User reviews

Though predictable and unoriginal, 'Christmas at Castle Hart' is entertaining nonetheless with some beautiful Irish scenery and landscapes, appealing performances, and some lovely Irish dancing and Christmas celebration. At the center of our story is Brooke (played by Lacey Chabert), a thirty-something divorcee who, along with her sister Margo (played by Ali Hardiman), were recently fired from their (waitressing) jobs with one of the most sought after event planners. Margo thinks they should start their own event planning business, but first, what about a trip to Ireland for Christmas to search for their father's Irish roots? They're off. While at an Irish pub, they meet Aiden Hart (played by Stuart Townsend), who offers to give them a personal tour of Castle Hart. While there, they are mistaken for (or rather pose as) the elite event planner they used to work for and are hired to plan a Christmas party at the castle hosted by the Duchess of Abercorn (played by Kate O'Toole). The catch is, they only have 12 days to plan this grand Christmas event. All in all, it is an entertaining story. The writers do a good job of developing the dialogue between the sisters, which made me chuckle a few times. Indeed, the (light) humor is entertaining throughout the movie. I especially like the 'the partridge is still in the pear tree' scene. It made me chuckle. The romance and dialogue between Brooke and Aiden were pretty good, a bit of a soft touch in this one, which I felt worked fine on-screen. The family roots element of the story gets lost a bit in the narrative. However, it does remerge with a twist in a touching scene at the end. Many reviewers took issue with the morality of the movie's message. Of course, I understand the points made regarding the nature of lying and deception in the film. However, if I am being honest, I didn't think much of it while watching the movie. That is, it did not take anything away from my viewing experience. Given that deception/mistaken identity is a very popular plot device used by writers in this genre of film, maybe I have become immune to it and its implications. Or maybe, I don't take Hallmark movies too seriously. It's probably a bit of both. The acting overall was strong. Chabert, a Hallmark regular, had her usual warm performance. Townsend, a well-known Irish actor, was also convincing in his role as Aiden, the Earl of Glaslough. The two had pretty good chemistry as well, which kept me engaged with the story. Hardiman does a good job of portraying the corky, goofy sister Margo. And I can't forget the no-nonsense performance by O'Toole. Well done. From the snow-covered Irish countryside, along with the beautifully decorated castle, to traditional Irish dance and song, the film has a pleasing Christmas feel to it, which most will enjoy. If you are looking for something warm and fun with a touch of Irish holiday cheer, 'Christmas at Castle Hart' might be the Christmas rom-com for you.

5/10 - I love a Lacey Chabert Christmas movie as much (or even more) as the next person, but I felt like her charm was a bit buried in this rather boring 2021 Hallmark Channel offering.

This 2021 Hallmark Christmas movie actually have me sort of conflicted.

On one hand, the movie was actually rather enjoyable and proved to be more than the usual Hallmark Christmas cheese of over-the-top romance. Sure, the movie had romance in it as well, but the romance didn't feel overshadowing for the storyline and the rest of the movie.

Then on the other hand, the storyline sort of indicates that lying through your teeth and identity theft is something that is okay to do, and you won't even get a slap on the wrist for doing so. On that account then writers Bonnie Fairweather, Paul Campbell and Rick Garman sort of dropped the ball.

But if you can look past the blatant disregard for the identity theft and the criminal implications that leads to, then the storyline told in "Christmas at Castle Hart" was actually entertaining and enjoyable. And director Stefan Scaini did manage to deliver a wholesome Christmas movie.

There is a good cast ensemble in this movie, with the likes of Lacey Chabert and Stuart Townsend in the lead roles. They carried the movie quite well, and definitely had good on-screen chemistry.

If you enjoy Christmas movies, then you certainly should give "Christmas at Castle Hart" a chance, provided you get the chance to watch it. I was genuinely entertained by this movie.

My rating of "Christmas at Castle Hart" lands on a six out of ten stars.

Hallmark since the pandemic especially has really changed in production quality,why surprised one of the nice things can say overall on this movie.. It was actually in Ireland & not Canada,pretending it was elsewhere.

Not worth seeing again,unlike older made productions.

I thought this was a great movie. Lacey Charbet is one of my favorites and I watch her every Christmas. The Hallmark Movies are very predictable but they brighten the Christmas holidays.

Traditional Hallmark plot lines - except the "silly sister" character tended to get in the way. I am disappointed that Hallmark producers couldn't find a less goofy actress. She was a distraction to the flow of the film. Here's to returning to "what works" in the future.

This movie not only worked on every level, it is heartbreaking since Lacey's sister in real life passed away a few days before this came out. She said how much this movie reminded her of her sister. Another brilliant performance from Lacey. Watch it, you will love it! My only complaint is the one who played her sister didn't work for me. A little too silly.

I've been waiting to watch this movie because I love Stuart Townsend. They could have done so much more with this movie. Why go all the way to Ireland and do the same old Christmas movie? Girl meets boy, falls for him, he falls for her and she lies to him about who she really is and he doesn't want anything to do with her. Of course it ends happily ever after but we've seen this one before. I gave this 8 stars for Stuart Townsend and the beautiful shots of Ireland.

For the last few years Lacey Chabert has done Hallmark Movies that were filled on location. It seems like she is using it as a paid vacation. She seemed to be phoning this one in. She didn't have a lot of chemistry with her co-star, and the sister character was annoying. She also didn't look anything like Lacey.

Don't beat me up on this. The story wasn't interesting. The script was terrible. The CGI scenes were evident. The actors slept walked through the filming. I actually fell asleep watching this.

Two New York sisters get fired as catering waitresses and end up frivolously spending their deceased father's rainy day fund to visit Ireland to maybe find their long lost relatives...the O'Rileys.

While in Ireland the local Earl and his castle are in trouble and in desperate need of a caterer...the one sister lies saying they are their world famous old boss and are hired instantly! Then they must put on a fabulous Christmas party in two weeks! This requires every trick they can come up with...meanwhile the local Earl is falling hard.

Two Irish proverbs: May the most you wish for this Christmas be the least you get Two people shorten the road

"She did it not to spite us, but to help us and if that doesn't speak of character?"-Siobhan.

Ugh hallmark Thai has been done before but this time it's not set in America. I give props to the actors doing there best for they they have. It's slow and boring tho not much happens tho it's better then some.

I have to say that I don't understand why everyone had so much difficulty with the sister when I read the reviews! I thought she was absolutely charming and actually looked her up on IMDb to see what else I could see her in. Unfortunately, she hasn't done anything that I can watch in this country. But I thought she was quirky and adorable and not just the typical Hallmark dull side kick. Usually, a secondary character simply highlights the lead and doesn't have much going on. I really did think that she was the best part of this and made me want to keep watching. I thought it was a storyline that kept you watching because I really wanted to see how they were going to pull the whole thing off! No spoilers here, but I truly felt uplifted at the end. I just wish every Hallmark movie didn't end with a kiss and then abruptly have the credits roll. Every. Single. Movie. Why can't they show a little bit more of what happens between the characters?

Sisters hit bottom in NYC and head out to Ireland to find lost family. Innocent mixups and a little fraud and voila, a Hallmark movie is born. The leads Lacey Chabert and Stuart Townsend are good but the real reason to watch is Ali Hardiman as the sister and Kate O'Toole as the Duchess steal the show. Overall a nice getaway.

I wish they would have made the sisters smarter and more honest, or just less of an embarrassment. The CGI effects were awful to the point of distraction. The storyline wasn't worth sticking around for.

A little more subtlety and a lot more charm would have made for a more watchable movie. Sadly, I couldn't make it to the end of this one.

One of this years best offerings by Hallmark. Not just a Christmas romance but a touching and at times very funny look at sibling relationships. Lacey Chabert & Stuart Townsend are very good together and sister relationship between Lacey Chabert & Ali Hardiman is well crafted and believable. All set against the magical splendor of Ireland. A very sweet and entertaining Christmas film.

The basic virtue of film remains the rediscover of Stuart Townsend and the charm of Kate O' Toole. In some measure, the castle, without ornaments, represents a good point.

But the big - big problem remains the presence in main roles of Ali Hardiman and Lacey Chabert. And the terrible unrealism of story, near a fake - fake end.

But, sure, it is only a Hallmark. The recipe of a castle and Americans, routs and European aristocracy is not new but in this case just not inspired used. Because wrong seems the basic word to define this film , the story, and the Irish landscapes are nice but not enough for compensate the holes and the errors.

In short, a film who you desire to like. But, real bad luck !

I am surprised by the number of bad reviews here. This is one of my favourite Hallmark movies.

The things about Hallmark movies (and romantic movies in general) is that apart from the obvious "man and woman fall in love" plot, they need a subplot to drive the story alojng. Too many Hallmark movies have a really lame subplot like "organising a Christmas play" or "renovate an old hotel". There's no suspense, so no interest, at least not from me.

But Christmas at Castle Hart has a couple of interesting subplots. The main one is that the main character has to pretend she is a major events planner. This leads to a lot of awkward and funny situations. We know she will get found out eventually, but we don't know how. That adds tension and interest. Yes it's unrealistic, but who cares, it's a movie.

Then there are a few other subplots: will they find any relatives of their father? Will the brother and sister who own the castle resolve their differences? We know what the final answer will be, but the way it all pans out makes for a very happy ending. And isn't that what we want when we watch a Hallmark movie?

And as for the bad CGI effects (like horse riding through the snow and leaving no footprints) - ah well, it just adds to the dorky charm.

I created an account just to write this review.

What a disappointing movie. Not only is the sister beyond obnoxious and the entire plot line entirely immature, but can we talk about the AWFUL cgi effects that completely ruin the entire landscape of gorgeous Ireland? Hallmark did something amazing and filmed at a beautiful location but completely ruined it with all the fake snow, decorations, and effects. So sad and so disappointing.