Christmas Scavenger Hunt (2019 TV Movie) User Reviews

Interesting idea

[Jackbv123 · 6/10 · 15 November 2019]

The premise of the scavenger hunt is slightly unusual. There is also a hint of random-acts-of-kindness. This latter is the one endearing thing about this movie and there are a few tender moments as a result.

For me, on the down side, there were too many tropes that I'm tired of. Save the town ______ (fill in the blank). If you do what you are assigned to you will get a promotion. Old flames and why-did-you-leave-me. Matchmaking father (or other family and friends). Workaholic current boyfriend. Christmas traditions ticked off like a list (in this case a scavenger hunt list). But all these things are just building blocks for the story, even if most of them are building blocks I'm not thrilled by.

The story was OK, but it didn't really have any highs or lows other than the random acts of kindness. I knew very early on exactly how the major conflict would be resolved, and of course the general course of the story was as predictable as usual in these movies.

This is a Christmas romance movie, so the real question is how appealing are the two potential lovers? By themselves, both Kim Shaw and Kevin McGarry do a fine job and their characters are certainly kind and generous. And the movie gave them plenty of screen time together. The problem is that their time together just didn't grab my enthusiasm. They were worked well together, but I didn't really care if they stayed together.

Even though I didn't think this was a great movie, there was nothing really wrong with it and many viewers, especially Hallmark Christmas enthusiasts, may very well love it.

Just OK...

[dsb-02142 · 6/10 · 4 November 2019]

Not one of hallmarks best Christmas movies. Kevin was good but no chemistry with the actress.Enjoy Tom Arnold character also. Storyline just not very interesting - I felt it dragged

It's fine

[topdog-58733 · 7/10 · 30 November 2020]

I randomly watch a hallmark movie. I thought the leads were fine, the premise interesting, and happy to see there was actually snow, not filmed in June with fake snow. Not sure why there were haters on this.

Typical Hallmark movie

[foreveramom · 6/10 · 5 November 2019]

Wasn't too bad. Same old plot. Tom Arnold sounded like he had a cold throughout which is a distraction.

Thrust Together

[glanners-70803 · 6/10 · 3 January 2021]

Property developer Belinda (Kim Shaw) heads back to her home town to meet her sister's fiancé and to finalise a deal to redevelop a local landmark. Whilst staying with her dad Carl (Tom Arnold) she reluctantly reconnects with ex-boyfriend Dustin (Kevin McGarry). They are not-accidently thrust together to team-up for the town's traditional Christmas Scavenger Hunt. Despite the film's very simple production and budget, the cast give their all, and there's some nice natural chemistry between the leads.

Christmas Scavenger Hunt

[JoBloTheMovieCritic · 6/10 · 14 November 2019]

6/10 - I liked the unique plot points of this Hallmark original

Bah Humbug Bad

[parksidedrive · 2/10 · 4 November 2019]

As a person that really enjoys Hallmark movies, I was so disappointed by this borefest. Absolutely no chemistry between the leads. Shaw spoke in monotones and added smirks and frowns for insight into the role. Kevin McGarrity does pop on the screen. It is a shame he had nothing (script) and no one (lead actress) to work with.

I will point out one good part of the movie-the clues to the scavenger hunt.

Unfortunately, I would not recommend wasting your time with this movie. Watching may be hazardous to maintaining your Holiday Spirit.

Exceptional Kindness not Found in Other Christmas Movies

[rosemariesarnecky · 10/10 · 14 September 2020]

Excelllent chemistry between the 2 leads. Low drama but the KINDNESS and GOODNESS is REFRESHING. Plot moves quickly for 90 minutes. Packed storyline. Worth watching more than once.

I will hunt you down, I will find you and I will make you enjoy Christmas!

[adamjohns-42575 · 6/10 · 25 January 2021]

Although I had issues with both of the leads and I will always have issues with Tom Arnold, I actually liked the idea of this film and the story was different enough to keep me interested.

Kevin McGarry is obviously hot, but I feel that it's also obvious that he knows it and it comes across in his character as it did in 'Hometown Christmas'. She looked like a seventies school girl and although she's actually a year older than him, I thought she was like, what, 12 or something? And Tom quite clearly had a cold during the making of this film and it really didn't help his already terrible acting abilities or lack thereof.

So it was a surprise that I enjoyed it as much as I did. It's certainly not the best of the bunch, but it has that Christmas feel to it and provides a good moral message throughout.

Really bad casting...

[dlc1952 · 2/10 · 4 November 2019]

Hate to say this...as a Hallmark Movie fan...but this one was really hard to watch. Not sure what was up with Tom Arnold. He seemed to actually wish he was anywhere but on screen. Lines were rushed and unbelievable. As Bell's dad so so bad. Felt like they hardly even knew each other. Same with Bell and Dustin. Plot was short on story. Anyway can't get that 2 hours back.

Great Story

[vabelle-15549 · 10/10 · 12 May 2021]

This one is better than most of the Hallmark movies as it had an interesting and fun story for a change. The scavenger hunt these was a lot better than the usual tree farm, pumpkin pie contest, etc. Of most movies. Kept my interest to the end.

A Cut-Above Christmas Romance Of Love Rekindled.

[P3n-E-W1s3 · 7/10 · 17 December 2022]

Greetings, salutations, and a seasonal welcome to all you movie aficionados. Here are my considerations and recommendation for Christmas Scavenger Hunt.

Story: 1.25/2 - Direction and Pace: 2.75/4 - Performances: 1.25/2 - Enjoyment: 1.50/2

Total 6.75/10

A Christmas Scavenger Hunt falls into the unrequited love category. Belinda is a top-notch estate agent who is engaged to Logan, who's also as career-driven as she is. However, this Christmastime, Belinda is going home for the first time in ten years. And this trip will be more than just a visit with dear old dad. It'll be a trip down memory lane with reminiscences of loves lost, or were they? For there are also old truths about to be revealed: Honesties that may change her world. Though the story's been reworked many times, it's about how the viewing experience works for the audience. We are lucky, as everyone working on the movie must have thought about us, the viewer. The writers keep everything engaging as they utilise the scavenger hunt delightfully to drive the romance. They infuse the story with credible, robust, and pleasant characters. Apart from Belinda and the true-love old-flame Dustin, I particularly enjoyed Faith and James as the romance-pushing preweddingers. I would've liked to have seen more meddling and heard more jibes, but hey, there are other characters in this tale.

The director does a splendid job of building the romance whilst maintaining a charming heart-warming mood and a subtle light-heartedness, which permeates most scenes. They even throw in a few nice pans; I especially liked the drone cam at the covered bridge and the superb compositions that add to the warmth of the picture.

The cast is ideal for their roles, though I was unsure about having Tom Arnold in the mix. He's one of those actors that hit or miss in their portrayals. Luckily, in this flick, he's a hit - mostly. Though, he doesn't always stay in character. There's one scene where he's DJing the Christmas Caroloke, and Tim Progosh portraying Dennis, has to deliver his big speech, which'll mean joy for the township. Everyone in the crowd is waiting in anticipation. But when we go back to the shot of Arnold and Progosh on stage, the look on Arnold's face tells the viewer he's not too happy. It looks like this is the hundredth take, and he thinks it's another wasted one. That ten seconds actually spoiled the movie, for me, but only a tad. Apart from that, he's okay. The two leads, Kim Shaw and Kevin McGarry are excellent and possess charming on-screen chemistry, and the rest of the main cast is good. Sadly, a few supplementary performers come across as a little less pleasing. Luckily, they're only on for a few seconds.

All in all, A Christmas Scavenger hunt is a cut above most of the love-rekindled movies making the rounds. It's nicely structured, well-written and beautifully directed. I would readily recommend this picture for your Christmas viewing. And should it re-air in the future, I'll give it another look-see.

Please check out my HO! HO! HO! Christmas Belles list to see where I ranked the movie.

Take Care, Stay Well, And Best Wishes For A Merry Christmas.

And the point?

[toncincin · 2/10 · 4 November 2019]

Let's see ... girl returns to hometown and rubs into her former boyfriend! Wow! Original plot...

This movie was not good. The lead actors had no chemistry. It's unfortunate - Kim Shaw was good on Saving Hope and her relationships were believable (and there were a few). Kevin ... oh poor Kevin. He's been good in some things and in others - just meh. This one was a meh. I loved him with Becca Tobin, Jana Kramer, and Emilie Ullerup. On Heartland - he's pretty good with Michelle Morgan - but there's also a good supporting cast.

To the reviewer who says the actress is too young for The actor - well ... she is actually almost a year older that he is (she May 1984, he March 1985). There's NO inappropriate age difference.

I am, so far, very disappointed with the 2019 Hallmark Christmas movies. I've seen 1-2 that I've enjoyed . Hallmark needs to start focusing on quality instead of quantity - or they are going to end up with the ridiculous Lifetime, UpTV, and Ion movies: unwatchable, unbelievable, and just plain trash.

Same story

[sfranks-24486 · 7/10 · 28 December 2019]

Ahh it was ok and I liked the scavenger hunt idea. The lead actors were pretty good even though I didn't know them..

Ho Hum!

[Jazzie-too · 6/10 · 7 November 2019]

The only thing I liked about this one was Tom Arnold. Interesting to see him in these mundane roles. At least he held some interest!

Christmas fun

[allmoviesfan · 6/10 · 23 December 2023]

A small-town scavenger hunt gives this Hallmark move the unabashed opportunity to throw in every single Christmassy cliche that you can think of...and probably a few more than you haven't considered.

I'm happy to report that the filmmakers succeed wonderfully in this regard. If you're playing Christmas movie bingo, you're going to go pretty close to winning with 'Christmas Scavenger Hunt'.

A fun film where former flames Belinda (Kim Shaw) and Dustin (Kevin McGarry) are paired up to try and win a scavenger hunt that takes them all over their small town...and makes them confront the past and their growing feelings for each other. McGarry and Shaw are a good pairing, and Tom Arnold (a nasally Tom Arnold, I might add) adds a touch of retro star power as Belinda's dad.

You know what's going to happen. Of course you do - this is a Hallmark movie. If being able to figure out the plot before the first ad break meant you turned it off, you wouldn't get to watch very many of these.

A nice, uncomplicated film.

Tom Arnold

[allisonjoys · 3/10 · 28 December 2019]

Tom Arnold made this almost unwatchable. He sounded like his nose was plugged- did he have a cold during filming?

Aside from that the story was not interesting and the characters were rather cookie cutter.

The two main leads were an attractive couple and I appreciated the actual winter location so I give it a few stars.

Great story

[lisaowen-41952 · 10/10 · 9 November 2019]

We watch hallmark Christmas movies for the good wholesome story lines. Why do all these people watch if all they are going to say is it's the same ole same ole. Scavenger hunt was a new idea. Tom Arnold was great. The movie is cute. If u want to watch couples cheating on each other or murder then watch the lifetime channel.

A Standard Christmas Rom-Com You Might Enjoy

[mfreburg-946-137541 · 6/10 · 21 March 2024]

Kim Shaw and Kevin McGarry star in "Christmas Scavenger Hunt" (2019), available on Prime Video. McGarry is a rom-com veteran and always performs well. Shaw hasn't done as many rom-coms but I thought she was quite good in this one (and she has such lovely blue eyes). McGarry and Shaw have good chemistry--very clear and obvious chemistry--and time here to develop a relationship.

Almost all the supporting cast was very good in this one as well. Kathryn Kohut as Kim Shaw's girlfriend was especially good. I believe she's co-starred in a couple other rom-coms, but I'd like to see her star in her very own.

There were two actors I didn't like in this film. Jon Welch as Kim Shaw's big city boyfriend came off as unlikeable from the very beginning, and I suspect most viewers could tell that this guy was getting dumped sooner or later. And of course he was--and didn't appear to care. Nevertheless, Welch was well cast in his role as the "bad" boyfriend.

Tom Arnold was simply awful in this one. Some reviewers said he was funny. I didn't think he was funny at all. No idea why he was cast. He was not believable as Kim Shaw's father, even with decent lines to say. And, as other reviewers wrote, his obviously clogged sinuses throughout the movie were disconcerting.

The film itself was pretty standard Christmas rom-com fare, with the scavenger hunt in the name being the only original aspect. You'll note a few rom-com tropes here, but you'll also enjoy the time throughout the movie where the two main characters get to spend time together, leading up to film's end.

Many reviewers, as is common, attempted, via their comments, to take a Christmas rom-com and relate it to real life, which these films can never live up to because they are NOT REAL LIFE, but fantasies--romance movies meant for entertainment purposes only. If we can just remember that and stop trying to pretend that these stories are happening for real, we might be able to enjoy them for what they are.

This story is a pleasant little diversion. I'll give it a six--and I'd give it a seven if Tom Arnold didn't suck some of the life out of it. But give it a try--Arnold isn't in it that much, and Shaw and McGarry are very entertaining.

Wow, just bad

[ssc7 · 3/10 · 8 November 2019]

Tom Arnold was horrible in this, just bad acting. Zero chemistry, the game was dumb, and I have seen literally every Hallmark christmas movie. No heartwarming moment, just felt really awkward.

Sweet and enjoyable

[poolside2 · 9/10 · 9 November 2019]

Another fun Christmas movie. The cast was cute, the two leads were great together. I will enjoy watching it again!

A three year old could solve these riddles

[MickyG333 · 7/10 · 23 December 2022]

6.6 stars.

First time seeing Kim Shaw now on my 115th review of Hallmark Christmas. I will say this about her, she's nicely toned and shapely. I enjoy her acting style it seems genuine, a breath of fresh air compared to many, not in my top 10, but close. That says a lot, because there are a lot of women vying for these coveted roles. Kevin McGarry is good as usual, he's a rugged handsome sort, and his acting style is good too. I think he comes off as very sincere in his roles, and I detect he's pretty high on the hot-o-meter too.

Ok, so what's wrong with this film? There is just an overall lack of high quality overall. The chemistry is average, sets and cinematography are average, music is average. The story is based on a slightly original idea, but it is not quite pulled off as intended. There are some obvious errors, and it was difficult to witness these glaring inconsistencies. There is no way the scavenger hunt ends up the way it did. It was too easy, so it made no sense. I can tell you that if I was in this contest I'd be bored, because no thought was required, so what if I was paired with someone I didn't like? It would be a waste of a day, no fun, no adventure.

The guy had a secret he kept from her all these years. It was an insult. What person in their right mind gives up something so important for that reason? I can say his father would never have accepted it his charity.

If there had been more chemistry, I might add some points, otherwise I got nothing. I might watch this again in 10 years, but I doubt it.

Did not go anywhere

[mnapflorida · 1/10 · 7 November 2019]

I lasted just seven minutes and tried recording and pick up on the movie, just could not do it. Did not like the casting, story, just not good at all. There truly are smany great Hallmark Christmas movies, this was not one of them.

More than predictable and bordering on boring

[Kenkeller-98-620553 · 4/10 · 4 November 2019]

Let me start with Tom Arnold. He's played one character his entire career. He showed up again in this rom com with no new acting tools. The female lead character looks like she is barely 18; the male lead looks like he is about 35 yet somehow we are to believe they were high school sweethearts. There no chemistry between the two.

Enjoyable

[erollence · 9/10 · 10 November 2020]

This movie is quite enjoyable. I liked both Kim and Kevin in their lead romantic roles. And the supporting cast was fine as well. That said, someone needs to give Tom Arnold a decongestant.

Was the story contrived and trite? Yes, and yes. Still, they avoided *some* of the standard tropes of these romantic Christmas movies. I especially enjoyed the very first encounter between the 2 leads--a little edgy and fun! The scavenger hunt story line was clever and helped move things along. And this shouldn't matter, but I also liked that they shot the movie where there was real snow on the ground!