📸: Hallmark Gold Crown
I give this movie 9 out of 10 vomits
🤮🤮🤮🤮🤮🤮🤮🤮🤮
🟢 Plot 🟢
Emily comes home to visit her parents, only to discover they are leaving for a trip of their own. While staying at their house for the holidays, Emily meets members of the community who want her to join in the neighborhood’s Christmas festivities.
🟢 The Stars 🟢
Lacey Chabert – Emily
Wes Brown – Jared
🟢 Non Spoiler Spew 🟢
What an entertaining and funny movie. I enjoyed every bit of this movie. I haven’t been this smiley in a Hallmark movie in a while. Yes, I typically enjoy Hallmark movies, but this one I thoroughly enjoyed. It was different than other movies.
A movie about people who live in a HOA was spot on! Luckily the HOA I live in is not THIS extreme, but I know many of them who are. Now, this is not the complete plot of the movie, but it is an aspect of it where people can truly relate to it. Especially if they currently live in a HOA or have lived in one. The rest of the writing was well thought out. There are movie references in here that are perfectly placed and had me laughing. Hallmark, to me, rarely quotes other movies. So it was a wonderful change.
I will say, this movie was fast paced, but I enjoyed that. The writing in this movie is great. I love that they have all the stuff that makes a Hallmark movie a Hallmark movie, but they also lean heavily into the comedy aspect. The comedy in this is a bit over the top, but I was here for it.
Lacey Chabert and Wes Brown have such a fun aura about them. They played off of each other well and really sold they were friends who could turn into something more. Their banter was totally believable and you could tell they were having a great time with each other. Lacey is one of my favorites, but in this movie Wes stood out the most. His playfulness was captured perfectly and you could see it in every scene. Every quirk he gave his character was a great choice and just little mannerisms made the character truly pop.
The rest of the cast was just as great as Lacey and Wes. They truly brought the residents of this cul-de-sac to life. Stephen Tobolowsky and Melissa Peterman deliver an amazing performance. I loved watching Melissa on Reba, so it was fun to see her in this. As soon as I saw her I immediately knew it was going to be a good time.
If you see this movie on the Hallmark Channel or streaming service please give it a watch. It is a good one!
🔴 Plot Summary Spoiler Spew 🔴
When Emily was young her family started the tradition of having a community Christmas festival.
In present day Emily goes to her and her boyfriends apartment to drop off his Christmas gifts. They have an argument and she tells him she has not been happy for a while. She tells him to move out because she put the security deposit down, but he refuses because he re did the lease when she was out of town so the apartment is only under his name. Emily tells her parents that her and her boyfriend broke up. Her parents are happy about that and tell her to just come home. The only thing Emily asks her parents is for them to not force Christmas activities.
I did not understand this. If you are truly unhappy in a relationship and break up instantly, then why did you get that person 6 Christmas gifts? The Dad in the background was so funny because he was SUPER excited about his daughters break up.
Before Emily gets home, her parents take down all of their Christmas decorations. Emily finally gets home and her parents break the news to her that they are moving to Florida. They are also going to Florida for the holidays. Her Dad tells her to decorate the house because of the HOA rules. Emily’s childhood friend, Jared (who is HOA President), stops by the house to give her a warning because there are no Christmas decorations up on her parents house.
It is messed up Emily’s parents didn’t tell her about their plans. She just went through a break up, so of course family is who she wants to be with.
Since Emily’s family are out for vacation, all of the HOA rules fall on Emily. Emily tells Jared she does not want to do any Christmas stuff and to just Christmas in her own way. Jared annoys her enough for her to say yes to attending an HOA meeting about Christmas festivities.
Even though I am not happy Emily’s parents left her alone for Christmas, I am happy that they are secretly forcing her to participate in Christmas activities.
Emily is watching a Christmas movie when Jared shows up and gives her another citation. For not abiding by the rules Emily is sentenced to community service for 2 hours and helps out her neighbor put up Christmas decorations. At the Christmas cookie contest Jaren approaches Emily again and Emily agrees she will start decorating, but needs help getting the decorations down. Once they get them down they help Emily decorate her parents house.
The part about the decorations made me laugh. I laughed because you see members of the community walking to Emily’s house but the did it all slow motion. It made me chuckle because everyone on this lane takes Christmas very seriously. With everyone helping out Emily decorate her parent’s house, I really don’t know why she was such a bahumbug this whole time.
After decorating Emily invited Jared in her house and Jared has a nutcracker and a Santa and with the nutcracker talking to Santa says, “Santa, I am your Father”. I laughed out oud at this. Hallmark putting in a Star Wars reference?! I am here for it.
Pamela helps Emily plan one of the Christmas activities. On the way back to Emily’s house, Jared gives Emily another citation because she has no lawn displays. Jared helps Emily put up old lawn displays that her Dad kept over the years. Emily’s best friend’s family stops by to hang out. The daughter asks Jared if he wants to be Emily’s boyfriend. They tell her no and she says a friend of hers at school said that about a boy, but then they were caught holding hands. She then asks if Emily and Jared have held hands. The husband tells Emily they encourage their daughter to “see something, say something”.
The husband was the best! His character was funny. I have seen this man before though. He has been on other Hallmark movies, but as the leading man. The husband tells Emily her front yard is on Clark Griswald level 😂 I chuckled pretty hard at this comment. I also chuckled at a comment Jared said earlier. Jared and Emily were reminiscing and Emily told him she remembers him wanting to be Santa and how does it feel that it’s not possible. Jared says, “I have studied all 3 Santa Claus movies. There is still a chance”. I LOVE that Christmas Vacation and The Santa Claus were both referenced (and Star Wars earlier).
Emily’s Christmas activity was snowman building and it was a success. Afterwards she heads over to Jared’s house for a White Elephant party. At the party, Jared’s mom asks Emily if she can take finding a Santa off his place because he is stressed. Emily finds one and tells Jared, but he is upset and she doesn’t know why. She realizes and goes to Jared’s house and asks him to be Santa. They go to a neighbors house who has a plethora of Santa outfits. Kevin and Jared bring on Emily to be part of the planning committee and hands her a walkie talkie.
ONE OF THE SANTA OUTFITS WAS A DARTH VADER ONE! My heart is beaming right now. Now. I do wish we would have seen it, but I am LIVING right now with all the movie references in this Hallmark movie.
Emily sees Pamela crying because her husband won’t be home in time for Christmas. He was away for work and with storms coming in his flight was cancelled.
At the Christmas Festival Emily’s best friend, kid (Nicole), and husband show up. They all take Nicole to go see Santa (Jared). Nicole tells him she knows he is not the real Santa and tells him she wants furniture for her Doll House and for an architect to take out Emily on a date. They then see Pamela run from being Santa’s helper because she sees her husband, Alan, made it even though there was a storm.
When Nicole says this, Kevin (the husband of the best friend) says that his daughter is an effective communicator 😂
Alan’s character made me irritated. If you make it home ahead of the storm the FIRST thing you do is go see your wife. NOT go and get popcorn first. . . Men. . .
Emily reveals to Jared that her ex boyfriend works for an airline and he was able to pull some strings and get Alan home in time for Christmas. Jared asks out Emily and she says yes.
It’s Christmas Day and Emily’s parents surprise her by cutting their trip to Florida early. As a Christmas present they gift her their house since they are moving to Florida.
Jared and Emily are alone and Emily writes him a citation asking him to kiss her.
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