Miracle in Bethlehem, PA

I appreciated very much the attention for religious signification of Christmas . For me , always , it is important because, in time of secularism and consumerism, the spirit of Christmas sounds as empty formula.

I appreciated Benjamin Ayres and Laura Vandervoort work, the family spirit and, not last, the frequent references to Birth of Christ , including the little Natalie or the theme of single mother .

Sure, a Hallmark, with its obvious sins and exagerations or cheese parts .

Sure, the big problem remains the pink end , forced in good measure, but , I repeat the references, in some measure too obvious to Nativity remains a precious virtue in this case.

What a set up for a chance to leave all the viewers with a ton of war and fuzzies. But it was poorly done in a lot of the little things.

Several things were laid on too thick. Our introduction to Joe is overboard on making him out to be a juvenile slob. I don't know how old Joe is supposed to be, but Ben Ayers is 46 and Joe is still addicted to video games and not only doesn't clean his room but his entire house. Meanwhile we get the point about Mary Ann. She is having a hard time adopting. That also could have been dialed down a few notches. Then the storm. Roads closed in every direction and when they showed visuals it is a wonder Mary Ann was able to leave the hospital. So many things were laid on too thick. It happens again late with Brook and Joe's interaction. There was almost no subtlety in this movie and there was a lot of clumsiness in the presentation.

There were some clever aspects like the names, but then the attempts to draw similarities between Mary Ann and Natalie's situation against the original Christmas story was obvious and again not subtle. The conflict or obstacle didn't ring true at least not enough in my view to justify where it immediately led. Likewise the climax and conclusion. My criticisms are at times harsh, too harsh. I'm trying to say that the little things were just a bit off making what could have been a great story come out just ok. There were some definite warm and fuzzies, but not what I was hoping for and not what many other movies on Hallmark Movies and Mysteries have done, even this year.

I'm glad to see Hallmark show a movie that presents Christians in a good light and even mentions Jesus. There is prayer. There is talk about faith. There are some obscure references to the reason Jesus came, usually in Christmas songs. But what we see is simply what it is - an attempt to win points with a certain audience, the religious one. The message that did come out loudly is the same one that almost all the Christmas movies have - Yay family! But that is not the reason Jesus came. There is nothing wrong with this approach and the result, but there is also nothing special about it.

I grew up in Bethlehem, PA and it's hilarious to me that they made the specific choice to put the state in the title and yet seemingly did no research whatsoever about the actual city. While that's not a huge deal at all, I think it would be funny if anyone who likes the movie went to visit Bethlehem expecting it to be anything like this movie.

Some big goofs I noticed just in the first half hour or so: During the snow storm, they mention Route 10 being closed, which is not a road in Bethlehem. He offers to drive her to Allentown, which is a larger city that would make sense, or Hanover, which is about 2+ hours away from Bethlehem. They were probably confusing it with Hanover Township, which is two residential neighborhoods north of the city. Easton, Nazareth or Northampton are actual towns near Bethlehem. The star that he gives her the first night is a biblical star of Bethlehem, but Bethlehem PA was founded by Moravians, so most people there hang Moravian stars around Christmas regardless of their Christian denomination. There is no Bethlehem Star Inn (that's in Israel), but there is the Sun Inn on Main Street that is a historical site. Seems like that could have been easily used as the setting - or the Hotel Bethlehem for that matter - instead of a fictitious Inn. I don't expect a Hallmark movie to aim for 100% cultural accuracy, but is 10 minutes of research too much to ask when they made the decision to set the movie in a specific town in Pennsylvania? How lazy can you be?

The movie itself was about what I expected - a cheesy, generic Hallmark storyline with not-so-subtle religious undertones. The script and dialogue are aggressively blah and there is no chemistry between the two leads at all. I didn't finish the movie. Honestly, the only reason I clicked on it was to see what parts of my hometown were included and as it turns out... Zero.

7.9 stars.

The most refreshing part of this film is the arguments between the lead male and his recent ex-girlfriend. What a breath of fresh air. I can't recall the last time Hallmark had actual scenes of conflict at this level of escalation, mainly the ex girlfriend is for real yelling at him, like you see in movies with genuine drama - movies other than the usual Hallmark, Family, UP. I am still surprised and it's what makes this film stand out amongst the rest, literally 600+ Hallmark films I've seen, this is a first.

The emphasis is also a bit above and beyond the norm. 'Miracle in Bethlehem, PA.' has a very inspirational and religious feeling to it. There is a focus on how most of the characters believe in the God of Christianity, and they pray for miracles and for good things, and of course, before meals.

A hot-shot single white female lawyer is finally able to adopt a baby. She's been waiting for over a year on a long list of recipients who are generally unable to have children of their own. She has had difficulty being selected due to her single status. Once she finally picks up the baby from a hospital four hours away from her home in the city, she is on her way back when a snow storm hits the east coast. She is now stuck in some podunk town called Bethlehem, PA (of all names) and can't stay at the inn (because there is literally no room anywhere), but she doesn't stay with the animals and her baby is not in a manger, but you get the point. This "loser" of a guy (really he's just mourning the loss of his dad who died fairly recently) takes her into his home until the storm passes and the roads are cleared. The two of them bond, but what's really nice is the narrative is unique and uplifting. We get a really good feeling from all the characters and the events and storyline flow. The lead male's sister has a son, about seven years old, and she's pregnant and very bossy. The rest of the characters are undeveloped. All ends well, as is the typical Hallmark "happily ever after" theme, but the road is bumpy due to the lead female's apparent lack of trust in anyone or anything (especially her family-her mother in particular). We don't really know why she's so cynical, but it's probably due to her ex-husband who left her because she was unable to have children.

P. S. The supporting female sister is a well known Hallmark regular who can't seem to land a leading role, and I suspect she never will. Also, there is a lot of discordant singing. The lead male's character is supposedly the lead singer of a band, but you can tell that he can't carry a tune. And the church choir was way off key. But maybe that's part of the charm, making this whole experience seem more legitimate.

This was remarkable for a Hallmark movie! The characters were well-cast, and the acting and interaction between characters was truly believable. The story line was different enough from so many Hallmark movies so as to not be trite and formulaic. The sets were not over-decorated like so many Hallmark Christmas movies of late. And I believe, because this was a Dayspring movie (the Christian side of Hallmark cards), that the script writers were allowed to included some of the real meaning of Christmas. Those reviewers who rated this movie low because of its "Christian content" need to realize that this is a CHRISTmas movie. The celebration is about Christ and His coming to the earth as God the Son and Savior of the world. These characters depicted that they authentically believed and embraced this - the true meaning of Christmas. Other Hallmark movies depicting families fighting and quarreling over Christmas light displays on their homes don't have the intimacy, love, caring, trusting, and faith that this movie depicts. This was heartwarming. Keep your Christmas movies telling the real Christmas message, Hallmark. Get back the the Hall of Fame status that you were always known for in the past!