Un Noël pour deux : Coup de foudre en ville

Snow doesn't look as real as other Hallmark Channel movies. Potato "snow" not working. Projector is the mainstay of this movie, not the acting. I'd give it a 1 star...but this is a typical (and I mean VERY typical) B rated Hallmark Channel movie with even lower rated actors/actresses.

So, so dull.

Turns out this is part of a series that also includes 'Sister Swap: A Hometown Holiday', which I somehow missed when doing my quick research (checking for sequels etc.) before selecting a movie. Apparently, though, it's a split perspective type of thing, in that this tells one sister's perspective and that other one shows the other sister's story. Intriguing, something that 'Sister Swap: Christmas in the City' is not.

I found the story and its characters to be too nice, to the point it becomes overbearing. And I say that as someone who is used to the cheesiness and all that stuff from these sorta flicks, but even for me this felt too much. Ashley Williams' Meg is particularly jarring.

My only plus point for this 2021 release is the bits of the plot involving David L. King's Frank and Rhonda Morman's Nina. That actually held some weight to it to be fair, unfortunately it does wrap up in the typical Hallmark fashion (as expected) but even so I appreciated a less sugary, if too minimally shown, piece of storytelling.

Really enjoyed this movie, the production design and the feeling of the holidays! What confuse me is why they are using footage from the last movie? Thought that maybe I was having some kind of memory challenges!!

This one fell flat primarily because I already knew the plot from watching the companion movie a week ago. There were a few elements added that we were not aware of and some more details, but they were not enough to save this for me. The other reason was because I am just so tired of Ashley Williams. She was like a manic-depressive without the depressive. I really wanted the depressive. A few times she stopped smiling and bouncing off the walls but the respite didn't last long enough.

6/10 - this concept of two connected movies/storylines in a single year is certainly a first for Hallmark is certainly new for them, but I would recommend watching it a little bit apart (as it was aired) since the two become a little redundant if double featured.