This is Reel One Entertainment Christmas 2023 season TV movie. It's borderline average, but it's good compared to their overall mediocre Christmas 2022 season. Technically, it's very well done especially compared to the technical train wrecks from the previous season. There are no bad cuts, makeups, and loud background music when cast talk/speak. Music score is pretty good, I like it, there is barely any usage of stock footage, and it was shot in the winter (technically late) compared to the vast majority of Hallmark competition which is straight shot in the mid of summer. This is really suprising because the movie budget is obviously really, I mean literally, really low.
I never watched Greer Grammer, she "looks" like discounted Mira Sorvino when she was in her age, and I would say she was better as movie went. I watched Jason Cermak in the various Hallmark TV movies as supporting cast, and he is like many others hired by ROE to be lead. He is definitely the weaker link between leads. The rest of the cast... Yea, basically only two more have semi-important roles, plus Briana Buckmaster.
Directing is all right. Writing is overall passable. There are some really annoying tropes copied from the Hallmark Christmas movies - Christmas spirit / "magic" / whatever and all that - but on the other hand, there is a parallel secondary story involving Liz, Harper's sister. Furthermore, Liz is actually the important part of the story, and I like it.
And obligatory don't watch trailer (for some reason not posted here) as it's the ROE one and for some unknown reason(s) it shows almost whole movie compressed.
