Holiday for Heroes (2019 Hallmark Movies & Mysteries)
Cast: Melissa Claire Egan, Marc Blucas, Latarsha Rose
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Synopsis (via Hallmark)
A woman (Melissa Claire Egan) and a soldier (Marc Blucas) exchange letters for a year before their worlds collide.
Thoughts
Audrey makes coffee/owns a cafe, and sends it to her brother, Devin, who is serving in Afghanistan. The first Sergeant takes the coffee from her brother and writes her a letter. His name is Matt, and they correspond while he drinks coffee and fights in the war. They have been writing for a year, and Audrey is planning the Holiday for Heroes event to welcome back the men and women who served in the armed forces and are back on leave. One of those soldiers will be Matt. He writes Audrey a letter to let her know he will be in town, but the message gets lost in transit.
Audrey is so busy running her cafe and giving free coffee to soldiers that she brushes off the fact that she never heard back from Matt. She is thinking of expanding her store and even sets up a meeting with the town realtor, Luke.
Matt shows up at the cafe and surprises Audrey. She is caught off guard but happy to see him. Then Audrey and her co-worker Jade get calls that their loved ones are stuck and might not make it back in time for Christmas due to an extended deployment. This news ruins the romance that is blossoming between Matt and Audrey.
At the Christmas Tree Lighting, the Lady Mayor neglects to announce the Holiday for Heroes event. When Audrey asks her about it afterward, the Lady Mayor informs her that the event is canceled, and the donation matching for the toy drive is also not happening. (This mayor is RUDE!) Audrey can’t accept not having the event and jumps up on stage to rally the town to help her throw it without the government’s support. Luke offers to sponsor the event, and Matt mistakes this gesture for something more than friendship.
Audrey gets together a planning committee and invites Matt. He agrees to help and says thanks to everyone for sending care packages. They drink hot cocoa and make s’mores. Matt is enjoying his time in town and even helps coach the town hockey team. He has to decide whether to reenlist in the Army or move to Virginia to teach, as his lieutenant asks him to consider.
The lost letter arrives, and Audrey learns that Matt is only in town for three more days. She feels betrayed, and he admits he was afraid to tell her because he is having so much fun with her. Audrey offers to help him with his big decision and to make a pros-and-cons list. (Relax, Audrey.) They drink some delicious-looking white wine and then decorate a barn for the Holiday. (It is a family tradition) They slow dance to Christmas music. They promise to be pen pals still, no matter what he decides.
Later, Matt agrees to do some dancing at the Holiday for Heroes event. Then he proceeds to do the robot. (Marc Blucas has never been more adorable.) Matt talks with his friend and decides that he needs to stay in town and see what is between him and Audrey. He is disheartened when he stops by the cafe and sees some flowers left for Audrey by Luke. Speaking of Luke, Audrey is meeting with him about renting the vacant lot next to the cafe. She declines his offer due to money issues, and he caresses her shoulder in a moment of understanding. Matt walks in and sees the caress, mistaking it for a classic lover’s shoulder pat.
Matt and Audrey talk through the misunderstanding and realize they like each other. They start over, and he tells her he is happy to have someone to come home to and see. Matt gives her Christmas angel ornaments because she is his angel. He tells her he will stay in town to give their relationship a chance.
The event loses its venue because, I guess, Audrey lives in the most heartless town ever. Her brother convinces her to have the Holiday for Heroes in the family barn.
At the barn, the party is a huge success. Matt makes a beautiful speech thanking Audrey and her hard work. The townsfolk get together to raise money to expand the cafe and cover the first year’s rent. The march of the toy soldiers happens. (Including Marc Blucas!) Audrey’s brother and Jade’s husband are also back home. They bring in the whole brigade of soldiers because what is a Holiday for Heroes without the heroes!
Matt and Audrey slow dance and kiss. End of the movie!
Side Note
Minority Report: Jade (Audrey’s co-worker/friend) and her son, Luke (Realiste agent), Carlos, and his daughter Rosa. Soldiers, school principal. Santa! (I’m surprised Hallmark agreed to this.) This movie was the most POC I’ve seen in a Hallmark movie this year so far.
Marc Blucas is pushing 50, and he can still get it. The man is super cute.
A woman named Clare Niederpruem directed the movie. I liked her vision for this movie.
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Overall rating: Pour it up
🎄🎄🎄🎄 (4 Christmas Trees)
🍷🍷 (2 glasses of wine required)
*Photo Credit: © 2019 Crown Media United States, LLC
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What is the quilt pattern of the red & white quilt hanging on the barn wall in this movie.