A Heidelberg Holiday

Wow, I'm really surprised.

I love the vibe of the film, great camera, the authentic funny german accent - I myself am german... I do live in Heidelberg, and it is really like in the movie.

You should also visit the real original Heidelberg in Germany.

There are really lots of tourists...like in the movie. I do have a blog about that city (as a side note).

Back to the movie: I also do have CRITICS: I'm not a fan of the actors, yeah they do their job, but it seems like acting not like real action/conversation - at least to me.

What else could I say? Its my first rating.

Have a great life!

Niels.

At the time of this review, 24 people had rated this show a 10, and 11 rated it a 1. I wish the IMBD required some justification when rating. This was a pretty typical Hallmark romance introducing some new actors. And while filmed in a unique location, it hardly warrants scores at the extreme high and low ends. Enjoying the movie doesn't make it a 10 and not caring for it doesn't make it a 1.

I made it a point to watch it because I was stationed near Heidelberg with the U. S. Army many years ago and enjoyed seeing many of the same locations I had visited. Movie wise - it was predictable, pleasant and enjoyable, but not a 10 or a 1.

Your average made-for-television festive flick.

'A Heidelberg Holiday' doesn't bring major Xmas feeling though, it didn't feel as Christmassy as I'd want via my personal liking but what is produced is close enough. The German aspects are cool, especially for an American-made movie.

I thought the 'delayed delivery' side of the story was gonna pack more of a punch than it did, I was getting magical elf worker vibes but maybe that was my imagination expecting too much from a flick of this kind. The cast, meanwhile, all blend into one in my memory to be honest, Ginna Claire and Frédéric Brossier are alright leads mind.

This was really good. I've loved Ginna Claire Mason since seeing her as Glinda in Wicked so it's great to see her in Hallmark Christmas movies. She's still a little green but worked really well with Frederic and the other actors. I like that Hallmark is investing in location shoots for these movies, especially for lesser known actors. The German backdrop was stunning and I love that this was cast locally and incorporated German traditions. Also appreciated the bilingual dialogue with subtitles.

I wasn't crazy about how they resolved the missing ornament issue and I wanted a bit more from the ending. What's next for Heidi? But other than that, this is a winner that I'll rewatch again.

Also note to Hallmark: There are lots of talented Broadway actors out there. Please spread the casting love because this is a trend I'd like to see continue.

Once again, Hallmark dresses a rather unsubstantial romantic story, this time at Christmas, with the background of an appealing, historical destination. Heidi, an American artist of German heritage has the opportunity to exhibits her hand-made Christmas ornaments at the fabled Heidelberg Christmas Market, while discovering her family's roots. Hosted at the Oppermanns' guest house, she is welcomed to share their Holiday traditions and bonds with their son, Lukas, also an artist with a kin soul. With some twists and turns, that shall not be revealed, the story follows to a predictable outcome. How does it work?

LOCATION: the movie offers appreciable glimpses of the historical vestiges and the culture of this city, that I regret never been able to visit. This is a definite plus.

PLOT: some original elements are inserted in an otherwise fairly bland story.

PERFORMANCES: frankly, I am not overly impressed neither by the acting abilities of Ginna Claire Mason and Frederic Brossier or their chemistry in this production.

ATMOSPHERE: despite some charming sequences, Hallmark shows the usual superficiality in handling other cultures. Somehow, the feeling of a real German experience is missing in most of the scenes. A major omission, which could have been easy to provide, with a little attention and minimal cost, is real German Christmas music. Germany has an enormous wealth of beautiful traditional music, dating back to the Middle Age, that could have created a magical background for the action, Instead, other than a token rendition or "O Tannenbaum" and a short run of 'Es ist ein Ros einsprungen" melody, the soundtrack is quite generic and uninspired. In my book, this is a badly missed opportunity.

Overall, the film is "Christmas-y" and family-oriented, with some endearing moments and worth a look, though it could have been so much more.