It's Christmas, Eve (2018 TV Movie) User Reviews

Emotions and music.

[MIssM19 · 8/10 · 13 November 2018]

Eve Morgan, is a school superintendent whose next job is in her hometown. Her neighbour, Liam, happens to be the music teacher in the high school and head of the Christmas show. Having herself a musical past, but having no other choice she decides to shut down the music and art program. After spending time with Liam, and this case hitting close to home they both find another solution to their problem.

I was a little hesitant about this movie: I saw Tyler in another movie a few days ago and I wasn't convinced and I honestly didn't know anything about LeAnn. I'm so happy I decided to give this movie a chance. I got hooked from the very first moment. The chemistry between the actors was amazing.

We see development in Eve's character, we see her bonding with Liam and his daughter (who is adorable, by the way), and even her mother and step-father. It was all about her. It was a pretty typical Christmas movie, however, the last 15 minutes of the movie, were making me feel all kinds of things.

Definitely above average.

It's Christmas, Eve

[studioAT · 6/10 · 5 December 2020]

Singer LeAnn Rimes is the latest big name to pop up in a Hallmark Christmas film, and based on this I'd welcome her back for a return visit in the future.

It helps that this film has clearly been shaped around her, giving her the chance to sing and that her leading man (Tyler Hines) is able to make even some of the cheesiest lines in the piece seem natural with his dry delivery.

It is though very much a film that follows the Hallmark tried and tested formula, with only the subplot about the mother and her new husband feeling a bit more original.

Ironically for a film constructed around an actual singer the film's big song isn't that great, with Rimes sob/speaking/singing it to the point where actually I couldn't understand what was being sobbed/spoken/sung.

Overall though a decent film.

Sing me a story with Eve

[TheLittleSongbird · 6/10 · 12 January 2021]

Hallmark and Lifetime films that have singers in acting roles don't always come off well (i.e. Kellie Pickler), or at least the casting doesn't come off well, and there are singers in film overall that have successes in music but don't fare anywhere near as well in acting (i.e. Madonna). As well as 'It's Christmas, Eve' being part of my Hallmark Christmas film completest quest, a big reason for seeing the film was LeAnn Rimes as someone who has respect for her voice and artistry.

'It's Christmas, Eve' is one of the Hallmark films that is a pleasant enough inoffensive watch, but turned out to be nothing too special. It's definitely worth a look as you want to see every Christmas film Hallmark has done, but 'It's Christmas, Eve' is a film with plenty of ups and downs (a case of the second half being better than the first) and it's evidence of Rimes being a much better singer than she is as an actress. Am hoping that that does not come over as mean.

Am going to begin with talking about 'It's Christmas, Eve'. Am going to have to agree with those who have been critical of Rimes. She sounds absolutely wonderful but her acting is wildly inconsistent. She does get better thankfully, but she is often very stiff and dull in the first half and fails to generate much warmth. Also thought that she didn't have enough sparkle or chemistry with Tyler Hynes and that their relationship wasn't developed or used enough, not to mention it is a very typical Hallmark type of romantic chemistry.

To me, the early stages of the film is quite slow with it taking too long for the quite predictable story to find its footing and momentum. Some of the dialogue is cheesy.

On the other hand, Hynes does fare a lot better in the acting department. He actually looks comfortable and is charming, the role he plays is not much new but he doesn't overplay it or make the character too stale. The supporting cast are good. My favourite performance actually comes from Eden Summer Gilmore, she was adorable and touched my heart. Younger actor performances always varied in Hallmark films and Gilmore here is one of the hits. Loved the father and daughter chemistry, and Rimes' acting actually does improve and become more sympathetic when she is with Gilmore. It was good to see characters that develop and ones that are easier than usual to care for (Liam and Abby are very easy to root for), took me a while to warm to Eve but it managed to just about happen by the end.

Moreover, 'It's Christmas, Eve' has a professional look to it with attractive location work equally attractively shot. The music is an aspect that often is not executed well in Hallmark's output, it's something that comes over very well here. With truly lovely and beautifully performed songs, "The Gift of Love" and "You and Me and Christmas" did touch my heart and warmed it up. The dialogue is not great in the first half, but becomes heartfelt without being schmaltzy and very engaging in the second. The story has nothing new and doesn't start off promising, but a lot of the second half is very heart-warming and poignant. It was hard to not tear up during the stepfather learning the song subplot.

Summing up, pleasant enough if very up and down. 6/10

Cute, but many shortcomings

[Anonnamus · 6/10 · 3 January 2019]

I actually enjoyed this movie, despite Leann Rimes showing the emotional range of a Christmas stocking. The music was enjoyable and catchy, and Liam and Abby were extremely likable characters. Typical Hallmark fare, and though Rimes' lack of acting ability was distracting at times (was the film's budget so low that they couldn't afford eyedrops to at least show a tear or two during those sobs at the end?) it still made me feel the warm fuzzies. I'd recommend it, especially to those who are addicted to these types of movies during this time of year.

LeAnn Rimes sings!

[kz917-1 · 6/10 · 15 July 2019]

LeAnn Rimes is the main star is this Christmas film along with Tyler Hynes.

Rimes is Eve Morgan the interim school superintendent tasked with saving money and Hynes is Liam Bailey music teacher. With art and music funds on the chopping block the two try to find a way to save the curriculum for the students.

The song really is one of the best parts. Tissue alert towards the end. Be prepared!

Worth a watch.

Very enjoyable!

[Luvhallmark · 9/10 · 7 January 2019]

I enjoyed this movie very much. I absolutely loved the music. Ironically, it's usually the background music in the Hallmark movies that drives me completely bonkers being way too loud and overbearing... but in this movie, LeAnn's voice is beautiful, God blessed her with a very sweet and lovely voice. I found the movie to be very enjoyable, I liked the chemistry between the leads, they were both very good. Well done, I will most likely purchase this movie so I can watch it throughout the year as I painfully wait for Christmas 2019! I will also purchase a few of the sound tracks as well.

It's Christmas, Eve

[JoBloTheMovieCritic · 6/10 · 20 July 2019]

6/10 - filled with bad acting, but an okay storyline

perfect 10

[ronbokirk · 10/10 · 14 November 2018]

I have just finished my fourth viewing of this motion picture, and have to say this is one of the best Hallmark Christmas movies ever made. I found no fault with any part of this movie. Great acting, great story, and for once great music. my score 10....

Different setting and plot, with some acting, make an okay Christmas movie

[SimonJack · 6/10 · 23 November 2022]

"It's Christmas, Eve" is a different enough story, including location, to hold one's attention. It breaks away from a snowy mountain town, "North Pole" winter setting. I enjoy the mountains very much, but plots for Christmas romance movies set there soon run thin. When the scenery is the only thing that doesn't become monotonous, a movie can't be very good. So, this film is at least set in a different, more common setting, but one with a snowy clime in winter.

Also different is that it's not about an overworked corporate exec or grinch who finds redemption in a small town, along with romance. Instead, that one lead character is a traveling interim school superintendent, Eve, who specializes in helping bankrupt school districts get back on their feet. But, she has no children and lost her husband a few years ago, so she has buried herself in her work. Her current bailout job is taking her to her hometown for this Christmas and beyond. Her jobs usually last just a few months, and so she travels the country quite a lot.

The counterpart in this romance is the Franklin Ridge High School music teacher, Liam. He has a very talented and precocious daughter, Abby. But he is fairly new to town and the job, having just moved into the house next door to Eve's mother's home. The school board and principals all know that Eve is coming, and word had gotten around to the staffs. Liam knows that when schools have budget problems, the first things that go are the music and art programs. Liam shares having Abby during the year with her mother, a heart surgeon in Toronto. Abby stays with her mom in the summer, and with her dad during the school year.

Eve's dad died several years ago, and her mom remarried in her old age. Her new husband, John, is a retired fireman who dotes on her. Eve likes him and as she settles in for her first Christmas observance in a few years, with her mom, and meeting with school officials and boards before the holidays, she and Liam run into one another. After she begins to recover from her past loss, and she and Liam get close, she takes a new tact. Instead of pitching the cuts and layoffs to the school board on how to get its budget under control, she tries to find new ways for the school system to find the revenues so it doesn't have to make cuts.

The fact that Liam once had his own rock band will come into the picture, and music will help save the day - and maybe this romance. For the originality of the story, and some good performance (Tyler Hynes as Liam, Gwynyth Walsh as Eve's mom, Nella, and Eden Summer Gilmore as Abby), this film earns six stars. LeAnn Rimes seems too withdrawn in her character as Eve. And, while Liam shows signs of heart-strings for Eve, one has to wonder about it because she emotes nothing that would resemble what movie buffs call chemistry.

Dull

[bgdl26 · 2/10 · 18 December 2018]

Always into a good cheesy Christmas movie but they should not have Leann Rimes in them. She is just so dull and displays no emotion in any of her scenes. She clearly is bored out of her mind and has zero chemistry with the lead actor. Skip this one.

Surprisingly good

[ambie719 · 8/10 · 19 November 2018]

I'm not big on the more music focused Hallmark movies and I always have very low expectations of singers acting but I was very pleasantly surprised by this. Leann Rimes' acting was a bit stiff but definitely much better than I had thought it would be, and the music in the movie wasn't too much. All in all a solid Hallmark Christmas movie.

LeAnn Rimes with Hynes

[MickyG333 · 7/10 · 16 December 2022]

7.3 stars.

My question going into this was, can Rimes carry a leading role in a Hallmark Christmas film? Actually, I already knew she could. Have you seen her in 'Northern Lights' many years ago? Seemed like yesterday for me. That was a great film and she shined in it. Her acting skills are not great per se, but she is still comparable to many of the average female leads in Hallmark films. What she has is more screen presence and a certain panache many of her peers fail to capture. I'll admit this film does not showcase as much of her panache, she portrays a bit more of a subdued personality. However, she is one of the few who can ACTUALLY sing and one of the best voices out there. Her skills are probably coveted and I bet she's not cheap to hire for a Hallmark role.

Hynes, of course, is one of the best leading men for Hallmark. He does justice to his character in this movie, the single dad trope, with the young daughter, mom either died or left him for her career or another man. Funny how Hallmark would have us believe that so many women leave the men behind to fend for themselves and raise children. Let's be honest it's unrealistic, but it does happen, however rare. Probably the number of fathers who abandon the family is ten times higher than mothers, and I digress.

It's a nice heartfelt drama speaking of old wounds filled with disappointment, lost family, and sad Christmases that can be healed through the power of music. It also shows us of the importance of expressing oneself through music.

'It's Christmas, Eve' is slightly above average for me, nothing to write home about. I'll watch it again in 5 years.

A little silly and predictable

[HotToastyRag · 3/10 · 22 December 2020]

Calling all LeAnn Rimes fans; she made a Hallmark Christmas movie! If you like your Hallmarks with songs in them, you'll probably want to check this one out. She plays a career woman charged with shutting down a school's music department, but since it's LeAnn Rimes, she feels conflicted.

Towards the end of the movie, my mom and I couldn't help cracking jokes at its expense. It was matinee day, and we were getting a little slap-happy with all the Hallmark tropes. LeAnn doesn't know whether to further her career or pursue a romance with Tyler Hynes that may or may not end in a week. She turns to Gwynyth Walsh for advice, and Gwynyth says, "Whenever I find myself in that position, I listen to my heart." We repeated the line, changed a couple of words, and laughed ourselves silly. Now, we can't think of LeAnn Rimes without repeating the rhyme to "heart." The great thing about Hallmark Christmas movies is it brings out the child in all of us, and there's nothing more childish than laughing at silly, cheesy lines of dialogue. But, if that's the most memorable part of the movie, perhaps that speaks volumes...

Nicely Done.

[adamjohns-42575 · 7/10 · 30 January 2023]

It's Christmas, Eve (2018) -

Who would have thought that LeAnn Rimes of all people would want to cut the music programme at a small town school, but that's exactly what she had planned in the role of Eve.

She did have a cracking singing voice when she finally let rip though. I was also surprised by how well she acted, having not known her for anything other than her singing before.

And I appreciated the likeness that she shared with Gwynyth Walsh as her Mother Nella. They looked spot on next to each other, which was a little detail that I don't generally look for, but pleased me for the effort.

I loved Tyler Hynes too. He was great in 'Three Wise Men And A Baby' (2022) where he delivered someone slightly different to the usual leading men of these films and he was good in this one as well, playing the role of Liam.

But why has Giles Panton always been a side character? That man is gorgeous and charming and should be everywhere. I liked his role of Brad and would definitely be keen to see him in a higher profile part.

With regards to the story, wouldn't it be great if the business consultant, head office type people that crunched numbers actually did come up with ways to make a difference, instead of just saying cut this or cut that? Like, what if the job Centre found the unemployed jobs that they were actually wanting, instead of just sending them away with a link to a jobs website? It's the same sort of thing. I liked how this film broached the idea of someone going above and beyond in their assigned role to do what they should essentially be doing in the first place and I hope that it inspires more to act in that way.

Despite the fact that the general story had all been done before, let's face it, there is very little that hasn't been done with this formulaic genre, this film was actually a very sweet version of the particular trope and the romance was cute. There was none of the arsey falling out, just a something to think about, which was refreshing.

6.75/10.

Typical Hallmark Christmas Romance

[herrcarter-92161 · 7/10 · 26 September 2023]

This movie was a pretty standard Hallmark Christmas romance. You had the familiar tropes of a woman coming back to her small town for Christmas and working on a Christmas show, plus a nice-guy. Single dad and his adorable daughter connecting with said woman. Nothing we haven't seen before.

The performances were decent. LeAnn Rimes gave a heartfelt, emotional performance, and she was very likable and relatable. I wouldn't call her an Oscar-level actress, but it's clear that acting is part of her skillset, as well as singing. Tyler Hynes was good, too. I like him much better without a beard, by the way. They had reasonably good chemistry together, too. Not sizzling, necessarily, but they had an easy, comfortable relationship.

In my opinion, the dialog drifted a bit much into the territory of "Hallmarkspeak", i.e. The stilted, supposedly witty dialog that often comes out of the mouths of Hallmark characters, but which nobody in real life would use. I also thought the whole scene where Eve and Liam talk about the "meet cute" of the couple that spilled coffee on each other was kind of weird. I think maybe they were trying to parody other Hallmark movies, where a couple's meeting invariably involves some spilled beverage. But it seemed like a bit too much inside baseball to me. Who in the real world uses the term "meet cute"? And the scene at the end, where Eve intentionally spills hot chocolate on Liam was even more cringy.

Another complaint that I had was that LeAnn Rimes didn't sing more. All we got from her was a short duet at the Christmas festival, a few lines of her singing Liam's composition a capella, and a couple of snippets of background music. The plot kind of constrained her from singing, as she had forsaken music after the death of her musician father (kind of a stupid plot point too). But if you're going to hire a famous singer to act in your movie, you should at least give her a chance to sing. A duet of Eve and Liam performing his song would have been ideal.

So, I'd call this movie a nice diversion. The story was sweet but kind of forgettable. The story dragged in spots and was not that engaging. The end was very predictable (like there was really ever a chance that Eve would move to San Diego instead of settling down permanently in her small town?) Exactly what you would expect from a Hallmark Christmas romance, and not much more.

I enjoyed this!

[rldepo · 10/10 · 17 November 2018]

I was pleasantly surprised by LeAnn! She did a great job. It's Hallmark folks, just enjoy!

All Good Vibes and Good For All Audiences

[happypanda-40536 · 10/10 · 9 December 2020]

LeAnn Rimes is definitely the star of this movie. Give this movie a chance, Everybody needs positivity, love and courage to move on from the past. Although LeAnn is known to be a songstress this does not focus on her talent alone but gave way to other aspects we can experience about our talents - like giving yourself another chance to try your passion and talent. Watch this and have a Merry Christmas!

Emotionless, boring, and just not good.

[jonathan-01459 · 2/10 · 28 November 2018]

I am a huge fan of Hallmark movies and am comfortable with the typical plots. I frankly love 9/10 of them. However, this movie was just not good. The characters were emotionless, the acting was poor, the story line was slow and really hard to connect with. The only redeeming quality was the cute story of her step-father learning the song to play for her mother. That's where the 2nd star comes from. Beyond that, it was just bad.

I Did Not Want This Movie to End.

[gehewe · 10/10 · 9 January 2019]

I did not want this movie to end. I only give about 1 out of 10 movies the perfect score and that is after screening them on IMDB before I watch. They did such an awesome job casting and the story had those little things that make a movie special. If you read the summary "interim superintendent arrives to close school district music program" you might think that is an old story. Yes it is. I remember A HOLIDAY ROMANCE (1999) with Naomi Judd and SOUND OF CHRISTMAS (2016) with Lindy Booth. Both were excellent but not as good as this movie.

Leann Rhimes as Eve the superintendant was a perfect cast. She is much more the singer than the actress and this made the movie exceptional. It was her voice on about 3 original songs. We have Liam the music teacher and Abby his daughter- wonderful choices here. The role of the mom is so good. Her husband was just so perfect- that shy-ness and writing that song. We also have Lara Gilchrist as the best friend and she still reminds me a bit of an Alicia Witt. The small part of the mayor was played by Ellie Harvie who I recognize from Aurora Teagarden. In the opening scene Eve and Liam meet by seeing a meant to be couple meet by a spilling coffee collision and Liam calls it fate. It was great. Christmas Beneath the Stars and 162,500 will be images in my mind. Well Done!! I'll watch it again and again.

Chemistry

[mitchellrharl · 5/10 · 9 November 2020]

No chemistry Leeann Rimes and Tyler Hynes beautiful story all other characters great beautiful music . Rimes and Hynes acting seems forced

Great voice

[Jackbv123 · 9/10 · 31 October 2020]

Like another reviewer, I just watched this movie again. Maybe 2-3 times all the way through, but I have watched parts of the ending at least a dozen times, maybe a couple dozen. Whether you want to watch a movie again is a huge factor in rating enjoyment, whatever words or praises or criticisms you have for it.

Before seeing this the first time, I knew little about LeAnn Rimes. Since then I've asked Alexa to play an assortment of her songs and I can't say any of them were as catchy as the song in this movie. But what really impressed me was the scene where she rescues Abby's public performance. Quite sappy. But I can really love sappy. The movie sets this scene up a little too obviously, and maybe with a little melodrama, but when I hear that voice come out of the looming silence, it hits me every time. There's more sappiness in watching Eve's family react to her singing for the first time since Dad died. Did I mention that can be a good thing? Actually, she sings two songs in this movie. The title song isn't quite as catchy, but it contributes its own drama.

The story is quite derivative. Save the _____ (arts programs) is one of the most overused themes in Christmas movies. Using a festival, or concert, or some such, is also up there as far as well worn. Having one of the leads as the axe wielder is also common. Having that same hatchet person join in saving the program is even another. OK, it's all been done. So let's look to the characters and the performances.

Tyler Hines does his job as Liam, and the character is likeable and significant. LeAnn Rimes is easy to pick on since I guess you could say acting is not her day job. She's definitely not the best, but I'd watch her again. She seems natural enough in her role. I think it's well worth it to set up her songs. And you can't help but appreciate Eve, especially in her relationship with Abby. Eden Summer Gilmore is perfect as the adorable little girl. From the first scene to the last, I just wanted to see more of her. She was natural in the role and didn't have to overact to be adorable. Rimes and Gilmore have great chemistry, and Rimes also has decent chemistry with Hines.

If I could adjust something in this movie it would be to give Eve and Liam more time together. Likewise including Abby. A good bit of the screen time is spent with the logistics of saving the music program. And there was a sub-plot with Eve's stepdad learning a song for Eve's mom. For me, watching relationships develop between the leads is the fun part of this type movie.

A "Must See"!

[JSGal · 10/10 · 5 December 2019]

I have watched this movie several times, and have enjoyed it each time. Tyler Hynes is becoming one of the top Hallmark actors! He and LeAnn Rimes exhibit great chemistry; much more than with Kellie Pickler. Her songs were great! Hope to watch it again this year.

Predictable, Clichéd Christmas Vehicle For LeAnn Rimes

[francesfarmersrevengeonseattle · 2/10 · 15 November 2018]

Tis the season, and it's Hallmark's season to make bank. So here is LeAnn Rives as co-producer of a really perfectly Clichéd Christmas movie. She will never be an Oscar winner, and someone should take her aside and tell her to stick with singing and songwriting. The acting is so pathetic and corny, and there is less than zero chemistry between her character "Eve" and the male lead played by Tyler Hynes. Snoozer in the first 15 minutes, If LeAnn said "amazing" or "imporDant" one more time in this silly film, I may have thrown a stone statute through my flat-screen. On a side note, did anyone else see a physical resemblance between Tyler Hynes and a young Matthew Perry? Of course none of MP'S talent or comedic timing, but from height and certain angles of his face are really close. Skip this one, folks. It's really awful.

Heart Touching

[aprilskye-68434 · 10/10 · 20 July 2020]

In my opinion, this Hallmark movie stands out above most. The characters come across as "real" rather than just acting. I like the pace of the movie and the music. LeAnn's voice is so touching singing this song. Having two grown daughters myself, I'm so touched by the scene towards the end when she's talking with her mother and telling her "I don't know what to do." That part always leaves a catch in my throat! I think all the actors were perfect in the roles they played! Definitely a "Ten!"

Sad and a big plug for arts in schools.

[cgvsluis · 4/10 · 13 January 2022]

Loveable high school music teacher has a meet cute with the interim school superintendent who is about to get his job cut.

His daughter is adorable and he is fantastic(Liam). He is divorced...and the main character Eve is feeling bad about cutting the arts at the school...but it isn't something she hasn't done before.

This was pretty sad for a holiday romance.

Eve's deceased father was a musician and she used to sing...before he died he was writing a song for her "It's Christmas, Eve", which was their inside joke....ok do the rest of the movie was completely predictable!