User reviews

If you are avoiding this movie because you dislike the Duff sisters, fear not. Even though Haley Duff gets top billing, she doesn't get more than about 10 minutes of screen time, for much of which she's in the background, and maybe five lines of dialogue.

This movie is only slightly more improbable than a lot of seasonal romantic comedies. The trope of bringing an imposter as your date to a a family event is not really grounded in reality anyway, so if you're willing to suspend disbelief that far, it's a nice enough diversion for a couple of hours around Thanksgiving.

The cast is reasonably solid, if under-exercised, with some halfway decent comedy chops available (but not accessed) in Shelley Long and Sam McMurray. The two leads are cute and sad by turns, mostly at appropriate moments, and sing well together for one nice scene. Other supporting characters... well, they look their parts and speak their lines but don't expect to find gold in their emotional range.

The script and performances didn't quite gel, leaving plenty of avenues for both comedy and heart under-utilized. Real dramatic situations were barely nodded at in passing while the most potentially humorous moments were signalled more by the characters' laughter than by any similar urge in the audience.

If you combined 'The Family Stone' (where only Sarah Jessica Parker is lacking the necessary depth of character) with 'My Best Friend's Wedding' (where everything is deliberately shallow and the moments of heart stand out better for it), and made a college film class movie, this is about what you'd get.

This was like reading a good G rated romance novel, but not too hokey. I liked how they did not make the characters all super cliché and cookie cutter. It was nice to see Shelly Long again in something, and I was not bored at all. Bonnie Somerville was good. She is one of those actors you keep trying to think what you have seen them in before. I really liked Jordon Bridges as the romance interest, and I did not realize until I was writing this review he is the brother on Rizzoli & Isles, a show that I watch. Wow. Totally did not but that together. They should make him more like the character he played in this movie. I would watch this movie again while wrapping presents to get in the mood for Christmas. I rarely watch a movie twice. Lighthearted and sweet fare.

Hillary (Bonnie Somerville) is finally looking forward to a Thanksgiving dinner at her demanding mother Meredith's house (Shelley Long). You see, this thirty something, newspaper writer has finally found a great catch named Jason to bring home! Jason is an up and coming attorney, good-looking, and smart; Meredith should be happy. Yet, a couple of days before the occasion, Jason dumps Hillary! He has been offered a promotion in Pittsburgh, away from the East Coast where her family lives, and she has been dragging her feet about a move. Then, too, with Hillary talking about children while Jason is trying to concentrate on torts, the break-up seems inevitable. But, Holy Fiancé, Batman, what will Hill tell Mom? She won't! With a friend's help, Hillary HIRES an actor, David (Jordan Bridges) to play Jason's role, with the promise of airline tickets Hill won in a contest. Naturally, David has to cram to get the details right, for his last job was being a costumed cell phone! Yet, when they make it to Meredith's house, all goes initially well. David/Jason charms Meredith and gets along well with Dad and Hill's sisters (one is Hayley Duff). But, small quirks do burst forth. David and Hill never seem too "kissy kissy", causing some concern, and David makes a few small mistakes in his new role. To complicate things even more, the REAL Jason comes calling on the day of the actual holiday. What a fine mess you've got us into, Hill! This is an engaging romantic comedy that genre fans will like. Yes, its a tried and true plot but its still great fun. Somerville, Bridges and Long make a great trio, while the supporting actors are nice as well. The production also looks good, with nice sets, costumes, and art direction, along with a steady pace of direction. Nuf said, for fans, so if you are on of those, hustle to the place where you grab DVDs.

If you look past the ridiculously stupid concept that only Hollywood could come up with, and past the outrageous-ness of the whole thing, it's not too bad of a movie.

Shelley Long gave a really believable performance as the mother. When an actor is able to make you feel something (even if that feeling is intense irritability and frustration) they've done their job.

The chemistry between Jordan Bridges and Bonnie Somerville is also quite believable. So much so I wish that they were a real couple!

Overall, the plot, though sometimes slow, is very light and fun and even touching in some parts.

I've been watching all the Hallmark and Lifetime holiday movies that I can this year. I can't believe I sat through the entire two hours of this one.

The beginning showed promise but it went down from there. The story did not work. It just didn't flow. There wasn't a feeling of connection between the characters as they were just stiff. The conclusion was rushed.

I was happy to see Shelley Long and Sam McMurray but sad if this is the only work they can find. Jordan Bridges' character is the only one that is interesting.

There are two similar movies that I would recommend over this one. One is 'Holiday in Handcuffs' with Melissa Joan Hart and Mario Lopez. 'My Fake Fiancé' with Melissa Joan Hart and Joseph (Joey) Lawrence is another.

I'm gonna give this one 9 stars. This is a general feel good romance movie. Some people may find it cheesy. And, OK, so it may be predictable like several reviews have mentioned but if you want a romance movie that leaves your heart feeling lighter and happier at the end, then this is it. I loved this movie. Something about it reminds me of my own relationship with my spouse maybe because sometimes the person you think you are supposed to be with is not the person you would be happiest with. And the somewhat ordinary person causes you to be happier than you would have ever guessed. I was having kind of a lousy day and this movie cheered me up.

I watch many of the seasonal Hallmark movies. Since they are all pretty predictable, good acting is what I need to make me happy. The actor/actresses in this light movie were excellent. Good casting. I am now a fan of Bonnie Somerville, an really good actress. Actually her acting is so real she doesn't seem to be acting. I would try to watch her in other futures movies. So glad Shelley Long played her role. She looked so much better than in Modern Family. The movie needed some script tweaking but I left feeling good, so I will forgive that. Hey, it is a typical Hallmark movie (with very good actors). When I say typical Hallmark movie I mean: very similar plots; different setting; different actors. :-)

7.4 stars.

I've been watching nothing but Hallmark the past 5 weeks and of all the 130+ Christmas movies I've seen, this one is an anomaly. The formula is the same, but with a different feel. I am of the opinion that the whole production, and process, the very essence of this movie is a couple of deviations from the norm. This is refreshing, enjoyable, and original. I really felt the actors, all of them meshed nicely (even the Duff). The leads are both quite adorable, he's very suave, but likable and down-to-earth and the piano and singing scenes were my favorite. She has a very charismatic feel to her, far above the mainstream Hallmark in my opinion.

My ex-wife and I had that same connection, we were both in choirs growing up. I played the guitar, and a bit of piano, she sang like a bird. It's a magical thing what music can do for a relationship. Alas it did not save my marriage, but it helped us stay best friends for many years, and we collaborated with various bands and musical programs even after our divorce. You see, music is a wonderful gift.

This is quite an endearing movie, despite the various issues with the flow, lighting, and sound, which all seemed intermittently off. The script was well written, the chemistry was good, however the romance was a bit awkward, sometimes convincing, sometimes not.

I thought the movie was going to be just a sunday cheesy movie, but it is not cheesy at all! It's just a bad acting copy paste script movie! It has so many scenes ripped off from blockbusters. Don't waste your time and take 5 more minutes and search for a better option! You can always google Darjeeling Limited!

I'm not sure. I cant point it but there's something about this movie that makes me happy. Okay, i had so many choices to watch for the holidays and this wasnt the top. Well, i gave it a try and it didnt disappoint me. Actors were great! Stroryline- light, straight and happy. Not the best but still worth watching.

When I heard the concept it I remembered me of a blockbuster film that came out several years before this one that did very well...but this one, with the weird set up, the overly judgmental mother and lack luster acting...

This is becoming a staple of Hallmark films the past 5 years or so. For every good film there's like 10 bad ones, and this one was bad.

In the end it wasn't even worth using as background noise because every time I would hope the scene I wanted was gonna get better...it got worse. Only ONE good scene in the whole film, took near the end of the film... wasn't worth it.

Late in the year, Hollywood and the major TV networks begin cranking out movies for the holiday season. But well before the end of the last century, all the Christmas plots imaginable had been done. Some real Christmas movies - but not very many, have been made since the late 20th century. They have themes of charity, giving, family reunions, love, reconciliations, and yes, sometimes romance. But by and large, the output that is labeled Christmas or holiday films in the 21st century is no more than comedy-romance or even drama that happens around the holidays.

Such is this 2011 Hallmark channel film, "Holiday Engagement." It takes place around Thanksgiving and that makes it a holiday film. Just about every imaginable plot has been made into one of these films, which makes them commonplace. So, the only thing that sets one off usually is the characters as played by the cast.

This film has some fine, better than normal performances by three of the cast. But it also has just enough of a different twist in the plot to hold one's interest. The lead, Hillary Burns (played by Bonnie Somerville) gets dumped by her fiancé just before going home for Thanksgiving. She hires an actor to play his part, rather than disappoint her mother. There's much more at play here in the family, and this is far out. But the leading cast make it work as a gentle comedy romance and mild family drama.

Hillary's role is OK - her crying and sad scenes with her mother and before that are not very realistic. The six stars for this film are due mostly to her parents, with some extra credit for her hired fiancé. Shelley Long is very good as Hillary's mother, Meredith Burns; and Sam McMurray is very good as her father, Roy Burns. Finally, Jordan Bridges is very good as David, the actor whom she hires to stand in as her fiancé. He is the son of Beau Bridges and grandson of Lloyd Bridges.

Of course, everyone knows where this story will go right away. As with all such the films, the fun (or lack thereof) is in the details of how the story gets to the end. This one is watchable but not special to run out and buy.

The funniest line in the movie happens after Roy's effort to deep fat fry the turkey fails. The outdoor cooker he has rigged ejects the turkey. So, the family heads for a Mexican restaurant for Thanksgiving dinner. Meredith hands her water glass to the waiter and says, "Oh, um, I asked for seltzer. This looks like tap water with cheese floating in it."

19 November 2017. Somehow Holiday Engagement manages to avoid the blatant stereotypical, over the top performances of the typical romance comedies. Instead, the script allows the actors to make dumb fools of themselves in a more authentic way, putting themselves in situations that oftentimes, real people can laugh at afterwards. Like Sandra Bullock in The Proposal (2009), the dialogue is witty and intelligent, the storyline is consistent and thoughtfully believable. This a funny and enjoyable movie experience that is a notch above most Christmas romance comedies.

This is definitely not one of the worst cheesy Christmas movies I've seen, nor the best. The characters start out weak, but I think as the movie goes on the characters get better. The two leads, Hillary and David grow to have very nice chemistry. There are a few cute scenes with the two of them. Some of the supportive characters are pretty bad and annoying. What really bugged me throughout the movie was the lighting. Everyone's faves are tinted green. At times I wondered if someone got punched in the face or maybe had terrible concealer on. All in all it wasn't the worst.

I actually created an account just to say this: Save yourself from the physical pain you'll experience after siting through this movie!

This was so painful and aweful to watch.

The premise was good. But the main actress, she is terrible, and that raspy smoker voice.. gag. Bonnie Somerville just can't act The mom's acting, was so overly comical and terrible. I couldn't decide which was worse. The whole rich parents, so tiresome. We need more Holiday movies with REAL people. This is so much "rich people problems" it's irritating.