'Twas the Date Before Christmas

Countdown to Christmas starts off this year with a decent entry. The basic premise of fake date is pretty common, but this movie does it well and with a couple of things that give the premise a slightly different flavor.

At first I wanted to say Jessie was pathetic. Not only was her reason for the date a little lame, but her whole demeanor leading up to it was a little whiny. The viewer finds out later that there are deeper issues which has taken joy out of her life and that's why she really needs the fun and comfort of this crazy family Christmas.

I was expecting a lot more friction early in the date, but instead the two got off to a good start. Bryan is an interesting guy who slides right into the craziness of the Chamberlin Family Christmas Olympics. Bryan and Jessie start to find each other to be appealing. But soon Bryan discovers he has a secret that won't go over well with the family. He can't help it, but it's there. More than that, he starts to have a fondness not only for Jessie, but for the entire family.

The viewer knows in general terms what is going to happen from here, but that doesn't really matter. The antics of the contests are fun and there is definite chemistry between Groening and Buckley.

This is a movie I can watch again. Maybe if all the new Christmas premieres on more than a handful of channels aren't that good, I will even watch again this year.

I was pleased to see Amy Groening in the lead role here (Jesse). She has been in a number of Hallmark movies playing the sidekick, where she proved herself to be funny and likeable, and that is the case here as well. There is a fair amount of silliness in this movie which is typical for Hallmark, but she and Robert Buckley (Bryan) have a natural chemistry which carries things. Bryan is kind and curious, and ready to take the zany ride with Jesse's family after meeting her in a coffee shop, where they both sense potential. There is the necessary misunderstanding near the end, but the characters talk things through and all is well. And by the way, the Christmas decorations throughout the movie are wonderful. This is one of Hallmark's better Christmas movies, and I'm glad they led the "Countdown to Christmas" with it.

To prevent her family from canceling the "Chamberlain Family Christmas Olympics," Jessie (Groening) lies and says she's inviting a date to the long-standing holiday tradition. She meets Bryan (Buckley) on a dating app, and he agrees to spend the holiday with her and her family. As Jessie and Bryan engage in eccentric activities like the search for the Christmas tree star, gift wrapping contest and snowball fight, they start to develop real feelings for each other. Soon her family begins to catch on to their secret and Bryan suspects she may be hiding the real reason for her unusual Christmas date request. As the celebrations continue, Jessie must work to keep all her stories straight and save her date with Bryan.

Firstly, it is rigidly formulaic, but the formula is applied sensibly, with no childish misunderstandings or extended histrionics, so that's a good start. The two leads ooze chemistry -what man could not have chemistry with Groening, right?- and their fun banter comes very easily with each other. Also the growing attraction is paced perfectly, and not based on one single event that suddenly made them both realise they'd fallen in love. The script is way better than a lot of budget christmas films, and it feels like this one has had some time spent on it. The direction is great and the sets second to none. The film oozes christmas, romance and family fun. Many christmas films aren't rewatchable because the story is just a one off love-'em-and-leave-'em plot, but this one is different. It's lots of fun and a few laughs too so I would be happy to re-watch now and again.

It has a warm and happy vibe to it and I am more than happy to give it a solid 6.

A very strong start to Hallmark's Countdown to Christmas 2024.

The fairly implausible plot line hardly seems to matter when you see Robert Buckley (of "One Tree Hill" and "Chesapeake Shores" fame) and Amy Groening on screen together.

They are both strong actors, and their chemistry is absolutely perfect - it carries the movie brilliantly. They elevate it from being a fairly run-of-the-mill movie to one you want to watch again.

It's great to see Groening in a lead role, and Buckley has been killing it as a Hallmark leading man for years now.

The story involves a family holding a 'Christmas Olympics', which gives us plenty of light moments, and the heavier ones are handed deftly.

I wouldn't be averse to a sequel.

Dating isn't working out for Jessie (Amy Groening). In order to keep the Chamberlain Christmas traditions going, Jessie tells her mother she will be bringing a date - only she doesn't have one. She decides to place a post on a dating app requesting someone to accompany her to a Christmas party.

Bryan (Robert Buckley) is the CEO of a development company. His friends persuade him to find a date on a dating app, and he happens to reply to Jessie's post. Upon meeting, they make it clear it is not a date, and that he merely escorts her to her family's Christmas party.

The Chamberlain family traditionally plays various games - or Christmas Olympics as they refer to it, which involves performing various (fun) tasks. Things get complicated for Bryan when he learns Jessie's best friend, Shelly, is a tenant he must evict before the New Year.

Yes, yes, being a Hallmark movie it is predictable from beginning to end, but this is exactly what you'd expect from Hallmark and noting more than to awaken the Christmas spirit. It is nevertheless a fairly entertaining movie, and Robert Buckley is so handsome!