) – 590 pts – weighted score: 102.5 (71.9%)
Advice to Love By (air date: Oct 16) – 599 pts – weighted score: 102.2 (71.7)
Two For The Win (air date: Jan 16) – 603 pts – weighted score: 101.8 (71.4%)
Taking the Reins (air date: Sept 28) – 574 pts – weighted score: 101.2 (71.0%)
Raise a Glass to Love (air date: Sept 18) – 590 pts – weighted score: 100.7 (70.7%)
Eight Gifts of Hanukkah (air date: Dec 3) – 590 pts – weighted score: 100.3 (70.4%)
Nantucket Noel (air date: Nov 18) – 585 pts – weighted score: 100.3 (70.4%)
Chasing Waterfalls (air date: Mar 20) – 570 pts – weighted score: 100.3 (70.4%)
Roadhouse Romance (air date: Sept 11) – 571 pts – weighted score: 100.2 (70.3%)
Sweet Pecan Summer (air date: ) – 576 pts – weighted score: 97.3 (68.3%)
Sand Dollar Cove (air date: June 26) – 557 pts – weighted score: 96.8 (67.9%)
Hearts Down Under (air date: Apr 24) – 547 pts – weighted score: 95.2 (66.8%)
Fit for a Prince (air date: Mar 6) – 546 pts – weighted score: 94.6 (66.4%)
A New Year’s Resolution (air date: Jan 9) – 516 pts – weighted score: 90.5 (63.5%)
Finding Love in Mountain View (air date: ) – 504 pts – weighted score: 89.5 (62.8%)
A Little Daytime Drama (air date: Aug 21) – 511 pts – weighted score: 87.7 (61.5%)
Baby, It’s Cold Inside (air date: May 8) – 495 pts – weighted score: 85.6 (60.0%)
Playing Cupid (air date: Feb 13) – 466 pts – weighted score: 82.6 (58.0%)
Beverly Hills Wedding (air date: Feb 6) – 431 pts – weighted score: 80.6 (56.5%)
Journey of my Heart (air date: ) – 450 pts – weighted score: 76.0 (53.3%)
Snowkissed (air date: Jan 31) – 402 pts – weighted score: 76.0 (53.3%)