The Nine Lives of Christmas

This is a typical Hallmark Christmas romance movie, but more captivating than most. Of course, you know how everything will turn out, but the process depends upon how attractive and appealing the main characters are. Both leads in this film, Brandon Routh as fireman Zachary Stone and Kimberly Sustad as veterinary student Marilee White, are A-one. They are both instantly likable (in Miss Sustad's case exceedingly lovable) and romance lovers will immediately be rooting for them and intrigued by how they will get together.

OK, this may be enough, but then throw in the animal characters, and those who are pet owners or who love animals will find the two cats adorable. And the pets are not there just for their attraction, but they play essential roles in the plot. So what we have is indeed a warm and fuzzy (pun intentional) love story that is just fun to sit back and enjoy without expecting anything more than that--it is enough.

My wife and I enjoyed the movie so much that we purchased a copy of the short novel by Sheila Roberts that it is based upon. The plot of the book has some major differences, but the adaptation for the screenplay was very well done and was true to the overall effect of the novel.

I would love to see Kimberly Sustad featured in more Hallmark movies. She is such a talented and endearing actress, with a different kind of beauty all her own--a unique look that is far more interesting than that of the cookie-cutter Miss America types.

Charming and fun Hallmark romcom about a handsome fireman (Brandon Routh) who takes in a stray cat, which leads him to meeting a veterinary student (Kimberly Sustad). Despite some obstacles, such as his witchy model girlfriend, the two become fast friends and eventually roommates. Will they become more? No, actually, they will not...because this is the only Hallmark movie ever made where the guy and the girl don't get together in the end.

I'm kidding, obviously. We all know where this will end up but, as they say, "it's the journey not the destination." The two leads are both extremely likable and attractive. Like everyone else, I'm familiar with Brandon Routh from Superman Returns and a few other movies and television shows. So I knew what to expect from him. Kimberly Sustad, however, I wasn't sure about. I could have sworn I'd seen her in something before. She looks vaguely familiar and her style of acting also seemed to ring some bells. However, I looked at her IMDb filmography and drew nothing but blanks. So I guess she just has one of those faces. Anyway, she's a treat to watch and easy to root for. She also has very nice chemistry with Routh. Can I just say how happy I was to see a male character in one of these things who wasn't rich and didn't have an MBA? The guy's ridiculously good-looking, brave, and dates models so, no, he's not Joe Everyman. But Hallmark has this annoying habit of writing the men in their romcoms to either be from a wealthy family or have some kind of business degree that lets us know he could be wealthy if he wanted to be. It's nice to see them stepping away from that irritating trope this time around. Anyway, it's a fun, lighthearted romantic comedy with a little bit of Christmas flavor. If you enjoy Hallmark movies then you'll probably like this one.

BEWARE OF BOGUS REVIEWS & REVIEWERS. SOME REVIEWERS HAVE ONLY ONE REVIEW. WHEN ITS A POSITIVE REVIEW THAT TELLS ME THEY WERE INVOLVED WITH THE PRODUCTION. NOW I HAVE REVIEWED OVER 400 Christmas MOVIES. I HAVE NO AGENDA. I AM FARE

Zachary is a handsome bachelor who enjoys the liberties of being single. When a stray cat adopts Zach as his owner, Zach falls in love with the little guy in spite of the fact that he wants to stay away from responsibility. His new pet brings him into contact with Merilee White, a beautiful woman who is Zach's opposite. Through his new pet, Zach begins to see that being accountability-free isn't as fulfilling as he thought and that the wrong woman might just be the perfect match.

Now I have been a Brandon Routh fan since "Superman Returns". I think if that film had a better Lois Lane then Brandon would have become a household name.

What is great about this film is that the relationships people have with one another "feel real". I love the relationship between Brandon and his boss.

Now we all know how these Christmas films will end and this is no different. However it's the journey that takes to wonderful and almost unexpected places!

Here you have two nice, attractive people of the opposite gender bound for professional success. the problem is they're too busy for love and romance. The woman is a compassionate brunette pet store employee who's studying to become a veterinarian due to her love for animals. The man is a hunky and affable junior firefighter who upgrades and flips houses on the side. He does have a casual girlfriend, a glamorous but bitchy professional model who'll make the women viewers say, "Why can't he tell she's wrong for him?" Conveniently, he working on a beautiful Victorian dream house, while she's in a campus apartment that doesn't allow pets, and of course she loves cats and secretly keeps one. They live in a nice small town where most people know and are nice to each other. If you don't know how this story ends, than you've never watched Lifetime of the Hallmark Channel before. All that being said, it's completely painless to watch and it'll appeal to its target audience. The leads are likable, the supporting cast competent and the technical aspects are satisfactory. I enjoyed it enough and so will most people if the plot interests them.

This is a charming film that contains all the best things; romance, humor, and animals. It's rare you find two extremely likable leads yet Nine Lives of Christmas has managed to do just that.

Sustad is an underused actress whose roles are usually only supporting. She is wonderful as a lead. Beautiful with a wonderfully expressive face, she needs to be cast as the main character in so much more. Routh is eye candy, but he does it so well. Their chemistry is believable and I enjoyed every second of this movie. For you Hallmark fans, I highly recommend putting this at the top of your watch list.