A Kismet Christmas (2022 TV Movie) User Reviews

Christmas magic? Or silliness?

[gfrasmd · 6/10 · 24 October 2022]

Watching a Christmas movie, one is prepared to accept a good dose of fantasy, call it magic. That sleeping on a pillow hiding a kismet cookie, baked according to an ancient family recipe, would make you dream of your destined 'love of your life', though farfetched, could be seen as sweet. That an entire town almost obsessively depends on this notion, it becomes a bit silly. The pivot moment of the story is when young Sarah dreams of Travis and runs to his house to tell him and finds him in the very act of getting married, which leaves her brokenhearted and mortified, to the point of not wanting to live in her town. How could she be unaware that her neighbor, best friend, and love crush was getting married? This is so absurd that it makes the rest of the story quite hard to digest.

Such premises aside, the rest of the film, Sarah's return to her hometown , family and friends, and her reunion with Travis and his daughter, follows predictable gentle lines, with the sweet moments and kind feelings one expects in a Christmas movie. Sarah Ramos and Carlo Marks have good chemistry and the girl, Rubi Topper, delivers a charming performance, as in her last year debut, in "A Christmas miracle for Daisy". The movie provides enough values of family, friendship, and kindness to render it suitable for family viewing at Christmas time.

Loved the leading lady

[Jackbv123 · 7/10 · 27 October 2022]

This is a combination of two fairly common premises. Sarah is a famous writer (after one book) with writer's block and a tight deadline for the next book. He grandmother has been making magic cookies for years. The magic cookies help people dream of their soul mate. (OK, this one is less common.) Sarah had a crush on Travis, but the older Travis got married to someone else and Sarah never returns to town, until now.

Sarah Ramos presents an appealing Sarah (the character). She and Carlo Marks have quiet chemistry and she also hits it off with Rubi Tupper who plays the Travis' daughter Jasmine. I agree with another reviewer in hoping that Ramos appears often on Hallmark.

The story has no great highs or lows or surprises. The climax is predictable. Dialogue is good and so is acting.

Quite nice

[TheLittleSongbird · 7/10 · 4 February 2024]

'A Kismet Christmas' (2022)

Opening thoughts: Have for a few years now been on a roll watching as many Hallmark Christmas films as possible. It has generally been an interesting and worthwhile project, while also very inconsistent. 2022's Christmas output is no exception, being as variable as the rest of the seasonal blocks. The story for 'A Kismet Christmas' didn't sound particularly mind blowing, but that wasn't enough to put me off.

The previous two 2022 Countdown to Christmas films 'Noel Next Door' and 'We Wish You a Married Christmas' already saw inconsistency in quality, the former was quite good but the latter underwhelmed. Luckily, 'A Kismet Christmas' (very different to what was expected, was expecting a Christmas story centered around the musical 'Kismet' for some reason) was closer in quality to the former and actually one of the better 2022 Christmas films thus far from Hallmark. Not perfect, but with a lot of good things.

Good things: Those good things will be started off with first. Sarah Ramos and Carlo Marks are engaging and nuanced leads with a subtly quiet yet charming chemistry that didn't feel rushed or aimless. Zesty Marilu Henner steals every scene she's in and Rubi Tupper is charming and sincere in a type of role that easily could have been played too precociously. The characters were interesting and easy to root for and the relationships feel real and honest on the whole.

It is also an attractive film visually, with beautiful scenery and colourful decorations. The music fits at least and is easy on the ears. The story is very charming and moving, not feeling dull.

Bad things: Having said that, it is also very formulaic, doing nothing new with familiar elements, and there is a conflict that is very artificial and lacking in sense. Some may say that thank goodness it didn't feature much, for me for it to have made sense more it did need more time to be fleshed out, it did feel also too rushed and throwaway.

While the script is not as cheesy or schmaltzy as many other Hallmark Christmas films, it is too talky and too much of the talk rambles and not all of it served much point.

Concluding thoughts: Overall though, quite nice.

7/10.

Slow and ponderous

[PeterMovie61 · 23 October 2023]

This was a disappointment throughout. Marilu Henner raises the question of the producer's judgment . Hallmark taps some former stars who become distractions due to extreme plastic surgery. Although a talented actress, like others Hallmark chooses, the close ups on the surgically altered facial structure is, at best, unpleasant but at worse, frightening. It is past time to cease and desist from this practice. Besides this, the plodding and unsustainable story line drags on. There were just too many of the cringe moments. One is enough but this seems to be on cringe steroids. A better cast, no "Frankenface" and sharper writing is needed.

Nice but that's all

[VetteRanger · 7/10 · 24 October 2022]

An author myself, movies that include stories about authors draw my interest, and this movie is about a young woman with a best selling first book and writer's block as she attempts the sequel.

Unfortunately, it checks off too many of the cliches: returning home to the small town she grew up in (and by chance! Of course), bad memories there she doesn't wish to face, surprisingly meeting the lost love who broke her heart (no, not really a surprise), and of course he's now a single dad with an adorable daughter. What a shock.

Maybe I missed it in the morass of talkiness in this film, but I never found out what happened to his wife. Odds are he's a widower but neither my wife nor I spotted a conversation which revealed why he's now a single dad.

Did I mention this script is VERY talky? LOTS of it.

There is a good bit of relationship building, and the MMC is ridiculously wise and understanding, so there's nothing for the FMC to complain about. In the end, of course she doesn't.

Good enough to stick with it to the end

[MickyG333 · 7/10 · 3 December 2022]

7.2 stars.

I like these two leads working together, and was relieved that they have good chemistry. The first and most important requirement was met. Marks can keep a sub-standard movie afloat (not saying this movie is sub-standard) with his charm and kills, and Ramos actually holds her own. They both have great screen presence, and with the addition of chemistry, I could tell this movie was going to at least be average. Once again Hallmark rarely fails to meet basic standards.

The second requirement is entertainment value (EV), or maybe this is the first and most important requirement, I'm not sure. I suppose good chemistry and entertainment value go hand in hand. This film has decent EV, which surprised me because it starts out kinda sluggish. The first 30 minutes did not inspire me much.

As the enchantment builds, it's easy to invest more expectation that it will continue to improve and give us a magical ending.

One huge observation which is probably a source of some minor disappointment in the HM films: the parents are always dead and gone. Why do these protagonists never have parents? It's as if all these movies are made for a foster child generation (if that is a thing). Are 100% of our HM audience foster children, or adults who grew up in the system, or have single parents? It's so unrealistic, and overdone, the writers should take a break from that routine.

Ok, all that aside, I'm not buying this story. If these two were soulmates from the start, why did he marry some other woman? I'm not satisfied with the writer's half-hearted attempts to patch up this obvious disparity.

To wrap this up, the conclusion brought us back full circle to the theme: magical cookies. So it's a fairy tale of sorts, and that's fine, and the final romantic scene was tidy.

Sarah Ramos shines in this sweet charming love story. Hopefully, this is her first of many Hallmark movies

[MichaelByTheSea · 9/10 · 25 November 2022]

This just came out and I've seen it twice already. It was even better the second time. I knew nothing about Sarah Ramos before watching this but I really liked her portrayal of Sarah Collins aka Sarah Grace. She was quite effective and very appealing in a sexy bookworm/librarian kind of way. She also did an impressive job of conveying both her character's initial teenage insecurities and her growing confidence. And I like the explanation given for her pen name Sarah Grace. Carlo Marks was likable, as usual, playing Sarah's childhood friend/crush Travis. He and Ramos had really great chemistry together. They walked and talked and looked like a real couple. I always love seeing couples tease each other and engage in fun banter. There's plenty of that here. All without a single appearance by any past or present significant others. That was refreshing.

Another reviewer commented that it was "absurd" for young Sarah to be unaware that her childhood friend Travis was getting married. That's fair, but given that she was just a teenager, 4 years younger, and only around during summers and the Christmas holiday, it's not inconceivable. I actually found it harder to believe that she hadn't returned to visit her beloved grandmother since the day she crashed Travis's wedding.

That same reviewer asked: "What did that boring bear story have to do with anything?" First, I didn't think it was boring and it struck me as one of those fun stories that results in a nickname, some good natured teasing, and ends up being the kind of story that becomes part of family lore. But second, and perhaps more to the point, there's a key part of that story that isn't revealed until the end. No spoilers here. But after that important reveal, Sarah says: "That was the day I fell in love with you Travis Walker." In short, that bear story said more about Travis than it did about Sarah Bear.

Another reviewer seemed to find it unlikely that Sarah would be famous after just one book. The author who immediately came to mind was Harper Lee, who became VERY famous after her first book- To Kill a Mockingbird. Rowling's Harry Potter, Tolkien's The Hobbit and Mary Shelley's Frankenstein also come to mind.

Admittedly, there were a series of unlikely circumstances and coincidences that keeps Sarah from Travis, and then brings her back to Travis, but once that's overlooked, the movie becomes quite enjoyable and heart warming. As for the annoying critics who unfairly disparage Hallmark movies as being "all the same", I thought the whole magical kismet cookies plot line was fun and rather unique. I don't mind a little Christmas magic, especially if it doesn't involve yet another magical Santa and acts more like a nudge or a mechanism of enlightenment, as opposed to something that wipes out free will

I was also impressed with the other actors. Marilu Henner (Grammie) Michele Sacarbelli (Patsy) and Barbara Pollard (Raylene) were all solid as usual. I thought Rubi Tupper was great as Travis' daughter Jazzy. Someone complained about all her hugs (really; in a Hallmark movie?) but I melted every time that little girl hugged Sarah. I kept thinking how she was desperately in need of a mother figure given that her own mother would rather "travel with her band" and just "check in" from time to time. I really have no patience for parents who won't fulfill their responsibilities as parents.

This movie was very well written by Betsy Morris and Lori Wilde (she wrote the Wedding Veil trilogy). Just a few of my favorite lines:

"If there's no love, there's no magic"

"You mean the book marked 'private, keep out, especially Travis'?"

"Come on dad, these books aren't going to read themselves!"

"Chopping down tree thingy.... writers have a way with words"

"I've seen scary movies start this way"

"What's the bear population around here? Asking for a friend."

"I think it's good, but I'm also a writer so I'm needy and thin-skinned."

"Jaded literary agents need love too you know"

Loved the Die Hard Christmas reference. There were also some neat subtle touches by director Mark Jean (the Nine Lives of Christmas), like when a vendor in the public square throws his hands up when the place becomes deserted during the scavenger hunt.

I loved it when Benny spelled out the facts for Sarah's "crippling difficult decision"

There's a lot to love about this movie.

Kismet

[mbiv777 · 7/10 · 6 December 2022]

There have been some pretty ridiculous plot lines in Hallmark Christmas movies, but magic cookies might be the new benchmark.

Apparently, if you sleep with the magic cookie under your pillow, you not only won't have a bed full of cookie crumbs and maybe ants, you will dream about your true love. It's Hallmark. We let it go.

Sarah Ramos has great appeal in her role as a writer who has become convinced that the whole thing was a lie when the guy she dreamed of married someone else. I hope she does more of these movies. She's just right for them.

To be honest, I have a very hard time buying Carlo as a leading man. Hallmark is making movies for the other team now, so... Nuff said.

Supporting cast is good, and this movie actually works if you let the plot go.

I'll probably watch this again next year.

10/10 came as a surprise to me!

[mccabe-shannon · 9/10 · 25 October 2022]

Ok so from the ads I new that I'd like this one, but I'm surprised at how much.

First, I do really enjoy Carlo Marks. Something was wonky with his hair in this and it was distracting me, but he turned in a solid performance. He played a great single father without being too much and still a good romantic lead.

Here is where my surprise lies. Sarah Ramos. I whole heartedly disliked her on Parenthood. I found myself searching for reasons to dislike her in this. And to be fair, she gave me very little other than some nitpicky moments. Unfortunately the last scene was one of them, but overall I was pretty impressed. I think Hallmark may have a new actress here (hopefully not too used) but she is is nice looking without being gorgeous, can play hardworking, quirky, family oriented etc.

The daughter- typically the HM children are far too overly precocious. Did she have her moments? Definitely, but it didn't seem nearly as bad (I'm looking at you boy from bramble house). Her hugs were pretty darn bad but most of it was pretty good and didn't distract me!

I really loved the town used. The pretty staircase and 2 levels really made me feel like I was there and made for some scenes that appeared to have a higher production value that some movies. I got irked that the main house was supposed to be the grandmothers great grandparents home and it was definitely not that old- there was nothing historical or old world charm about it. It's a pretty cookie cutter house that may be a bit older but no way is this turn of the century let alone before.

Marilu Henner- obviously who doesn't love her! Also perfectly cast as Sarah Ramos's grandma. I enjoyed this casting. I needed a bit more of some background here for later scenes.

The agent is a bit much at the beginning but there always has to be that person and it calmed down and was much more realistic by the end.

I liked the grandmas friends and how their story fit in without being too much hit it also wasn't just thrown in for something.

Without spoilers there were a few things script wise that should have been changed and a few scenes that should have been reshot as the acting was much worse than the majority.

But I liked the story. I liked the acting. Overall pleasantly surprised with this one.

While it's 10/10 it's also not one I'd be eager to watch again. But I would watch it again. Give me a Carlo Marks and Bethany Joy Lenz movie now please!

Lots of plot holes.

[rebekahrox · 5/10 · 27 October 2022]

This one was a bit careless with some questionable plot points. I was hopeful and curious to see Sarah Ramos, because I remember her as Lauren Graham's daughter on Parenthood. Carlo Marks usually gives a likable performance.

Sarah is a best-selling children's author who has to return to her hometown to reward the winner of a contest promoting her new book (which she is having trouble finishing.) It turns out the little winner is the daughter of the boy next door she had a teenage crush on. After humiliating herself by bursting into to his wedding declaring her love, she has never returned. Yeah, it was pretty embarrassing.

Here's the first problem. Her beloved grandmother Mia (Marilu Henner) still lives in the house across the street. Are they telling me Sarah never went home to visit her when she is supposed to be so devoted to Granma Mia? A return to a hometown after years and years, only works if you don't abandon your family in the process.

She meets Travis and gets to know his little girl,(who hugs everyone all the time. I've never seen such a huggy little girl) and a rekindled romance ensues. But where is the wife? Is she dead? Divorced? On vacation? On a break? I was expecting her to pop up any minute. We find out after half the movie is over and a lot of flirting has gone on that they are divorced, but she travels with her band a lot.

What did that boring bear story have to do with anything?

And why did Grammy stop making the beloved Christmas cookies again? She taped up the recipe after Sarah ripped it up. When Sarah wanted to test out the magic and made 12 "Kismet" cookies, how could there have been "a line out the door" for them? Especially when 4 were already spoken for.

Also, there was a fake conflict at the end which was more fake than usual and made no sense. Why did Sarah run away when Travis suggested she stay in New Britain solve the house going out of the family problem and explore their relationship? There was no reason. Her agent points out the obvious that she already knew and crisis averted. At least it was short in duration.

Unexpectedly Good

[Pete-Claus · 8/10 · 2 December 2022]

I wasn't expecting too much from this movie at first, but the story of a family legend was carefully introduced in stages, in a way that was not shlocky and not predicable, and which also incorporated some nice story twists. This set up an engaging movie with two very likable lead characters who were animated by some good acting. Both characters seemed plausible, real, and natural.

The movie was a pleasure to watch all the way through, and was not shallow fluff. I felt real joy for the characters at the ending.

This would be a good movie for kids and adults to watch together. It works well at both levels.

This is one is of my Top 10 favorite 2022 Christmas movies of 2022. You can see my other favorite 2022 Christmas movies by clicking on my profile link above; then look for "2022 FAVORITE CHRISTMAS ROM-COMs" under "Lists".

I love Marilu Henner and I wish I liked this holiday Hallmark film more than I did.

[cgvsluis · 5/10 · 11 December 2023]

This was the story of an author who goes back home to New Britain where we learn in a fit of rage she tore up a special family recipe as a teenager.

She is having trouble writing the next book in her series and her next door neighbor and childhood crush helps her by shutting her up in a cabin with no distractions to write and it works...only the start of their story is they were friends and she baked kismet cookies with her grandmother that are supposed to help you dream of your soulmate...she asked her grandmother for one and she told her no, but she took one anyway. She dreamt of the neighbor and when she ran over to tell him she interrupted his wedding to someone else. In a fit of rage she came home and in front of her grandmother tore up the complicated recipe. (I would have beat her silly!)

When she arrives back in town after all these years the neighbor has a daughter and is divorced?!?!

There are so many things that I didn't like about this film...I love Marilu Henner, who was her usual wonderful self and I enjoyed the idea or legend behind the kismet cookie. The rest I could do without. Not a recommendation from me. Carlo Marks Is also fabulous.

Christmas Magic

[nicoleromerodesign · 9/10 · 2 November 2022]

I enjoyed this film so much. It was full of the love and Christmas magic that I always look for in a Hallmark movie. I was blown away by the leading characters - talk about chemistry! Marilu Henner is always a treat and the girl who played Jasmine did a great job compared to most of the child actors I see in these movies. Story-wise, I was a big fan of the nostalgia of baking with her Granma and the what-ifs of that first love. I also appreciated the line about how it was too early (at 17 I think) for her to use the Kismet cookie. It is an important lesson that sometimes we have to live a little and lead separate lives until it is time to come back together and start a new chapter. I'm not sure why it was necessary for the Granma to actually move in order for her granddaughter to stay. I also hated that Benny did not get his Kismet cookie. Like some of the others have said, there were a few holes and loose ends, but in general I loved it and would absolutely watch it again.

Sarah Grace/Sarah Collins (Sarah Ramos)

[aab874 · 10/10 · 7 January 2023]

Favorite scene with

Sarah Grace/Sarah Collins (Sarah Ramos) - Christmas Tree Hunting and Working on her Book with Travis Up in his Cabin. I Remember Sarah Ramos (Sarah Grace/Sarah Collins) from the TV Series "American Dreams"! BTW #1, I Loved, Loved, Loved this Movie! BTW #2, I Love Marilu Henner (Grandma Mia) in this! BTW #3, Travis Walker (Carlo Marks) is So Dang Charming, So Dang Hilarious, and So Dang Hot!!! I Love Him!!! BTW #4, The Chemistry Between Sarah Grace/Sarah Collins (Sarah Ramos) and Travis Walker (Carlo Marks) was Hot!!! BTW #5, This is my Last Christmas 2022 Hallmark Channel Movie.

Set in New York and Maine.

Loved It!

[beachgirl-86960 · 10/10 · 8 November 2022]

I really just loved this movie! Not sure what it was but it just made me feel good! I enjoyed it! It just had this good feel about it! The characters were likeable and the actors looked like they enjoyed working! Lately a lot of Hallmark movies I have enjoyed but many I have just thought was pure trash and the whole movie was ruined even though it had a good story line! But this one was worth watching! It was added to my list of favorite Hallmark Christmas movies! I get nervous when I begin to watch them lately thinking I am just going to be disappointed but I wasn't with this one! If I like a Hallmark movie it will get ten stars this one definitely fits the ten!

Super Cute and Christmassy!

[HallmarkJenny · 10/10 · 29 October 2022]

Sarah, a children's book author, returns to her grandmother's small town after leaving heartbroken when a magical cookie revealed her true love to be the boy-next-door who is marrying someone else! She discovers the Travis is no longer married and has a Christmas-and-book-loving daughter. Sarah begins to wonder if the Kismet Cookies knew her one true love after all.

A flashback scene in New Haven reveals a young Sarah's Christmas heartbreak. Travis lives next door to Sarah's Gramma Mia when they are young. After Sarah and her Gramma Mia bake kismet cookies, Sarah steals ones and puts it under her pillow so that she can discover who her true love is. Sarah dreams of Travis and runs to his house Christmas morning to confess to him that she is her true love...only to interrupt Travis' wedding ceremony! Sarah runs home crying and rips up the Kismet Cookie recipe!

Years later, Sarah travels back to New Britain to surprise a contest winner for her book series; the contest winner is Travis' daughter!

Kismet Cookie Legend- Gramma Mia's Great-Grandparents bought a house and their daughter, Nana Sue, found a hidden cabinet with a recipe for kismet cookies inside. The recipe read that if the recipe is followed exactly, "you'll dream of your true love." So Gramma Mia's Nana Sue baked the cookies, put them under her pillow and dreamt of her true love, Gramma Mia's Grandpa Joe. The two fell in love and got married two weeks later! Since this, the kismet cookie recipe has worked!

Can Sarah find the recipe again to find her true love?

Cute and Quirky Christmas Romance

[sapphiremoon-54103 · 10/10 · 31 October 2022]

I really enjoyed this movie!! I am a HUGE fan of Carlo Marks and his movies.

This was a very different kind of Hallmark Christmas movie. Centered around kismet and a Christmas cookie. I liked the unusual premise. I really thought Carlo Marks and Sarah Ramos have amazing chemistry. Snappy chemistry and dialogue. I really enjoyed the interaction between the two main actors. The little girl Jazzy played by Rubi Tupper I thought was really cute. I really enjoyed the scenes as well between the father and daughter. I would HIGHLY RECOMMEND this movie. If you are looking for something a little different from Hallmark. Great movie!!!

Gets better every time I watch it!

[sfjbtfyy · 10/10 · 17 December 2022]

I liked this movie the first time it was on. I especially liked the leading lady, Sarah Ramos. She was cute and quirky, kind and sweet, awkward yet accomplished. Great story that incorporated Christmas magic and romance in perfect proportions. I liked it even more with each subsequent view - it has a lot of heart. And, to me, the best Hallmark Christmas movies always mix the romance with a healthy dose of Christmas magic, with a lot of family love to boot. This one does all of that. I hope Sarah becomes a regular Hallmark leading lady - she was just that fantastic! I highly recommend this movie.