L'Ange secret de Noël

Good acting, decent little story, nothing really original or spell binding. I don't regret watching it, but wouldn't watch it again. The song with the guitar was pretty much cringe for me. I wonder if the actor was forced to do that, or if it was actually his idea (shudder). I felt bad that he was captain friend zone through the entire movie until I saw that scene, then it all made sense.

The premise of this Christmas themed film is when a writer named Rebecca McBride (Jill Wagner) returns to her childhood hometown some twenty (20) years later after she writes about a childhood memory of a magical Christmas tree that grants wishes and they come true. Rebecca's boss agrees to let her return to her childhood home town to investigate and capture the follow up story as to who is the person responsible for the Angel tree and granting all these mysterious wishes.

Rebecca and her daughter Cassie (Cassidy Nugent) are welcomed to stay with Rebecca's favorite Aunt Mimi (Annabel Kershaw) while they are in town and it also gives Rebecca an opportunity to catch up with her childhood friend Matthew Anderson (Lucas Bryant). Matthew still owns the family diner in town which the family almost lost twenty (20) years ago until Rebecca convinced her young friend Matthew to write down his own Christmas wish and place it on the Angel tree to see if it comes true. Miraculously Matthew's wish placed on the Angel tree does come true as evidenced by Matthew now as an adult inheriting the diner from his deceased parents.

As Rebecca continues to try and discover who is responsible for taking the many wishes placed on the Angel tree and making them come true, she is constantly reminded by many of the townspeople who have benefitted from the Angel tree, but no one can tell her, or at least they choose not to tell Rebecca WHO is the person responsible for granting all the wishes placed on the towns Angel tree.

Mrs. Shullivan enjoyed the film so much she watched it twice. As for myself, it's a nice story with a good message which is for people to always consider helping out others who are in greater need than ourselves, in a "Pay It Forward" Christmas way. There is a feeling of hope, mystery, faith and of course romance all wrapped up in a big red bow on the Angel Tree. I give it a 6 out of 10 IMDB rating.

Loved it until the military mom showed up in some type of costume. Is it so difficult for wardrobe or costume or whoever to get an Army uniform right? Google is your friend. I literally laughed out loud. Almost discredited the whole movie for me.

Another classic Hallmark movie: a sweet and warm Christmas story with a solid script; strong performances by the leads; and plenty of Christmas spirit and festive cheer. One of my favorites thus far this season. The chemistry between Jill Wagner (as Rebecca) and Lucas Bryant (as Matthew) was excellent. There was some very good, convincing interaction between the two of them thru-out. For example, about 30 minutes into the film, there was the scene where they were walking down the street together; the banter and dialogue (and chemistry) here was great. Wagner, a Hallmark regular, performs great in these types of roles. The supporting cast was very good too. Cassidy Nugent (as Cassie), for example, had a cute performance. The story itself is a heartfelt one and provided a sense of Christmas spirit (it did for me, at least). It is a predictable story of course but engaging, nevertheless. Though to be fair, I did not know who Angel was until the end. Regarding the wish tree, I do think that writers could have done a bit more with the wishes (some more, e.g., nobler wishes). Overall, it is an entertaining Christmas movie, providing some holiday warmth, spirit, and festive cheer. Fans of Hallmark will not be disappointed.

7/10 - touching story of community is one of Hallmark's better 2020 offerings