2021, David Winning (Van Helsing) -- Amazon/StackTV
Because we just finished watching The Nine Lives of Christmas and because this one would be about kittens. KITTENS ! Can I get an, "aww kitties" from the Kent?
THEIRstory:
So, if the original was 2014, and this is in 2021, we have seven years lapsed. And our lovely couple had the audacity to break up. Poor Ambrose! Poor Queenie.
Zachary (apparently I was disrespecting him the last post) is still in Jamestown, Oregon (we got a name!) and still at the firehall. The buddy firefighters from the first movie are nowhere to be seen, but Sam the Chief is there, and his daughter Gabi is now on staff.
Meanwhile, Marilee is in Miami with her new veterinarian practice and new beau Miles. And this year they are going to finally make it home to Oregon for the first time since Zachary and Marilee had the audacity to break up five years ago. Also, Queenie has passed on (*sniff*) and a Duchess has joined the royal family. BUT Miles will join her there, as he cleans up things with the staff of their business.
Sister Jaclyn now has a daughter Sierra, who was either hidden behind the scenes in the last movie, or adopted at a young age, cuz no way she is only seven. The sisters ponder their long dead parents, and Jaclyn breaks out a gift she found in their parents house, an advent calendar! Whatever could be behind those pictures on each date? Perhaps something related to each of the pictures? No, I guess we will never figure out until Sierra pokes her finger through and finds charms (bracelet) of the item that was in that picture that's totally unrelated to the charm behind it. Also, advent calendar plays no part in the movie but for filler. There is LOTS of Xmas filler in this movie, for no reason other than to have Xmas Filler. Maybe because the last one lacked so much of it?
They go out Xmas shopping, or Xmas wandering, and Jaclyn steers them past the firehall, because of course she does. And there is Zachary in his best elf suit green, and .... sparks fly. Yeah, they are amiable and cute, but this time it's Zachary displaying all the awkwards, and Marilee is well put together. Well, other than forgetting that Miles exists.
The next day Zachary finds THE KITTENS. I mean, seriously, its a box full of cute kittens poking their heads out through holes. Thus begins us making non stop oo's and ahh's about and comments about which kitten we want the most. Zachary enlists Sam the Chief, who is busy trying to not be at work, and planning retirement time with his wife. Change, she is a'coming so watch out Zachary, cuz Zachary does not like change, and that ended his relationship with Marilee. Also, the town vet has retired and Zachary needs a vet to check out the kittens before he begins his adoption drive; who ever will he enlist? It's a mystery.
The Xmas Errands segment is really, truly cute. There are posters (better than the usual fare in these movies) and visits to potential adopters. And they are staying at sister Jaclyn's place, where Sierra names them all after reindeer. And there is retirement party planning, and bad gift choices and non-toxic feeling of feelings between men. And an inserted Bundt baking scene between the sisters -- see previous comment on Xmas Filler. And the hokey pokey Xmas Tree shopping segment redux where Zachary and Marilee choose the same tree, but for different families -- awkward.
And just tons of shots of cute kittens looking at cat wranglers just off camera. And lot's more oo-ing and ahh-ing from our sofa. I want the calico. Or the smokey gray.
And then Miles appears, in that period of time Kent calls the 20-minutes-to-go-complication. Dude, the guy just realized how he was screwing up and flew all the way from Florida to Oregon to make amends. In many movies this would be the reconciliation path, but in Hallmarkies, he was doomed from the moment he walked on the screen. He's not quite the Dick BF, but he is, and Mariless knows what she wants now, and it is at least Jamestown, if not Zachary, because the two have not been acknowledging rekindling. But Zachary Misunderstands (90s shoe gazer band name) and it takes the combined efforts of Ambrose and Duchess to mend things.
The next day Marilee has taken over the town vet office, Zachary has accepted the role of fire chief, and he presents Marilee with a new house he just finished reno-ing. Oh, and here is an engagement ring. But seriously, the only thing of import is that they will adopt Rudolph together. And maybe they will live Happily Ever After this time?
The Formulae:
Given the first barely attempted, this one went chock full, going so far to insert scenes that played no role in the actual movie but to shout Xmas from the snow covered roofs. But also, it actually used the standard trope of Big City Girl (Miami qualifies as a Big City, right?) coming home to PST after an extended time away. And her old flame is still in the PST doing his very least to get his life on track. There are Xmas Events, Xmas tree huntings, Xmas Parties, and decorating montages, and Xmas related deadlines. Though that latter is fabricated, as there is no reason the kitties have to be adopted by any time period. And that complication thing, where Dick BF has all his hopes & dreams crushed under he heels of Hallmarkie reconciliation.
Unformulae:
There wasn't a whole lot of drastically unformula, except in those elements that have to tie to this movie being a sequel.
True Calling?
It does so, even more so than the first movie. There are nine kittens and it is Xmas.
The Rewind:
Dude, did that cat just fish a cell phone out of handbag and TOSS it at Marilee? Yep it sure did. Also, we did pause and rewind to get a good shot of the Advent Calendar, to confirm that yes indeedy all the "totally unknown charms" behind the sticker seal were in fact depicted on the sticker seal.
The Regulars:
Part of the problem in both of us doing the same movie is that some of the standard sections, like this one are just repeating what the other said. So, go read the Ken't post.
How does it Hallmark?
Even more so than the first! I can recall that in previous versions of this segment of T&K, I actually looked forward to seeing less formulaic examples of the Hallmarkie, but this year, I seem to be micro-focused on the trope. I don't have a lot of mental energy to ponder things this year, so give me more of exactly what I expect. Which, I guess is exactly the mindset of why they do these movies the way they do these movies.
How does it movie?
So, I have been thinking about how any of these can ever qualify as a proper movie. But that is not the right way to think about them. We should be thinking about whether they qualify as a re-watchable seasonal movie. There were PLENTY of bad movies that showed up on TV during this time of year, when I was growing up. And if it was on, I sat down and watched. It didn't have to be good for me to enjoy the hit of seasonal nostalgia. Now, that said, would THIS movie fit into that? No, not so much either. Its a fun romp while it was on, but that's that. Unless they do a third with 99 kittens?
How Does It Snow?
The first one was shot during that rare alignment of the stars where Xmas was celebrated in late May, and had no show, not even any fake snow, nor even cold weather. But this one had faked snow scenes, some traditional shavings from the rink and even some real snow, I do believe!
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