Journey to Christmas

This is a very unique take on the concept of strangers meeting at Christmas. The characters are well rounded, believable and just enough of their backgrounds are explained so the viewer can understand motives and root for the best ending. This movie is entertaining enough for adults and safe for the whole family. Sweet is the best word to describe it. I would love to see a sequel and more movies with such believable characters. I was surprised that even the young girl was well cast and fit so well into the family dynamic. All too often a tween/young teen will be way too bubbly for no apparently reason or spoiled. This was a refreshing change.

I was not familiar with the leading cast members prior to this movie. I have become a fan of Ash Tsai and Joey Hayworth now. The two have excellent Chemistry throughout the movie - Fresh, sweet, appear genuinely enamored with one another. I love the way the couple meet and how the relationship develops, something that is completely rare in 99 percent of Hollywood movies today. Kuddos to the writers! The scenery and sets are realistic for common people . I feel the set designers did a wonderful job creating "real life" at the various stops and the main home used in the movie. Once again, a thank you to all invoved for making a movie that I happy and uplifted at the end. This is a good one for a sequel!

Don't pay too much attention to the intolerant reviewers who just want to complain about the main actor's lack of experience and to compare one network's stable of performers to another's--and even whine about the commercials shown during the TV broadcasts of a film. How are people like that even fans of the genre? In this instance, no, the main stars have not been doing the same old stories that many actors have been doing for fifteen or twenty years, but in my opinion that made them sound fresher. Sometimes the "experienced" actors just sound bored, or tired of the same old lines they are delivering. Of course, what I like best about Great American Family films is that they are not trying to socially manipulate their viewers like Hallmark does. GAC stories are family friendly--some of us really appreciate that. But even if you don't, or don't care, this is an enjoyable film regardless. That's the bottom line.

GAC's fourth installment in their 2023 Christmas productions comes with new faces, Ash Tsaj, who plays the role of a famous influencer, turned model, and Joey Heyworth, the limo service owner/driver that takes her in a winter charity tour and journey, through bad weather and unplanned deviations, to an L. A. destination, important for her career. Forced to stop at his family home, they bond, while she revels in the simple joy of a family's Christmas activities and he deals with the ghosts of a previous relationship. What makes the story somewhat original, and typically GAC, is that she is absolutely no diva, a wholesome, kind person, totally unselfish and genuine. I found Ash Tsaj quite charming in her part and hope GAC plans to grace future productions with her talent. Joey Heyworth looks, perhaps, a little less at ease in his acting, though he does contribute to the atmosphere of warmth that the entire cast and the story creates. The only harsh character is the manager, who fails at molding her into a self- absorbed, greedy personality. Which makes me ponder on the difficulties self imposed by GAC and Hallmark of old. How can you create entertaining drama without the crude situations, stunning effects, perverted feelings, flawed characters, and scandalous behaviors that are main, when not sole, ingredients of much of modern cinematography? When all characters are, admittedly, unrealistically wholesome and good? As far as seen in the initial entries of their Christmas movies line-up, GAC appears to have successfully achieved their intent and provided real Christmas movies.

A lovely story with "real people." It's a road trip rom com, with the usual twists and turns along the way--it is winter solstice after all!

Our protagonists discover Christmas as a season for expressing love by having the eyes to really see each other at their best.

While both leads are "easy on the eyes," one handsome and one beautiful, their attractiveness goes beyond the physical to the hearts we see revealed and softened throughout the movie.

If you love romcoms, add this to your list. If you're still feeling the blows of a breakup in your own life, add this to your list. If you are single and a workaholic, add this to your list. If you love the message of the meaning of Christmas (without any sermonizing), add this to your list.