Under the Mistletoe

This made for TV-film needed some re-casting. THe actors in this film were good however they are in the wrong roles.

Devoted father and husband Tom Chandler dies in a car accident, but appears as a ghost to his 11 year old son Jonathan. Now a single mother, Susan Chandler tries to concentrate on her reporter job and dismisses the idea of a ghost, but allows the school counselor, Kevin Harrison, to work with Jonathan. Now Tom's Ghost and Jonathan arrange for Susan to enter a radio show's dating game, and conclude that only Kevin, a widower and coach in Jonathan's former favorite sport, ice-hockey, will do as his stepdad, while she leans towards lawyer Greg Roberts.

I truly think that the actors playing Tom and Jonathan should have been switched. The film would of been better served. Besides you can easily see why she was so deeply in love with her husband if he was played by Michael Shanks. If Conan Graham played a school coach you would see why Susan would never "Notice Him". Michael Shanks however stops traffic.

I must admit that the main reason I was drawn to watch this film was it had my favorite actor, Michael Shanks, in it. I have never tired of his 10-year portrayal of Dr. Daniel Jackson (from the Stargate SG-1 series), because he makes every scene he is in memorable. In this film, as a school counselor, he showed convincing empathy for the family, and especially to the son, who was grieving for his father. As a counselor myself, I applaud how Shanks worked to draw Jonathan out using his interest in hockey, and by showing Jonathan that he cared by always being invitational. The direct eye contact Shanks used with every one, and his gentle, loving spirit made the ending no surprise. The only faults this movie had were writers who tried to tie everything up too nicely in the end. I would have also liked to have seen more interaction between Shanks and Jonathan's Mom, and less of the ghostly father. All in all, however, it was a good Christmas film that will not offend any one, and benefits by having good actors who care about their craft.

This Christmas movie is only made palatable by its three stars who all give good performances despite what is basically an incoherent, mish-mash of a plot. Jaime Newman creates a very realistic portrayal of a caring woman dealing with the unexpected death of her husband. She isn't perfect but she still tries hard. Michael Shanks is also very appealing as the school counselor with his own tragic past. While he went far beyond what school counselors would normally do, it still seemed believable. Finally, young Burkley Duffield also did a good job in making his character real without being obnoxious. (Why do kids in these movies have such an interest in their parent's love life anyway?) However, they are saddled by a plot that really makes no sense. The ghost of the husband who hangs around seems to have little to do with the plot. The radio contest is a complete plot contrivance. Frankly both ghost and contest could easily have been jettisoned and the focus of the movie on Newman's and Shanks' characters. Why not focus on these two attractive people who have to get beyond their personal tragedies in order to actually see what it is they need? And put it in the Christmas context if you feel the need to. Now that would have been a movie worth watching.

I watched this movie last night with my grandma and my mom. I had just stopped into their place to drop my mom off after Christmas shopping, and my grandma had already begun watching it. I saw a few minutes of it, found it to be so intriguing, that I stayed for the entire length of the movie. The actor who played Jonathan was a really great actor, especially for his age and experience. Very convincing. I hope to see him in more films in the future. The movie seemed really well made, and in my opinion directed really well. In most made-for-TV movies you find a lot of overacting and cheesy lines, I did not find that in this film. It's nice to see a quality Canadian made film, with mostly Canadian actors.

I recommend this movie to anyone who wants to sit down with family at Christmas time, and watch a good Christmas flick.

A slushy romance full of saccharin, but it's still good.

When Jonathan's Dad dies in a car accident, nobody believes that he can still see and talk to his spirit, as he tries to get his Mother to move on in her life, so that his Dad can move on into the spirit world.

It's not the standard romance and there is something about Michael Shanks that is fanciable, together that helps to make this an enjoyable festive watch, even if the kid is somewhat annoying.