Scouting for Christmas

I'm an avid Hallmark movie watcher with my wife. Christmas movies are by far our favorite to watch. After a stressful, busy day, I don't want to be stressed out by the negativity and vulgar junk I see on TV now. This movie was a great way to kick off the Christmas season for us. I enjoy all of the movies Tamera Mowry Housely does, she has a genuine warm demeanor that always comes across in her movies. I think her and the girl who played her daughter had a nice natural chemistry. There were elements that reminded us a little of The Parent Trap and I thought that was really cool. To me it makes it a great movie for the entire family. It has romance.and the fun that kids will also enjoy. We need more movies that bring the family together and remind us of all the Good there's still around us.

Six Stars: Solid. Could be better.

Full disclosure-I was going to skip this one, but I'm glad I didn't. Scouting for Christmas was a charming non-traditional family story. It didn't break new ground but was perfectly enjoyable.

Ten-year-old Brooklyn (Audrey Wise Alvarez) is a Sunny Scout and loves baked goods and the guy who bakes them, Sir Bakes-A-Bunch, William (Carlo Marks). Brooklyn's single mom Angela (Tamera Mowry-Housley), is a busy real estate agent who doesn't like asking for help. She shows up late to things, which is apparently her worst quality as a human. Other than that, she's pretty great.

Brooklyn and Angela enlist Sir Bakes-A-Bunch to audition to be the caterer/goodie table guy for the Sunny Scout holiday ball. The relationship building centers around that story line.

We also meet Dakota (James Paladino) who is Brooklyn's dad, but I'm convinced he is 75% Philadelphia Phillies slugger Bryce Harper. Look him up, you'll see it too.

The meanie is Den Mom Elizabeth (Jaycie Dotin). She is easy to root against in all things. She's judgy and snooty to a "working" mom who can't possibly be a good mom, work and show up to things on time.

This is set in Washington state. They keep showing images of snowy Seattle. That's not really a thing. We have other cities here, too. Maybe visit Leavenworth if you need a snowy Washington town. Also, nobody here has ever said "tri-state area," if anything they would say, "the Northwest" which covers Oregon, Washington and Idaho. Also, we drink coffee (home of Starbucks), not tea.

Funniest line: When Brooklyn is asked what she wants for Christmas, she replies that she wants her dad to come home and her mom to be fun. Brooklyn's friend replies, "Whoa. That's deep. I want an electric scooter."

Cast Kudos: Brooklyn (Audrey Wise Alvarez). She's a very good child actor who is really the driving force of the whole movie.

Alternative Titles: Those who bake a lot, love a lot; Sunny Scout Ball; A baker for Christmas; Christmas Matchmaker Meritt Badge.

I was looking forward to this as I like both Carlos and Tamera, but was sorely disappointed. Tamera and Carlos could not have been more awkward. This really felt like Tamera Mowry was just going through the motions.. She was not invested in any part of this movie. Not one scene. All her scenes felt awkward and forced, even with her "daughter". The scenes with the daughter and the ex-husband were the only scenes that felt genuine. The end scene at the ball with Carlos and Tamera was as awkward as their first scene and the kiss felt forced. It was so painfully obvious they were not into it or each other - at all. Why are these leads cast if they don't like each other? This was painful to watch and I won't be watching it again. I kept waiting for the awkwardness to fade as the characters got to know each other, but it got worse with each scene. The dialogue was stilted and the leads remained awkward throughout. Hopefully, the rest of the Christmas movies this season are better than this mess, or I won't be watching. I used to love watching Hallmark Christmas, but with stuff like this, the past couple years I've been changing the channel a lot more often then stopping to watch.

I loved this film and so appreciated the inclusion of a modern family. Bravo to Hallmark for including diversity and substance! The acting was awesome. Tamera beautifully and seamlessly depicted a busy Mom navigating through life while having an open and loving relationship with her adopted daughter. That, in and of itself, is something to be celebrated. Couple that with the charm of her love interest and the sweetness of her daughter and some good ole Christmas magic made for a great feel good Christmas movie and a perfect start to my holiday. This one is worth watching! I will definitely be watching it again.

Tamera's acting was not so good in this movie. For someone playing the mother to a child she'd adopted at 2, she talked to her like she was the babysitter hired to watch a new kid for the day/night. It was awkward. The girl was, what? 10? She talked to her like she was 5. I LOVE Carlo Marks and will watch ANYTHING he's in, but he and Tamera had absolutely zero chemistry. Which has to be her doing, because everything I've seen him in, he's had some kind of spark between him and the main female lead.

I really wanted to like this movie because it represents my household. My daughter, growing up as a mixed child, never saw HER family represented on the Hallmark Channel. Majority of their couples and and/or families are very homogeneous. This movie was a let down.