"The Secret Gift of Christmas" (2023)
Some reviewers compared this film to "A Gift-Wrapped Christmas" (2015), calling that one "the original." Well, there are not really many "original" romance stories, as any fan of this genre knows. In this case, Hallmark also released "The 12 Gifts of Christmas," another personal shopper film in 2015--so there you go. Rather than compare a new film to one's old favorite(s), I'd rather simply review the film at hand.
"The Secret Gifts of Christmas" stars the beautiful Meghan Ory with another well-known rom-com veteran, Christopher Russell. Both actors did a very good job in their respective roles. Ory plays a vivacious personal Christmas shopper hired by a construction boss (and single father) with no time to shop for his clients and employees at Christmas. I'm not going to reveal the film's entire story here. Suffice it to say that both Ory and Russell do a fine job in their respective roles. Some reviewers criticized Ory for her bright Christmasy wardrobe, but that simply struck me as appropriate for her role--and to match her character's enthusiastic personality.
The supporting cast here was quite good as well. Aria Publicover plays Ory's sister. They are very believable as sisters. In the only negative scene, which I classed as Hallmark relying on a bit of a tired trope, Publicover sets up her sister with an at-home date under the pretense of the fellow being a new shopping client, only to admit once it was too late to get out of it that the man sitting in their kitchen was a "date" for Ory's character. Of course he turns out to be a real dipsqueek. On the other hand, Publicover later helps Ory deal with some issues Ory has with their father, so the sisterly relationship works both ways. No one is perfect in every way, eh?
Another stand-out actor was Ellie Cluett, who plays Russell's young daughter--she and Ory develop a touching bond. And If there is a "bad guy" in the film it's played by Jenn Grant, who is the music teacher for Russell's daughter. Again, I'll leave you to see how that all plays out. I'll just say that the late-in-the-film "misunderstanding" between Ory and Russell, seemingly mandatory in all romance movies--especially from Hallmark--was somewhat poorly done in this one. As good as the rest of the film was, this surely could have been handled much better. But perhaps the filmmakers thought they were being subtle?
All in all however, the story here was quite good. The various characters all listened to one another, and listening is, of course, required for stories to work out as they should. The other aspects of the movie, scenery, etc., were nothing to complain about. I think if you watch this one, you might well enjoy it!
Some reviewers compared this film to "A Gift-Wrapped Christmas" (2015), calling that one "the original." Well, there are not really many "original" romance stories, as any fan of this genre knows. In this case, Hallmark also released "The 12 Gifts of Christmas," another personal shopper film in 2015--so there you go. Rather than compare a new film to one's old favorite(s), I'd rather simply review the film at hand.
"The Secret Gifts of Christmas" stars the beautiful Meghan Ory with another well-known rom-com veteran, Christopher Russell. Both actors did a very good job in their respective roles. Ory plays a vivacious personal Christmas shopper hired by a construction boss (and single father) with no time to shop for his clients and employees at Christmas. I'm not going to reveal the film's entire story here. Suffice it to say that both Ory and Russell do a fine job in their respective roles. Some reviewers criticized Ory for her bright Christmasy wardrobe, but that simply struck me as appropriate for her role--and to match her character's enthusiastic personality.
The supporting cast here was quite good as well. Aria Publicover plays Ory's sister. They are very believable as sisters. In the only negative scene, which I classed as Hallmark relying on a bit of a tired trope, Publicover sets up her sister with an at-home date under the pretense of the fellow being a new shopping client, only to admit once it was too late to get out of it that the man sitting in their kitchen was a "date" for Ory's character. Of course he turns out to be a real dipsqueek. On the other hand, Publicover later helps Ory deal with some issues Ory has with their father, so the sisterly relationship works both ways. No one is perfect in every way, eh?
Another stand-out actor was Ellie Cluett, who plays Russell's young daughter--she and Ory develop a touching bond. And If there is a "bad guy" in the film it's played by Jenn Grant, who is the music teacher for Russell's daughter. Again, I'll leave you to see how that all plays out. I'll just say that the late-in-the-film "misunderstanding" between Ory and Russell, seemingly mandatory in all romance movies--especially from Hallmark--was somewhat poorly done in this one. As good as the rest of the film was, this surely could have been handled much better. But perhaps the filmmakers thought they were being subtle?
All in all however, the story here was quite good. The various characters all listened to one another, and listening is, of course, required for stories to work out as they should. The other aspects of the movie, scenery, etc., were nothing to complain about. I think if you watch this one, you might well enjoy it!