Hats Off to Christmas! (2013 TV Movie) User Reviews

Good story elements, but rough execution

[Jackbv123 · 6/10 · 29 October 2017]

This story had good potential. Add one key element to the usual widow with a son breaks in the new boss plot-line. That element is that the son is in a wheelchair, injured in the accident that killed his dad. I also give this movie some small creativity points that Nick didn't come in trying to make Mia's life miserable by changing everything without asking.

I thought the execution was choppy. I expected more from Hayie Duff. At times she was OK, but at other times she seemed clumsy in her role. I got tired of seeing her tilt her head down in her humility pose. And she was clumsy at times with Antonio Cupo. They didn't seem to have chemistry and it sure didn't seem like Mia wanted to give Nick a chance. Most of the courting going on seemed to be Nick courting Scott, not his mom. There just wasn't enough of Mia and Nick connecting.

The company in trouble theme was also executed clumsily. (You don't leave your conference room door open when you are discussing ideas for cost cutting that affects employees.)

On the other hand, there were definitely some good moments especially toward the end. But they seemed like items checked off on someone's list of plot devices. Overall though, I guess there were enough positives that I give this movie a thumbs up, but barely.

The Al Capone of "Cheap and Cheesy manipulation" of the viewer 's emotions

[gordonm888 · 5/10 · 29 December 2013]

Here's the good news: the acting by the two romantic leads (Haylie Duff and Antonio Cupo) is good and they are assisted by a strong acting performance by veteran actor Jay Brazeau in the role of the business owner and father of the male lead. This movie would have been a total train-wreck without these actors.

Now the bad news: Hats Off to Christmas suffers from terrible writing. It goes beyond scenes that are so poorly written that they damage the 'suspension of disbelief;' the film relies on cheap and cheesy plot devices that are unrealistic but intended to manipulate the emotions of the viewer. Many Hallmark romance movies are guilty of this, but Hats Off is the Al Capone of "cheap and cheesy."

This Hallmark movie has it all, doled out in the most unrealistic and clumsy scenes imaginable:

• a backstory involving a dead husband (and father)

• a young son who is wheelchair-bound. Doctors think he is medically capable of walking, but emotional issues from the trauma of his car accident are suspected to be the real issue preventing him from walking again. Anyone want to guess where this plot-line is going?

• a female lead character, Mia, who overhears a fragment of a conversation about plans to address her employer's business problems and misunderstands what she has heard. Mia doesn't seek to confirm anything or wait for an announcement - instead she ends her relationship with the man she is starting to love and submits a letter resigning her job. Its hard to like characters who over-react in such unrealistic ways.

• a short scene where the male romantic interest, Nick, organizes a football game for the boy in the wheelchair. The boy makes a pass that goes about five feet and it is declared a touchdown. Then the boy is handed the football, and Nick pushes the boy's wheelchair downfield while everyone pretends that they can't catch him. This scene was intended to be uplifting, but is so deeply insulting to "wheelchair athletes" in the real world that Hallmark should be ashamed.

• so many "changes of heart" that it keeps your head-spinning. Not only do the romantic leads run hot and cold on each other repeatedly, but the major adversary in the film inexplicably "changes heart" and offers up some terms that resolve a lot of difficulties.

• supernaturally intelligent kids that advise their parents on their relationship issues (a core Hallmark plot device.)

• scenes where kids say something for about 30 seconds that advances the plot and are then told "Time to go to bed now. Its past your bedtime" leading to a scene where the adults talk between themselves. If you're a kid in a Hallmark movie, it is seemingly always your bedtime.

-completely unrealistic depictions of financial analysts and business operations and decision-making.

Some of these plot-devices might have worked in a movie that developed these situations adequately. In Hats Off, they are briefly introduced, and amateurishly disposed of as mere devices along the road to getting the romantic leads to realize they love each other and finally, to kiss. This move has such lazy manipulative writing and is so cheap and cheesy that I took no joy in the events that it showed.

Finally a decent Hallmark film

[lydia_ravenswood · 7/10 · 25 December 2013]

While I wouldn't call this one amazing, it's certainly a nice one to watch for the winter season. I've watched A LOT of Hallmark holiday films and this one isn't as cheesy as some of the others airing this time of year. The acting is good to start with, at least by all the main actors. Some of the supporting could use a few more acting classes. Unlike other Hallmarks where the main couple seem to fall in love with a few days to a few weeks, this one has a more logical time-line, which makes the story a little more believable. The only question i have is how quickly the main male lead changes his tune. You'll understand when you watch.

All in all, cute and simple, something to watch while decorating for the holidays or while waiting for the holiday meal to be done cooking.

A Strange Business Model

[boblipton · 6/10 · 15 December 2013]

Widowed Haylie Duff works at a small-town store where all they sell is Christmas-themed paraphernalia, all year round. When it turns out that sales are down for the last couple of years, her boss, whose immense office bespeaks the millions he has made off this venture over the years, parachutes his Wall-Street son, Antonio Cupo, over her. However, when he helps her wheelchair-bound son in a pumpkin-carving competition, things start to turn around in this ridiculously detailed but very watchable Hallmark romantic comedy.

At least part of that is due to some very fine acting on the part of the leads. Neither of their characters wish to be in this situation and they behave in a way that bespeaks their dissatisfaction and professionalism -- pardon me if I think the actors felt this way about the movie and used that for their performances. Given the ridiculous assumptions as well as the obvious and cheap cries for sympathy in the script, this should have been one of the worst of the twelve Hallmark Christmas romcoms this year. Instead, it is surprisingly good.

This was nothing special

[Christmas-Reviewer · 6/10 · 17 December 2016]

BEWARE OF BOGUS REVIEWS. SOME REVIEWERS HAVE ONLY ONE REVIEW TO THEIR NAME. NOW WHEN ITS A POSITIVE REVIEW THAT TELLS ME THEY WERE INVOLVED WITH THE MOVIE. IF ITS A NEGATIVE REVIEW THEN THEY MIGHT HAVE A GRUDGE AGAINST THE FILM . NOW I HAVE REVIEWED OVER 200 HOLIDAY FILMS. I HAVE NO AGENDA. I AM HONEST ABOUT THESE FILMS

"Hats off to Christmas" fits the cookie cutter mold that Hallmark Christmas Movies seem to follow. This one is a widowed falls in love with the her new boss who just happened to take the job she has been coveting.

Haylie Duff is always great. She shines as always and brings charm to spare in this melodrama that really is a "Movie By Numbers By Hallmark".

In this film her husband died 18 months ago in a car wreck. That same wreck has left her son in a wheelchair but it will be "A Christmas Miracle if he ever walks again".

I wish Hallmark would venture out a little more and do some films that don't follow the "Christmas Mold". They hire talented writers and directors! I just wish that would let them take some chances.

Now this film is not bad but it is predictable.

Has the writer ever worked retail?

[timhds · 3/10 · 29 July 2020]

So im only writing to critique the supposed business model of the supposed single location Christmas store that operates year round. First off, the sell Christmas hats, and very limited other Christmas items. They have a warehouse on top of a back room at the store. They also have a corporate office with a reception desk employee. Now I only have a BS in Business Management, but I know that a 1500 sq ft retail store that sells merchandise for a single holiday, probably doesn't need a warehouse, and it's definitely doesn't need a corporate office with a reception desk. If the average hat costs $20 (and that's very generous), their sales would need to be in the millions, which im not seeing from that tiny store front. And yes, I know, it's a movie. But it's not too hard to do a little research.

Where is that Christmas promotion

[michaelRokeefe · 7/10 · 1 November 2021]

This Hallmark Hall of Fame presentation finds Mia (Haylie Duff) being a loyal and steadfast shop manager of a Christmas hat shop for ten years. The position she has been coveting is going to be given to her boss' son Nick (Antonio Cupo). Mia must train him. The attraction was not there at first; but when Nick volunteers to help out with Mia's handicapped son (Sean Michael Kyer) , romance blooms. This seasonal romantic comedy is very watchable.

Terrible

[tommy5677 · 4/10 · 28 October 2019]

This movie is so schmaltzy that I'm actually shocked Hallmark would even put their name on it. OK. No I'm not. The script is very poorly written and the only good thing about this movie is Haylie Duff who has become a hallmark staple. Most of the stuff she does for them is pretty darn good and she's adorable. For whatever reason this movie just didn't do it for me.

One of the things I found particularly irritating was you have this gal who is struggling, believing she's going to get a huge promotion but the boss has different ideas. Though he likes her a lot and values her as an employee, he really wants to leave his legacy to his son. Enter the jerk from the big city, returning home to save the family business, Not a very nice guy but then all of a sudden he transforms into this wonderful man who suddenly loves the dopey kid, the unfortunate victim of an accident that left him in a wheelchair. The kid playing the son is terrible.

If bossman had any regard for her he would have promoted her in the very beginning. Conflict with the new guy would be expected but there was nothing romantic about this story at all. She kept him at arms length the entire time, until the very end when they were suddenly and mysteriously in love.

Since everybody else has cited everything wrong with this movie I won't go on here about it. If you're really into schmaltzy hallmark movies there are much better ones than this mess.

Mostly average, some good

[MickyG333 · 7/10 · 26 November 2023]

7.1 stars.

I'd like to think there is a lot of potential with 'Hats Off to Christmas', because the characters are all well developed and likable. The dialogue is emotionally inspired and everything seems in place, but something is amiss. I think the setting and maybe even a bit of the cinematography is stale. That was all I could negatively critique in and otherwise endearing and uplifting story.

The leads have good chemistry, the santa replicant also owner/father has just enough screen time to get acquainted. The male lead is very easy to dislike for the first several minutes, his obvious disdain for honest and hard working folk was almost revolting. He comes around and becomes quite charismatic, even if a bit weird, and we forget all about his cynical arrogance. Female lead does a great job, one of her better performances. I've seen Duff do some awkward roles and I think the vitality of her career waned around the time this movie was released. Glad to see she got a chance to show us her good side. I'd watch this again someday, maybe in 5-10 years.

Okay for One Viewing, But Hard to Believe

[mamachikn · 5/10 · 19 August 2021]

The movie had good actors, but the whole thing was hard to believe. Especially the business model.

1. Hard to believe that city boy would fall (in a few days) for a widow with a disabled son, who didn't like him, and with whom he had absolutely nothing in common. He wasn't interested in the beautiful and savvy city girl who liked him. When he found she was a widow is when he decided to be nice and like her. Sympathy is not a good foundation for any long-term relationship.

2. Hard to believe there was any real chemistry at all between the leads. Nothing. Zero. A smile, that's it.

3 Hard to believe New Yorker Nick would actually like coming back to work in a small town company that sells Christmas hats in May, when he and his father don't get along well, and this seems a very boring place to work. But father wants to pass the unprofitable legacy to his son.

3. Hard to believe that Hats Off, this tiny store, stays in business by selling primarily Dollar Store Christmas hats all year round, and makes enough profit to pay the many people who work there.

4. Hard to believe that that the large corporate offices of Hats Off with several employees at desks and computers are actually doing anything at all. Again: there is only one small store which has an occasional customer paying $7 for 2 hats.

5. Hard to believe that the giant warehouse filled with boxes and workers in safety vests has anything to do, but they are filling orders, and they don't even have an online presence. Again, one tiny store with no customers.

6. Hard to believe that Hats Off has repeat business, because once you buy a Christmas hat, you wear it again next year. And new customers are apparently the travelers who see a sign on the freeway exit advertising the store and get off to shop there. Again, no online presence because the owner is old fashioned and non tech.

7. Hard to believe that a large office has no one who can do the books since someone who used to do it left, and the conference room table is now filled with many large stacks of papers as Nick works on the books, but there are always lots of employees walking around looking important but doing nothing. Maybe use one of the computers instead of a 10 key. One tiny store selling Christmas hats; few customers.

And at the end, the crippled son gets up and walks, a Christmas miracle; Mia kisses Santa right there at the Christmas party with kids watching (we don't see the actual kiss because of the costume beard. No chemistry, so maybe they didn't kiss at all.) TaDa, the End.

One my favorites

[jonathanrspalding · 9/10 · 18 December 2017]

Yes, I know it is cheesy and grossly sentimental. The interplay from the widowed single mother (she is getting over her husbands death well, kind of like Scarlett O'Hara) and the put upon disabled child is really over the top.

Yet for reasons I do not fully understand this is one my favorite Hallmark movies. I would recommend this one for all.

No hats off to mediocrity

[TheLittleSongbird · 4/10 · 8 September 2020]

Actually really liked the concept and there was some decent potential here in 'Hats Off to Christmas' with its ideas. It is not original by any stretch, then again nobody should watch a Hallmark film expecting originality (which has only been achieved sporadically). Have nothing personal against Hallmark, far from it, and absolutely love Christmas, so there was no negative bias towards the film before watching. Actually wanted to like it.

That 'Hats Off to Christmas' didn't do much with its potential and wasn't the at least decent film that it could have been if it had tried harder actually saddened me somewhat. It is nowhere near Hallmark's worst, there were some really rough ones since 'Hats Off to Christmas'. It is not one of their best either, with some of their output being surprisingly good as long as one doesn't expect a massive amount or award-worthy.

'Hats Off to Christmas' best component is the acting, which was well above average all things considered. Haylie Duff and Antonio Cupo both do a good job in their roles, especially Duff as one of the few businesswoman-type characters in a Hallmark film to not be annoying and have a personality. Their chemistry is sweet and genuine. Jay Brazeau is also strong and Sean Michael Kyer has his heartfelt moments.

Production values are quite nice, especially the scenery, and they don't look cheap or drab. The soundtrack is pleasant and isn't as intrusive as can be the case for Hallmark Christmas films. A few heart-warming moments here and there, really did like the idea of Scotty's subplot and that did have moments of heart.

Sadly, those heart-warming and moving moments are eclipsed by the excessive cheese and over-sentimentality that the writing is full of. A lot of the dialogue is so cheese-ridden that it makes the cheesiest burger bland in comparison, and some of the interplay is really forced. 'Hats Off to Christmas' to me came over as far too sentimental and in a rather manipulative way too, little of it felt natural and Scotty's subplot in general could have been handled with a lot more tact (especially with the football game). The story does absolutely nothing new with story tropes well worn out long ago, so one predicts many actions and many of the outcomes.

It is also very contrived, its portrayal of business and retail is agreed unrealistic, too many of the characters do not feel like real people that behave realistically and have changes of heart that ring true and not spur on the monent-like. Instead there are a lot of over-reaction behaviours here, especially considering the misunderstanding, and too many decisions come too out of nowhere and come over as illogical. Kyer had his moments, but he tended to overact his role and a huge part of me was really disappointing in not being able to relate completely to Scotty's subplot.

Concluding, rather mediocre but not a complete humbug. 4/10

Totally annoying movie. Momma "Mia" is a "me" person.

[adoptshelterpetstoday · 1/10 · 12 December 2014]

With the exciting title and the interesting previews, once again my imagination was expecting a really good Hallmark Christmas movie...but once again, I was very, very disappointed. I did not find anything likable about this movie...............Plot as I saw it: "Mia" believed that she was privy to suddenly becoming the manager of the failing business where she worked...but she quickly became disgruntled learning that the owner's competent son was going to manage it instead......."Mia" eventually became familiar with the son and changed her unfavorable attitude towards him. Why?.......... Because she saw personal, selfish gain in having a "relationship" with him.....From then on, she gave nothing more than a profound impression that she only wanted a "relationship" with the guy primarily for him to be a "big brother" and then probably be a father for her son......After all, her employment family health benefits might be discontinued!....With her repeated pouting, she practically demanded him to invest all of his free time in her son.........Every time she thought he was interested in another woman (an old friend) because he spent some time with her,..."Mia" instantly showed her disgruntled jealousy and possessiveness....as if he was not allowed to his life's choice.

This baby was sick from too much formula!

[adamjohns-42575 · 4/10 · 1 February 2023]

Hats Off To Christmas (2013) -

Who keeps giving Haylie Duff work, I don't like to be mean and this wasn't her worst film by a long shot, but once again she played her character, Mia, as if everything in her life was so hard and she deserved all the pity in the world.

Antonio Cupo was obviously hot and looked like he had a fantastic bottom, but he was not a nice character at all to start with. His change of heart was a bit hard to believe as well and definitely seemed very convenient, almost as if he was working an angle, but he didn't appear to want Mia.

I didn't think that he would have mellowed so quickly and certainly not from the attention she was giving him, which was quite brusque to say the least. He actually seemed more keen to spend time with her son (Check the registers), but he was also the one to make the efforts towards her, while she didn't show any interest at all, because she was so wrapped up in her own head.

Antonio bore some strong similarities to Brendan Penny, but Mr. P would always win for me and has always delivered his characters with more ease, although Cupo as Nick may have been a victim of the direction or a bad script, as indicated by the complicated way he came across.

The leading pair just weren't right for each other and there was no chemistry between them, except that he got on with the kid, Scotty (Sean Michael Kurt), who was not a good actor. I wasn't convinced that he really had bad legs. I can't stand these actors that don't put in the effort. I'm sure someone would have actually broken them for him.

The film as a whole was incredibly twee and a tad saccharine. There was a lot that was unbelievable as a result of that and I think that the script was a bit too basic and the story a bit too forced. For instance, when Valerie suddenly had a moment that was totally uncharacteristic.

Also, there was no way a business that just sold Santa Hats would survive without an online presence and it wouldn't need such a huge factory and office to supply and run it. There was a lot that was unexplained or just not thought about.

And aren't soapbox cars supposed to be made of old parts and, um I don't know, Soap Boxes? The car that Nick built with Scotty was basically a mahogany chariot with all mod cons and a walnut dashboard.

Needless to say that there were some issues with this film. It was sweet and sort of Christmassy, but without the effort that has been put in to them more recently. Not one that will be going on my list to watch again.

3.75/10.

Leave your hat on

[Prismark10 · 2/10 · 11 December 2016]

Another Hallmark Christmas movie but this one really is sub-par.

Mia is a single mom of a disabled boy (Scotty ) and is also a manager in a small town Christmas hat shop, you know the ones that sell Santa hats for a $1. Do not let that small shop size fool you because behind it all is a big warehouse employing lots of staff and even a bigger management office.

However selling seasonal hats has a downside, things are bad after Christmas and the lack of a web presence does not help. The company is in trouble. Nick has been called in from New York by his father who runs the ailing company to turn it around and he specialises in managing companies in trouble by cutting costs.

Mia has to get Nick up to speed in the business and he takes an interest in her son Scotty helping him with a pumpkin carving contest and later a cart race.

Mia is wary how genuine Nick is after all he has left a swanky lifestyle in New York where he is a business consultant and she fears the worst when she overhears plans to downsize the company and benefits.

The trouble is this is just a predictable badly written schmaltzy story and the actors are just going through the motions. The film looks like it has just come off some of a conveyor belt with no love or effort put into it.

Its a Hallmark film hats off to them

[zendatrim · 8/10 · 12 December 2021]

Ok well really this is a typical Hallmark movie well acted by adults and children. It had a decent enough story. Yeh cheesy with the usual hallmark obligatory christmas music and themes. BUT i really enjoyed it. It whiled away a few hours and it didnt get bored with it at all.

I enjoy the story line with Nick and the boy. It is what it is. If you watched it on the T. V. you would probably enjoy it and just watch another one as its on Amazon which surprisingly the reviews are much better.

I love the idea of xmas 365 days a year why not.

I thought the title was ok, the store was called Hats Off to christmas...... MERRY XMAS EVERYONE.

Cast

[judyharl · 5/10 · 22 July 2020]

No chemistry Haylie Duff she needs to give up acting so awful usually like Anthony Cupo but this is an awful

Mediocre Hallmark

[markermiavid · 5/10 · 8 November 2018]

I was a reluctant Hallmark holiday movie watcher until I could see the joy in a repetition...a gazebo...a snowstorm...a miscommunication...tradition...and happy resolution finding the deeper meaning. My favorites are when the couples seem like they really like each other and you can play Hallmark Bingo. It took awhile to get to the Christmas part, I couldn't really play Hallmark Bingo and I wasn't sure if the couple liked each other very much.

Hats off to this Movie

[dalouw · 10/10 · 11 September 2023]

Balancing themes of fatherhood, kinship, and the true meaning of Christmas in October, Hats off for Christmas is a challenging yet familiar American modern classic. Nick Boward is a New York hedge fund manager who has to go back to small town USA to save his father's Jewish-owned Santa hat shop from bankruptcy. After spending a month looking over invoices, Nick the finance specialist can't figure out why the year round Christmas hat store with one branch and an enormous corporate office is failing. Haylie Duff (Mia) is a newly widowed mother to a wheelchair user as well as a 10 year employee of the Christmas hat store. After being disappointed by not getting an expected promotion, Mia is tasked with teaching Nick how to use a cash register for two months. A doctor informs Mia that her son can learn to walk again if he gets a new dad. Despite a rocky start, Mia and Nick quickly hit things off after Nick takes off his shirt. Will Nick give up his life of endless Porsches, women, and penthouse apartments to carve pumpkins with a dork kid?