Friends, today I have a miracle to report.
Something so extreme, so shocking, so miraculous happened that it’s almost unbelievable.
Are you ready?
Okay. Here it is:
Hallmark’s not hopeless.
I know. You’re probably falling out of your seat, fainting, or even gasping. How could it be? How could Hallmark, the King of failed films, the very image of cheesy romance, the hallmark if you will (sorry, I had to do it) of wretched storytelling and sad acting, not be hopeless?
Yet as of this last December it isn’t. There is now a small, faint glimmer of hope of better days to come in Hallmark land. Days devoid of poor names, attractive-yet-awful-actors, and predictable plots.
The miracle lies in one of their newer Christmas movies.
It’s a family tradition for my aunt, grandma, Mom and I to watch a Hallmark movie when my aunt and her husband and kids drive down for a visit, usually during the holidays. It’s always an entertaining thing to do as the girls of the family. Since I became a bit of an art critic, I really enjoy criticizing Hallmark movies. They’re just so easy to tear down. If you know what I mean, you know what I mean.
This particular visit we had planned to watch a Hallmark movie set in the Biltmore. My aunt loves the Biltmore and even visited it, so it seemed like the easy choice, but let’s just say I didn’t have high expectations. Why? Because it’s Hallmark.
I went to my grandma’s house a few hours before my Mom to hang out. Of course, we spent that time watching a Hallmark movie. This one was called Unleashing Mr. Darcy. Yes, it’s as awful as it sounds. Welcome to the saddest modern spin off of Pride & Prejudice ever. You get to watch cringy and awkward conversations with sudden P&P quotes thrown in that leave you thinking, “wait, what? That was actually good, but didn’t fit into the story-line anywhere!” (If you want to get an idea, you can watch the trailer here).
Anyway, Unleashing Mr. Darcy was entertaining torture. By that point I was not looking forward to A Biltmore Christmas, which we were scheduled to watch next.
It began and I wasn’t impressed. It seemed about the same as all the rest...a pretty girl with aspirations...but wait...
As the story continued…
I was pleasantly surprised.
No, I was more than that.
I found myself enjoying it.
There were no cringe conversations. No poorly done haters-to-lovers. In fact, it was a clever story that wasn’t that easy to predict. The characters were colorful. The main character had an arc. The dialogue was fantastic, being snappy and clever. And by the end, I had tears in my eyes!
I’m probably the first person who has ever cried at the end of a Hallmark movie.
I highly recommend this movie, and I’ll give it an 8/10. It’s a fun, sweet, back-in-time story that gives off a lot of the vibes I’m hoping to infuse into my next novel. I don’t know who wrote the script for this film, but it far outshone that of any other Hallmark movie I’ve ever seen. Trust me. I’ve seen many. If this is a hallmark of what the company’s films will look like in the future, I’m actually excited to watch more of them.
A Biltmore Christmas is by far the best Hallmark movie I’ve ever seen, and I’ll definitely be rewatching it. If you’re looking for a sweet, clean Christmas love story, I highly recommend this film.