Meet Me at Christmas

6/10 - second chance at love Hallmark flick is worth a watch

AND yet another failed attempt by Hallmark to do flashbacks - with young actors who don't even remotely resemble the current day couple. You know Hallmark - if "This is Us" can do it - you can too.

My initial impression was the similarity with Maggie's Christmas Miracle. This movie uses flashbacks several times to fill in backstory of Joan's history especially related to Beau. It's not a common premise and despite the similarity there are definite differences to the afore mentioned movie. We wait to almost the end of the movie for the revelation of the mystery that has been hanging over the whole movie. It is not something predictable. The ending is touching.

Catherine Bell and Mark Bellemy had chemistry but Joan kept damping it with a combination of ghosts and wanting to preserve Liam's memories. Then all of a sudden, without enough transition, Joan lets herself fall into the spirit of the relationship.

There are things that are blown out of proportion for the purpose of advancing the story. It doesn't flow naturally, or to put it differently, too much of it is contrived. Love at first sight is the holy grail of this kind of movie. That theme is treated in an interesting way in this movie. It is definitely unusual and in that sense sets this movie apart. However it didn't sit right with me.

If you expect realism in this kind of movie, you're watching the wrong kind of movie, but the crisis that threatens the ceremony and its solution stretch the envelope too much for my taste.

As I've mentioned more than once, there are some interesting and unusual things in this movie. I think the acting and production are done well. The fact that I didn't care for how the story developed doesn't mean that others will feel the same.

Good witch star, Catherine Bell, meets GCB star, Mark Deklin, as a teen at a Christmas resort. In classic Love Affair/Affair To Remember style they agree to meet at the tree for the tree lighting ceremony and one of them doesn't show up...fast forward to meeting again at her son's wedding to his niece. The two must pull together and put together the wedding of his nieces dreams when the wedding coordinator quits for a celebrity elopement and her parents flight is delayed...and all of this takes place at the original site of their first meeting. Nice slow build love story with beautiful Christmas backdrop(kudos to the prop workers and set designers!). Also Catherine Bell and Mark Deklin were really very sweet together...another feel good Hallmark classic!

I would describe this as a classic Hallmark Christmas movie: a nice and enjoyable romantic story, a decent script, good acting, and plenty of Christmas spirit and festive cheer. This is my 14th Hallmark Christmas movie this 2020 season. Lucky me ;-). Again, it was a nice concept for a love story, predictable, but nice. Though I did lose interest a couple of times early on, the movie eventually pulled me in and engaged me. The acting was strong. Both leads are Hallmark regulars and good actors. I am a fan of The Good Witch, so I naturally like Catherine Bell; she performed well here too. Mark Deklin also had a strong performance. The chemistry between the two was just about right for this movie, I think. The supporting cast was excellent, especially the son and niece. Overall, it is an enjoyably film that provides some holiday warmth and spirit. Fans of Hallmark should enjoy.