When I Think of Christmas (2022 Hallmark)
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Cast: Niall Matter, Shenae Grimes-Beech, Beth Broderick
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Synopsis (via Hallmark)
Sara Thompson returns to her hometown to help her mother move and is surprised to find her ex-boyfriend Josh Hartman is back home. The two had once planned a life in music together, but Sara left to study law. The former flames slowly reconnect and try to heal wounds, both old and new. When Sara makes a surprising discovery, she and Josh forge a bold plan for the upcoming Christmas concert that will lead them all back to their musical roots and make this a holiday to remember.
Recap/Wine Thoughts
Sara is coming home for a holiday to help her mom sell the childhood home. Icon, Beth Broderick, plays Sara’s mother, Anna, who is excited about the move and her new condo! (Anna has been downsizing since her husband died.)
Sarah backs up some old things and finds a poster of her dad’s band. The family has a musical background and a baby grand piano. (That will probably not fit in the condo.) Once that is done, the mother and daughter head to the town for Christmas tree lighting.
At the Christmas tree lighting, the perpetual Hallmark town mayor, Daniel Bacon makes a big announcement. Sara is surprised to learn that famous musician and hometown hero Josh will produce the town’s Christmas concert. (Josh is Sara’s ex-boyfriend and is dating a new woman.)
The condo is cute, but Anna seems nervous about the move. Sara takes her mom to go look at the place, and they meet a handsome man, George, who offers to help Anna with anything she needs.
Sara and Josh are both last min Gingerbread House judges, and they can’t agree on anything. The two bicker and are generally nasty to one another. He blames her for bailing on a band showcase, Sara went to college instead, and they stopped speaking. I guess the breakup was pretty bad!
What worse are the people who come to the concert auditions! YIKES! Sara agrees to help Josh as an accompanist but fails to play the piano for any of the auditions shown. They do find a good singer named Lynette.
Later, in the town square, Josh and Sara walk around and talk about how he got roped into producing the concert. Josh asks her to help with rehearsals as well.
In rehearsals, Sara and Josh show twins how to harmonize, and they sound pretty good! Sara and Josh apologize for their past and decide to move forward, getting ready for the concert as friends. They both feel good working on music together, like old times.
Jonathan Bennett makes a random cameo as Anna’s neighbor. Anna continues to grow close to George, and they go to lunch. She shares that with Sara and Josh working on music, she may have pushed her daughter away from music too aggressively.
Sara is packing up some things and finds a box of tapes that belonged to her parents. Her mother sings lead vocals on a Christmas album, which blows Sara’s mind! She didn’t know her mother could sing. When Sara asks about how Anna and her father met, Anna explains that life on the road wasn’t easy. They were poor, and her musician husband wasn’t contributing. Then he ran his car off the road on tour. Anna saw Sara falling for a musician, Josh, in high school and didn’t want her to make the same mistakes.
At a Christmas party at the Mayor’s house, the guests demand music and chant for Sara and Josh to sing a duet. They gather around the piano and sing “O Come All Ye Faithful.” (With harmonies! It is probably the best signing on Hallmark in quite a while.)
Sara finds a song her parents were working on for the Christmas concert before he died and gets the idea to do the song with Josh. It will be a tribute to her parents and a reminder to her mother to never give up on her dreams.
Anna is inspired, begins to hum to herself, and even plays the piano alone at home. George walks in and spooks her while signing in a cute moment. He tells Anna that she has a beautiful voice and asks her on a date to the Christmas Concert.
Sara and Josh get REALLY turned on decorating a tree for the stage. They literally spin around and make out after finishing the decorations. Sara realizes she is getting caught up in the moment and tries to play it cool. It doesn’t work because Josh brings her back to her younger self. (They even visit the high school and eat gummy worms.)
Now it is time for the opportunities to come in and break up the budding romance! A text from the office comes in, and Sara is invited back to New York for an NYE party. Josh asks his agent to go and see the Christmas concert.
It is the night of the concert. The townspeople sing, and it is pretty mediocre. The final act is a surprise for everyone, especially Sara. Anna takes the stage and sings the song she wrote with her husband before he died. The song is sad, but everyone loves it.
Sara realizes that she doesn’t need to make parner at the law firm because she already has a partner, Josh. They kiss, and Josh says he is moving to New York with Sara. Yay?!
Side Note
This was a very traditional Hallmark movie but well done with good actors. The formula works when done well!
Minority Report: Mayor, Ellie, Christmas Tree Man Becca
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Christmas Trees represent the Christmas vibes.
I will use the following tags for those who want to know if they should watch or skip: Pour it Up (Would Recommend) or Put A Cork In It (Would Not Recommend).
Overall rating
Christmas Feels
🎄🎄🎄 (3 Christmas Trees)
Enjoyment Level: 🍷🍷🍷 (3 glasses of wine.)
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*Photo Credit: © 2022 Hallmark Crown Media
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