Jingle Bell Run

Initially when I sat down to watch the 2024 Christmas movie "Jingle Bell Run", I have to admit that I harbored no expectations. Why? Well, the movie's cover isn't exactly enticing, nor does it have a particular sappy Christmas feel to it. But since I had never heard about it, of course I opted to give the movie a fair chance and thus added it to my December Christmas movie marathon.

Writers Tom McCurrie and Stephanie Sourapas churned out a script and storyline that definitely put the movie's cover and initial presentation to shame. The storyline was actually rather enjoyable and well-written. It was a script that sort of broke the formulaic theme of sappy Christmas movies, yet at the same time still managing to remain a sappy Christmas movie. Thumbs up to the writers for that accomplishment.

The only familiar faces on the screen for me were actress Ashley Williams and actor David James Lewis. The acting performances in the movie were good, and leading actress Ashley Williams and leading actor Andrew W. Walker had great on-screen chemistry and made the movie work nicely.

I was genuinely entertained throughout the course of the movie. And if you enjoy sappy Christmas movies, then you certainly should sit down and watch "Jingle Bell Run".

This is actually a Christmas movie that I will say is worth sitting down and watching, as it deviates from the standard archetypical formula of sappy Christmas movies.

My rating of director Lucie Guest's 2024 Christmas movie "Jingle Bell Run" lands on a six out of ten stars.

Here Hallmark has made a Christmas movie with a reality show theme as contestants vie for a million dollar prize while engaging in a race across the country. Does it work ?

Yes, because Williams and Walker are such engaging performers, so they are able to carry this off. Plus, there is some comedy and sentimentality that is quite good.

The supporting cast does well, too, particularly Teana-Marie Smith as Shirley. So, basically, this works well and is an enjoyable way to spend a couple of hours. It's not one of Hallmark's best but it is satisfying and it will not make you feel like you wasted your time. It's worth it.

Andrew Walker and Ashley Williams are two standards of Hallmark Christmas movies for more than a decade. Walker's first was in 2012, and Williams in 2011, and they've both appeared in MANY of these Christmas movies over the years.

The only issue I have with Ashley is that she tends to smile ALL the time, even in some situations where a smile isn't called for. However, that's a small gripe, because she does always bring a lot of life to her roles. (And why is it I always initially confuse her with Kimberly Sustad LOL).

The movie starts out with a bit of a silly episode to extablish an antithetical romance, then they wind up teamed--without their choice--in the Amazing Race style contest. The antithetical element quickly disappears after that.

The movie spent plenty of time in relationship building, making their growing regard for each other believable, and as Amazing Race fans, we enjoyed that element of the plot.

Recommended.

This is one of my favorite movies now. I enjoyed every moment of it. Jingle Bell Run is comical and awesome. And has an amazing cast. Ashley and Andrew have great chemistry, and make a awesome team. I like how Wes and Avery. Became close! And form a unbreakable bond. Also! I was so happy to see Brad in this movie. He is an amazing actor. Hallmark is making some great Christmas movies this year. Keep up the great work! Seeing Avery and Wes. Going across the world was epic. It was a adventure of a lifetime. This movie deserves nothing but positive reviews. Instead of hate! Hallmark rocks. Always!

The two leads in this are like old friends because I have seen each so many times. In fact at least one of them is in more than one Christmas movie this year. Perhaps they were a little tired mentally?

Something felt off about both from the start, especially Walker. I think he was trying too hard to be the macho superstar jock. How many times did he mention the Stanley Cup? I was a little surprised to see his sports rival fall out of the race so early, but I was glad because after that Wes toned it down a little so that he could be softer with Avery. The two characters did the right things to build the relationship, but I didn't feel it, the connection that is chemistry.

It was nice in the sense of a Christmas movie how the three final teams started to become friends. How far that went was surprising and made for a good story ending.

Despite what for me was less than stellar connection between Walker and Williams, the movie was still fun.