Une rencontre pour Noël

This is a very sweet film. Better than the average Hallmark film. What this is about is 2 adults who are single for different reasons. One lost her husband the other was dumped. Both are afraid of getting hurt. What is nice about this film is that both characters are nice decent people that enjoy the holidays but both find themselves alone. If your an adult you know its hard to be alone at Christmas.

In this film Kathy owns "Dream Cycle". It was her husbands business and she is trying to keep it open during a downturn in the economy. He has just passed away but she fears if she loses the store it would be like losing her husband all over again

On the same block is Tim. A great guy who own a Christmas tree lot. He is a level headed man who loves Christmas and family. He was dumped by his girlfriend some time ago and is very afraid of being hurt again.

When Kathy & Tom meet they like each other but each is afraid of making a move. They don't want to be hurt and both are afraid of being rejected. Each one likes the other but both are making excuses for not moving forward.

If you are a shy adult you will "Understand" both of these people. For shy people it is a major fear of being rejected. Man or Woman, nobody wants to be hurt.

The film is not ground breaking. However it is well made. Look for it on the Hallmark Channel. It is one of the best. You will love it!

BEWARE OF BOGUS REVIEWS. SOME REVIEWERS HAVE ONLY REVIEWED ONE FILM. THAT TELLS ME THEY WERE INVOLVED WITH THE PRODUCTION. I HAVE REVIEWED OVER 200 Christmas MOVIES. I HAVE NO AGENDA. I AM FARE ABOUT THESE FILMS.

Put "The Christmas Ornament" on your must watch list! In this film a recently young widowed is facing her first Christmas without her husband. Cameron Mathison plays a man who owns a Christmas Tree lot and the two of course fall in love.

What is believable about this film is that is shows no matter how old you are you never lose the nervousness you have when you "Like someone" and hope they like you. What was perfect about this was the two leads do not start off as adversary's. I love the fact that each one is a "Little Gun Shy" and is afraid of being hurt.

Most adults over 30 will "fully understand" and can relate to both of these people. My favorite moment in the film happens when they turn on the Snow Machine on the Christmas Tree lot. Try not to smile when you hear the man say "I Love Christmas". It is a magical moment

The Christmas Ornament is a Hallmark made-for-TV Christmas-themed movie - sentimental and largely predictable. In 2013, Hallmark seems to be making a push to produce better quality movies, and they are having some success. The Christmas Ornament has better dialog, acting and cinematography than the usual Hallmark fare and even had a small plot twist in the end that my wife and I did not see coming!

This film is almost completely a two actor movie. A haggard looking Kellie Martin plays Kathy, a recently widowed woman (without children) who isn't celebrating the Christmas season because she is still grieving for her dead husband. She meets Tim, played by Cameron Mathison,who is a successful and gorgeous businessman who loves Christmas and sells Christmas trees. However, the film rises above this incredibly cheesy premise. Kellie Martin delivers a fine acting performance and is believable as a struggling, sad woman who slowly allows herself to stumble up on happiness. I enjoyed this movie and will enjoy watching it again.

So many things to like about this understated holiday movie:

1. It's sweet without being sappy, a real relief to see a Hallmark holiday romance where the story is not over the top mushy and crowded with cliché.

2. the actors look and dress like real people, and their houses are closer to normal family homes than Hollywood-scale sets. A little crowded, a little dusty, with short sight-lines.

3. Kellie Martin (who plays Kathy, the widow running her late husband's dream shop) has a face that's lived a life and felt sorrow. She's not touched up to look like a typical young TV widow who has never actually wept or frowned (except beautifully). She moves flawlessly between strong and vulnerable, sadness and humour, tidy and a bit of a mess. She looks and sounds REAL.

4. Cameron Mathison as Tim is cute, in a harmlessly rugged kind of way. A former soap opera actor, he is muted and believable in his character and, unlike so many romantic-movie leads, marked but not terribly traumatized by his past life experiences. He doesn't need to be redeemed through the love of a good woman. There's a bit of believable tension and confusion, both internal and (as expected) external, about an old love affair. He behaves like a nice man, someone you would want to meet or have as a neighbour.

5. The secondary characters seem like real people with their own lives, not the story kind who live their whole lives in service of their cooler or more troubled friend. They never distract from the simple, touching story at the heart of the movie. Jewel Staite is great as Kathy's best friend Jenna, warm and cute and concerned, but clearly has her own life. There's good, credible friend-chemistry between the two, a level of comfort and non-competition that many women wish for and never find.

6. It made me want to go skating again (and eat Christmas cookies, but that I do anyway).

Anyway, without being a great classic in the making, this is a very nice way to spend an evening in the holiday TV season, with ordinary people working through ordinary situations. I know that sounds dull, but if you're tired of the kitcsch and hype of the usual TV fare, this is a nice change of pace that maintains the seasonal glow.

Good story and likable characters. Tim was good for Kathy and they had definite chemistry which helps in any Hallmark movie. This is one of my go to movies of the season. I pretty much like Kelli Martin in anything I've seen her in. Cameron Mathison was to new to me but I'd watch him again. I hope to see them again together in another movie.