Toast & Kent's Xmas (2025) Advent Calendar - Day 23: Window Wonderland

The Draw: Vintage Hallmark. DC Arrowverse star as lead. Paul Campbell. And because I had to get one more Hallmarkie in for Toasty.

HERstory: 

The head window dresser for the big New York department store, McGuire's, has left to a competitor, so they're without decorator. Sloan has been working at the store for 2 years, while Jake, glib Jake, snarky Jake, aggravating Jake has been with the company two months. The open position could be one of theirs if they impress Finch -- their stressed-out, tiny mustachioed boss -- with their pitches, which he's betting they will not. They have 95 years of tradition to live up to.

Sloan is super keen to get the job, but her boyfriend, high powered  Wall Street banking douche (is there any other kind?) Kenneth (Kenny) is pouting because Sloan will not be able to go to Aspen over the holidays if she gets the new job.  But he sees that she wants it, so he tells her he'll talk to old man Maguire's kid at the club and the job is hers. She declines and wants it on her own merit.

Jake poses as a sleepy artists model in the evening so he can paint in the studio after. The next morning, they're to present Tiny Mustache with their pitches for a window display. Sloan gets the south window with her pitch, and Jake gets the North window with his sketch that he just cranked out on a napkin 7 minutes before the pitch was due. They're told that each one getting window is now the competition and the one to bring in the most customers between now and Christmas(!?!? How on earth is that measurable? Are the cashiers taking a survey? What's going on here).Sloan complains that she worked all night on her pitch and Jake just cranked his out, to which Tiny Mustache says he would have got both windows if his second napkin design wasn't all smeared with frosting.

Rita (Naomi Judd) is the bitchy bathroom attendant just keepin' it real with Sloan, but of course she gets along great with smarmy Jake. Turns out she's Sloan's mom. Both Sloan and Jake get along with Mac, the window cleaner who they both chat up in the mornings. 

Sloan's window is a NY skyline with a gold cutout of the Statue of Liberty with a Santa hat on it standing in cotton batting. Jake's is Mr. and Mrs. Claus watching TV in a very green room with some pithy signage. Nobody really likes Sloan, and she's told to work on hers or lose her window to Jake. After work Sloan winds up at the art studio where Jake is once again modelling. Apparently Tiny Mustache told her to go and attend.  As she sketches his eyes, she starts to smile (in small part because Jake keeps mugging at her). After session, he shows her the painting he's been working on, but notes he can't finish it. He also notes his real desire is to be an artist, but he's struggling in NY and everyone back in his Maine small town is taking bets on when he's coming back, tail between his legs.

At dinner with her mom and Uncle Jimmy? Bea talks up how nice, funny and handsome Jake is... not like that ugly Kenny.
Their next window displays are Yoga Santa on a surfboard against a red background, while Jake's is a wood panelled "Santa's Man Cave". Their displays are somehow getting a great write-up in the local paper (you know, the local New York City paper) and sales are indeed up, so good work you two. Tiny Moustache says someone is definitely getting the promotion.

And then we learn that Jake actually living in the store. Bea tells Sloan she should invite Kenneth to their family "Christmas Eve Eve" event,but he's busy, and she then suggests Jake. Next morning Jake and Sloan chat up Mac and Jake starts suggesting Mac might want to meet a nice lady... like Bea... to which Sloan immediately tries to downplay and says to Mac, just leave it to me... without telling them Bea is her mom. The next window displays are Surfing Santa and eco-conscious Santa...both, so, so, so basic and not at all impressive.  

After leaving the building for the evening, Jake does his usual sneak-back-in routine to live at the store for another night, and Sloan follows him in. The jig is up. But Sloan promises not to tell Tiny Moustache (even though it's grounds for termination and possibly illegal), but because of the alarm settings they're trapped inside until morning, meaning that Sloan is missing Kenny's office Christmas party, but Jake says he'll show her a fun time in a closed apartment store. And it's bonding time, leading to a brutal honesty exchange. Sloan confesses she is a facade, she is a window display and confesses Bea is her mom, and she's embarrassed that she's embarrassed of her mom, while Jake feels shame that he's broke and his family doesn't believe in him. They both boost each other and inspire each other to a new level of store displaying. Sloan invites him to their Christmas Eve Eve event. Then they dance for some reason and he almost kisses her, but then security comes by (wait, now there's security? Where've they been this whole time? And there's no alarm on the rooftop door) and they hide behind the cosmetics counter until morning.

The Times comes by and takes pictures of them...absolutely terrible pictures. At dinner with Kenny, Sloan apologizes for missing the party, but Kenny said he feels sorry that she had to be trapped in the store with "that guy" and she lets slip that he's been slipping there. Kenny immediately wants to call his dad and tell old man Maguire, to get Jake fired and Sloan the job. The next day Mac lets slip that Jake has the security alarm codes and they didn't spend the night together by force, it was Jake's choice. Complication! She thinks he's trying to sabotage her, and oblivious that he just likes her. That's Kenny thinking, Sloan.

They toil through the night, and the next morning, Jake and Rita and Sloan are all chatting outside the back of the store. Kenneth rolls up in his limo and offers to take Sloan to Aspen one last time, but she declines. Then Kenny calls Rita over and drops some change in her mug of hot coffee. Sloan admonishes him, and then admits that Rita is her mom. Kenneth doesn't understand her confession, and it's hard to tell if Kenny is just being shallow and doesn't like that his girlfiend's mom is a bathroom attendant, or that she was lying to him. Probably the former.  

Jake shows Sloan his final pitch, and she thinks he's deliberately throwing the competition. He admits that he is, that it just means more to Sloan than him. At Christmas Eve Eve, Jake has showed up, surprising Sloan, and even more of a surprise, Jake has brought Mac as his plus one. And Mac and Rita admit they've been sweet on each other for quite a while. It's tur-dunkin' time (a turkey friend in Dunkin Donuts batter) and bun tossin' time. Sloan sees Jake having fun, and it's evident she realizes that Kenneth would never, ever, ever fit in this scene.

The Christmas Eve window unveiling ... Jake's display is just cookies and milk and a Santa hat. Minimalism. "Jake," Tiny Moustache says incredulously, "we're a department store, excess is what we do". Sloan's is a live display, a Christmas dinner scene with actors, that turns into a family food fight, but not the fun and playful display from her family gathering the night before. It gets uncomfortably brutal. People are repulsed. And Tiny Mustache fires them both! Oops. Now not only is Jake jobless, but homeless as well.

Sloan finds Jake at the art studio, apologizes to him, explains that she lost herself somewhere along the way, and asks him if they want to break back into the store and fix the mess. Along the way Kenny pulls up in his limo, with flowers (because Colorado is snowed in) and they have it out. Kenny, "I'm willing to overlook those people," and Sloan sniffs out that Kenny was on a date with the perfume counter girl. Yeah, this bullshit isn't going to work. Yeah, fuck that guy.

They get the display set up, but also set off the alarm trying to leave and they get arrested. But then a limo pulls up, and they think Kenny, first, but then the cuffs are taken off. Turns out, it's Old Man McGuire... Mac! Their friend the window washer is rich, and owns the department store, and loves these crazy kids and digs Sloan's mom. Their new window displays is a "classy" dinner table setup, and a living room display with Sloan and Jake as live models and Jake's painting and they make out.

The Formulae:Well, Sloan's got a dick boyfriend, that's classic holiday romance stuff. There's a sort of Christmas deadline/promotion angle the characters' journey as well. And of course there's the starting off as rivals only to fall for each other. And so many establishing shots of New York City. Honestly, I was expecting for a vintage Hallmark movie that there would be more tropes.

Unformulae: No Christmas tree shopping, no cookie baking, no snowball fights, no skating, no cotton batting as snow, no dead parents/spouse, no child and/or precocious niece/nephew, no hot chocolate or cider, no Christmas market, no perfect small town, no big city girl needing to get back to her roots.... close to nada formulae.

True Calling? All the window displays were fucking atrocious. Have the filmmakers and set decorators never, like, ever seen a Christmas window displays before? These are all...how do you say... tacky as fuck. They're like 2000s era hipster ironic, meaning in 2013 they were out of date already.  They're embarrassing. Sloan should be embarrassed, Jake should be embarrassed, the set designer and director and everyone involved should be embarrassed. There's not a single display they show us that is even on the cusp of being "good".

The Rewind: There were quite a few funny lines, a lot of wee chuckles here (upon receiving a window display, Jake starts into an acceptance speech ending with "...and of course I wouldn't be sitting here today without...this chair"). Paul Campbell's Jake is 100% styled after Jeff Winger on Community, in look and attitude. That's not the only Community riff, composer James Jandrisch (whom we had to rewind to find out right back to the beginning because he's not credited in the end credits) seems to be riffing on Ludwig Goransson's Community soundtrack work with its whistles and keyboard instrumentals.

The Regulars: Paul Campbell is a Hallmark hunk and one of the best of them. One of the three wisest one might even say. Always enjoy him and he's so... youthful here. Chyler Leigh, who played Kara's sister Alex in the Supergirl TV series (and across the Arrow verse), I was certain I had seen in a Hallmarkie before, but could not find anything in her IMDB profile, so this is it. Cameron Matheson was a Hallmark hunk until he jumped ship for Great American Family, the right wing a-hole alternative to Hallmark (I liked him in the Christmas Club fwiw) but he does too good a job being the dick BF here, and I don't like him at all. Naomi Judd isn't really the well known Judd in the acting realm, but she's got this, 1999's "A Christmas Romance" and 2014's "An Evergreen Christmas" (Before you get excited, Toasty, it's unrelated to the Christmas in Evergreen series and, in fact, the main character's name is "Evergreen"...let that sink in). Christie Liang plays the perfume counter girl who flirts with Kenny... she's been a bunch of these, but most before 2020 (she's also an Arrowverse veteran, having played Diggle's sister(?) in Arrow).

How does it Hallmark? Hey, I was kinda charmed. I thought Campbell was fun, Leigh didn't do that whisper talking thing she's prone to doing when she wants to be dramatic much (only once, I think), and the film felt situationally unique. Like I noted, not a lot of tropes in this one. It's not a top tier, but it's certainly upper middle.

How does it movie? It's...no. It's not. Let's not fool ourselves here. For a minute there, Hallmark seemed to flirt with "do we want to try, like...really try" but the reality is, no, they didn't want to try that hard. The only reason this seems like it's got a bigger, better budget is because they got to shoot in a department store in Vancouver at night, and that gave them sets that felt tangible and real.  But then you get to those window displays and, oof ba boof, you can tell there was no budget for anything left and the store didn't let them raid their basement. As well, I really wanted this to be ... sexier. It would have been so much better if it had the danger of sex percolating around it.  Like what if they *had* slept together at the store when they were trapped there, but Jake had lied about them being trapped... oooh, there's a real complication. Even when Kenny is busted for having been with the perfume counter girl, it was "just drinks", but you know it wasn't, but does the movie know that it wasn't?

How Does It Snow?  The only snow is the cotton batting in the window displays. Otherwise it rains, raining that Vancouver, erm, I mean, New York rain.

KWIF: lazy Sunday

 KWIF=Kent's Week In Film. This week's film watchings was interrupted by the return of AppleTV to the household, and by the awareness of a mouse in the house and the rampant messes that it made beneath our own cluttered masses. After a five day hunt the mouse was finally defeated, and I am exhausted. But prior to both of these events, I had a lazy Sunday of movies and Hallmarkies.

This Week:
Devil In A Blue Dress (1995, d. Carl Franklin - Hollywoodsuite)
S.O.S.: Save Our Skins (2014, d. Kent Sobey - Hollywoodsuite)
Three Wisest Men (2025, d. Terry Ingram - Hallmark/W)
A Keller Christmas Vacation (2025, d. Maclain Nelson - Hallmark/W)

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When you think of detective noir genre, you're thinking 1930s or '40's, black and white, lots of sultry horns on the soundtrack, cigarette smoking and stylish hats, dames in dresses and so much sexism, twisty plots and downer endings.

I never really embraced the detective noire genre. It seemed so...outdated when I was younger, and couldn't get over how much of it seemed like...affectation. It didn't help that the genre was riddled with cliches which comedies had mined to death. So at 19 years old when Devil In A Blue Dress came out as Denzel's sixth movie in the two years following Malcom X, well, I wasn't interested in this olde timey claptrap. Give me Virtuosity and Crimson Tide, all day everyday.

But, I've been in a detective/noir mood of late, inspired largely by rewatching the films of the Coen Bros., and it struck me, pretty hard, that I should give Devil in a Blue Dress a shot. I mean, if detective noires demand a strong lead, you don't get much stronger than Denzel J. Washington, Esq.

Devil in a Blue Dress is an adaptation of Walter Mosely's 1990 neo-noir novel of the same name, and introduced the world to Ezekiel "Easy" Rawlins (Washinton) [just try to tell me that Easy Rawlins is not the best noir detective name ever], a veteran of WWII who gets laid off but is desperate for work to pay his mortgage. He gets sent his way a smarmy, suspicious looking character, Albright (it's Tom Seizmore, so you know he's bad news) who wants Rawlins' help in looking for a woman. Easy sees the money, and even though he already senses something is off about the request, can't help but take the work.

Even though Easy is not a detective and has no past with law enforcement, he has a way with people, a confidence most others lack, and a physicality which is very intimidating even if you're twice his size. Soon after taking the case, an acquaintance who knows the woman he's looking for winds up dead, and suddenly things are getting real. Albright we quickly learn is a thug, and has misrepresented what exactly he's after. There's also an L.A. mayoral race at play and somehow both candidates are involved in whatever this big mess is.  At a certain point, Easy needs help, and calls in his army buddy Mouse (Don Cheadle) but Mouse's more...trigger-happy tendencies may be more of a hindrance than a help.  

Beneath it all, Easy still has PTSD from the war, and whatever the active version of traumatic stress disorder is from just being a Black man in America. The cops harass him, the white men play him, and he knows a white woman need say but a word and a mob will come after him.

Devil in a Blue Dress is an incredible noir story, featuring incredible characters, from the most major to the most minor (there's a mentally challenged man on Easy's street who keeps trying to cut down people's trees, and Easy is constantly chasing him off...while still acknowledging him as part of the community), and there's nothing quite like watching a character get chucked into the deep end and having to learn how to swim, only to discover they're an olympic caliber swimmer.

Devil in a Blue Dress did not do great at the box office, and it's a damn shame. Mosely has written 14 novels since 1990 starring Easy Rawlins (the latest came out this year), and we should have gotten a new Washington-starring Easy Rawlings adaptation every three years. With AppleTV killing it with their novel series adaptations, I think we need an Easy Rawlings relaunch as a series, maybe with John David Washington in the lead?

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In the before times, one would surf channels until they found something the caught their attention and just watch, usually all the way through, no matter how bad it was, because options were limited. We have nothing but options now, and it causes "analysis paralysis" where you just scroll and scroll and scroll through your various streaming services, often watching nothing more than a 60 second auto play snippet before moving on to the next thing. So much of the pain (and sometimes fun) of sifting through streaming is cutting past the cheaply produced, licensed-in-bulk amateurish garbage, only to occasionally find one starring a whole bunch of name-brand actors from TV series you used to watch 15 years ago, or it features a conceit that you just can't pass up watching.

S.O.S.: Save Our Skins is very much from the cheaply-produced, licensed-in-bulk pile, a British/Canadian co-production starring nobody I'm familiar with, but tantalized me on concept alone.

Two British nerds, Ben and Steven, have travelled to New York City for a comic book convention, only to wake up and find that the TV is off and their mobile service is down. Oh, and when they hit the streets the city is empty.

Right off, it's incredibly impressive for this exceptionally modest production to have managed to capture scenes on absolutely vacant NYC streets. This was shot 6 or 7 years before the idea of lockdown was in anyone's mind.

The nerds do what nerds do, which is annoy one another, look for junk food, go shopping, and panic only a little... er, well, a lot when they encounter a blue monster (which looks like if a pro wrestler from the 1950's joined the Blue Man Group). While foraging at a bodega, they encounter another man who invites them around to their place, and, yeah, he's a creep. The internet still works (I really have to wonder how much of our infrastructure can truly run on autopilot and for how long without human intervention) and they send out a message, which in turn they get a response from two Canadian nerds who beckon them to Toronto.

Along they way they encounter a mentally deranged woman who tries to assault them. Ben takes a liking to her and calls her "Killey". It's not a very flattering portrayal of the mentally ill, and also the fact that Ben, a lonely nerd, effectively grooms this woman who doesn't seem completely in her faculties is all kinds of ick.

At the centre of the entire story is a series of random images that flashes on screens, subliminal messaging from a strange figure who plays into the final act, where we learn about what's actually happening and why.

S.O.S. is meant as a comedy, but is rarely ever funny. The character portrayals are incredibly thin, with Ben being kind of oblivious and id-drive while Steven is the worrier who just wants to get in touch with his mum. 

The film does manage to effectivley capture, at least visually, the sense of emptiness with nobody else around, but emotionally you never truly feel it. I can only imagine what this would look like as a Pegg-Frost-Wright joint, which this is clearly a pale shadow of.

The ideas are definitely there, and it's decently well acted, but the characters, the adventure, the humour are all very much lacking.

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A  Light Toast to HallmarKent: Three Wisest Men

The Draw: Three Wise Men and A Baby was a goddamn delight. The casting of Hallmark superstars Andrew Walker, Paul Campbell and Tyler Hynes as brothers in a legit comedy was inspired. The sequel was diminishing returns, but still the leads made it more than worth the while. A third entry was going to be the "must watch" of the season, because even if it was lesser-than what came before, there was no doubt it would still be a joy to watch these three men perform together.

HERstory: Mom (Margaret Collins) is selling the house! Taylor (Hynes) has been given a job offer...in San Francisco... and his ex Fiona (Ali Liebert) is there too. Mom selling the house means he has to move anyway, but he's having commitment issues with current girlfriend Caroline (Erin Karpluck). Stephan's (Campbell) indecisiveness is getting in the way of marriage preparations with Susie (Fiona Vroom), and their house springs a leak just as Fiona's dad (Lochlyn Munro) comes to visit. Luke (Walker) is expecting twins (well actually it's Sophie [Nicole Major] expecting twins but Sophie's always been such a non-entity in these movies) and Thomas is getting jealous and acting out. Um, they're all staying at Mom's for one last Christmas in the home and it gets tense. Hijinks ensue.

The Formulae: Oh cripes...there's really none? Even the "getting a Christmas tree on Christmas Eve" trope is brought up but skipped over. There's no snowball fights, no cookie baking montage, and no overt propaganda for Big Hot Chocolate.

Unformulae: At one point the three boys, each in the midst of their own personal dilemmas, sit down to have a drink...and they're drinking beers, not hots cider or cocoa. This, unlike other Hallmarkies (not even the Evergreen movies), is very invested in its franchise and brings characters back from previous movies. Unlike the first sequel, it avoids callback-as-comedy which is great. This also steals a sub-plot from other movies like Jingle All The Way where Thomas wants a popular toy for Christmas but it's hard to get, so the boys go to extremes to get it. Where that could have been a whole movie, it's just a 10-minute aside.

True Calling? Who cares at this point, it fits the series, and it's more eloquent than the clumsy Three Wiser Men and a Boy.

The Rewind: There's an early sequence in the film where Luke and Sophie are at Lamaze class for parents expecting twins (or more) and the instructor is in the midst of a meltdown, providing no reassurance for the attendees as to what life will be like with multiple babies. As she starts bemoaning her husband's own mental breakdown, there's a brilliant smash-cut to "Tom" on his knees with three babies strapped to him like a baby bandolier.  

The Regulars: They're all regulars at this point, if not of Hallmark, then at least of the series.

How does it Hallmark? Because it's the third in a series, it's kind of way outside the usual parameters of a Hallmarkie. Where the first was still infused with holiday romance, because each of the brothers was single and they meet someone, and at least the second one hat Tayler meet cute-ing the awesome Caroline, this one has no romance at all. There's the hint of complication with Fiona (Taylor's love interest from the first) but the film doesn't play it out. So with that, and not leaning into any of the usual holiday tropes, it's not very Hallmarkie.

How does it movie? It remains a joy to see these three leads together. But this should have been a six- or eight-episode half hour sitcom. There's too much going on and not enough time for the movie to explore it all, and the shenanigans they get themselves into together feel disconnected from their individual story arcs.

The Taylor love triangle never pans out. Luke's anxiety over becoming a dad of twins isn't adequately explored. Stephan's Meet The Parents anxiety is the most underwhelming sub-plot, but make this a sitcom, give these stories room to breathe for both emotion and comedy and I think it would have been solid gold, rather than tarnished silver in need of a good buffing.

How Does It Snow? There's less than 60 seconds of outdoors in this movie, and what little outdoors we see are establishing shots of real winter scenes, or backgrounds where they've tufted some batting to make it look like snow around the edges. 

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A Light Toast to HallmarKent: A Keller Christmas Vacation

The Draw: Brandon Routh makes his triumphant return to Hallmark movies in a non-cat-centric movie this time. I'm here for it.

HERstory: The Keller kids are joining their parents on an Austrian riverboat cruise visiting the best Christmas markets in the world. College football team manager Cal (Routh) just lost out on what he thought was the love of his life. Construction executive Dylan (Jonathan Bennett) needs a break from his boyfriend (William) after his proposal is met with a "this is not the right time". Data analyst Emory (Eden Sher) has just been laid off. So they each are coming to the trip with baggage. But when a kindly grampa introduces Cal to his comely granddaughter Felicity (Jill Winternitz), and the ship's events coordinator takes a shine to plucky Emory, and William decides to join the family trip anyway. Mom and dad have a secret they need to share. It's all, well, it's a trip full of family bonding and romance. 

The Formulae: There is a scene where Emory and her bestie talk while decorating a Christmas tree. There's a gingerbread house making contest on the boat.

Unformulae: The film's opening credits play over a photo album that features the main family cast in different locales at different ages which is, I'm sure, all AI generated. The photos are too clean to be Hallmark's usual sloppy photoshopping. Strauss' "Waltz on the Beautiful Blue Danube" plays overhead, a touch of class over the AI tarnish.

Hallmark rarely springs for location shooting, and here they have a riverboat as a main set, they have beautiful Austrian cities and markets as backdrops, there's a rustic converted barn that's an ale house and lodge, and the kids have to take "Hansi" (a motorbike with a side car) through the hillsides to catch their boat after missing it the previous night.  Actual production values and wild, non-Canadian locations are so exciting and rare in Hallmarkies.

True Calling? They are Kellers, and they have a Christmas vacation.

The Rewind: So, Felicity is introduced to Cal by her grandfather and these two very attractive people take one look at each other and say "huh...not right now". Felicity is recently divorced, and Cal has some thinking to do. But they keep talking to one another, not flirting, just being friendly. But then in the Vienna market, Cal starts getting hit on by a pretty Austrian lady who is entranced by this American and Fiona, even though she has said she's *not interested* totally cock blocks him. "I love being rescued from an adorable Austrian who is totally flirting with me, especially when it's by a super-cute American whom I'm not allowed to flirt with." But in the scene right after that, the leering glare of the Austrian in the background...oh, the daggers her eyes are throwing.

The Regulars: Bennett is Hallmark royalty, Routh has a few of these under his belt, but this is Sher's first, but probably not last (she's got serious Lacey Chabert vibes, so it seems like they're seeding her). Winternitz's only prior is "Christmas in Scotlan", while handsome and charming Anand Desai-Barochia is a first timer as Bennett's boyfriend, but he's so sultry on screen without even trying (their kiss is great). Mom and Dad (Laurel Lefkow and Nigel Whitmey) are new to the genre, which is surprising given how the parent roles are usually where you find the most veteran of Hallmarkie actors. Beyond our leads, I think most of the performers here are regional hires.

How does it Hallmark? It's a top notch Hallmarkie, not defying the standards of a Hallmarkie too much while still offering something heartfelt and Christmassy. It's charming and funny with some sweet moments and a few pretty decent romantic moments.

How does it movie? As a Hallmarkie it's on a much grander scale than most, but even at that scale it's still shot like a Hallmarkie, and as well as it's acted, I don't think anyone could confuse this cast for a movie-movie. I mean Jonathan Bennett's hammy physical comedy and over-the-top snoring immediately take it out of contention for actual movie movie.

How Does It Snow? REAL SNOW! And LOTS OF IT!......

31 Days of Halloween: Haul Out the Halloween

2025, Maclain Nelson (Christmas in Vienna) -- download

In the same vein as the last movie (fits in because its set during Halloween), and yes, this is a Hallmarkie set at Halloween, and apparently one of a few in a "Haul Out the..." series. I learned one thing in watching this movie, in that if I am not watching a Hallmarkie with at least the thinnest hint of "the formula" then... well, I am not interested -- and they don't have to be just Xmas; I rather enjoyed a "harvest fest" a few years ago. This Hallmarkie came more by way of a terrible Disney Channel sitcom than a "proper" Hallmarkie, and yes, I said that -- "proper". But it was about decorating for Halloween, so at least that can be fun, huh?

Nuh uh.

So, it starts with Emily Melrose (Lacey Chabert, The Christmas Waltz) getting married to Jared Farnsworth (Wes Brown, My Southern Family Christmas). Sorry, it starts with a flyover of a Picturesque Small Town with snow capped mountains in the background, and some dialogue about Evergreen Lane. No, not Evergreen, the perpetual Xmas village of other Hallmarkies, nor Evergreen of Peacemaker but just some town with a cul-de-sac called Evergreen Lane. It is Autumn and the town is aflame in colours.

So yeah the main characters are getting married. I guess there were escapades in previous movies that have brought us to this moment, and we are supposed to recognize most of the supporting wedding cast. The wedding is typical Hallmarkie sweet but almost immediately the movie jumps into the plot -- new neighbours have moved in and they are a little over-the-top when it comes to decorating for Halloween. As in Violating the HOA Charter over-the-top. 

Yes, this is a movie about overbearing HOA members, and wherein most movies have the HOA as an unstoppable force of Evil, this one has them as the main characters. It says something about the current American value system that the Main Characters are all members of a horrible political system. Anywayz, it seems Halloween Decorating was not outright banned on Evergreen Lane but expected to be very toned down because of The Incident. What Incident, you ask? Well apparently Emily got jump scared when she was 10, so for the last 30 years... seriously, WTF? A kid gets scared at Halloween and they basically ban the event for THIRTY YEARS?!?! Pay no mind, obviously they repeal that or we wouldn't have the movie but... ?!?!?!

The rest of the movie is about the lead up to decorating, some internal squabbling with the neighbours and families, and complications with the local news reporter. I guess they assume that since these aspects are typical plot points in other Hallmarkies, just lumping them together in this movie as connectors between the plot and all the other sitcom-y shenanigans will satisfy viewers? I won't comment on what truly typical Hallmarkie viewers think of this mash-up but it is not for me. There was some fun spins on the Baking Competition and the Holiday Sweater (set decorators had fun, plot basically ignored the element) but for the most part the movie focused on the shenanigans. And the actual Halloween night event is... toned down? One thing I love about the Xmas Hallmarkies is how utterly over-the-top they go in decorating their Xmas Villages or Squares, but here it was only one notch up from Spirit Halloween. In fact, I am pretty sure they shot in one of its stores. 

This was a Hallmarkie that was boring, stupid, celebrated terrible people and barely enjoyed the thrill of the season, and worst of all, the Main Characters had zero chemistry or charm.

Speaking of terrible, while trying to find a poster for this post, I ran into at least two different AI generated posters, which were created for AI generated posts meaning to lead people to malware and scammy stuff. The posters were decently done, but not this movie and the movie they described were not even this movie, but something entirely fabricated. I even ran into one that generated a terrible AI version of a poster for this actual movie, but still... so so wrong. Its amazing how quickly the Use AI for Evil has gotten out of hand.

1-1-1: Peacemaker Season 2

2025, 8 episodes - HBO
created by James Gunn

The What 100: Peacemaker Chris Smith, failing at love and rejected as a superhero, sinks into a deep depression when he discovers a gateway to an alternate reality where his father loves him and his brother is still alive. Rejected by Harcourt, Chris decides to leave his world behind and assume the life of his alt-reality self, except the 11th Street Kids aren't ready to let him go, and this other reality isn't as peaceful as it seems. Plus, Rick Flagg Sr., now head of Argus, seems to be putting all his efforts and resources into fucking Chris over.

(1 Great) Season two backs off of the conflicts among the core cast and instead delves deeper into Chris' traumas, his regrets, and his desire to be someone else. He's dug himself into a pit that he can't seem to climb out of. This season, despite some very big ideas and having to deal with being the immediate follow-up to Superman, manages to center itself around Chris' emotional journey, and highlight the impact Chris has had on his friends. John Cena, almost always a likeable comedic presence reaches deep for pathos and melancholy that shows what a strong actor he has become. He has gotten to the point where he can deliver multiple emotions at once, having his face express one emotion, his eyes another, his physicality another, and his voice yet another. I don't think 10 years ago when Cena appeared with a facecloth covering his junk in Trainwreck that we ever would have expected this out of him.

The foundation of Peacemaker as a series has always been about the character's guilt over killing Rick Flagg Jr. (Joel Kinneman) in The Suicide Squad. He's built a whole show and cast of characters around Peacemaker's attempts at reform, and this season really is about setbacks after saving the world last season. This season, that guilt starts to multiply, as Chris has to come face to face not just with other people from Flagg's life, but seeing and feeling for the first time the impact his rather extreme actions have had on other people. 

It has always been about a traumatized man confronting his trauma and how it's shape the person he has been on the path to reinvention if not necessarily redemption.

(1 Good) We'll get to the downside of James Gunn's scripting this season in a second, but the really good elements of Gunn's scripts this season is not falling into the Marvel trap of making everything so obviously a setup or callback to something else. My biggest worry for the season, following Superman, was that Gunn would be so obviously setting up tent poles for future DC movies or TV shows. And it's not like he isn't, as he has said as much on the official Peacemaker podcast, but it never feels like it's stepping outside the fundamentals of the show.

Rick Flagg Sr. (Frank Grillo) was seen in Superman and Creature Commandos before this, but here he is treated as cast, not simply relying upon past appearances. Gunn does call back to The Suicide Squad and Superman, among other DC references (there's a Lex Luthor cameo, and the character's presence is really felt in the endgame of the season) but Gunn makes all the actions and events a part of the show. Even if there are reverberations that might be felt outside of the series, Gunn primarily focuses on the immediate impact on the characters at hand.  The finale, which I was worried would be just a big tease for something in the future, never actually feels like it's stepping outside of the Peacemaker slice of the DC Unverse.

(1 Bad) Gunn's scripting this season, however, is far from perfect, and is a step down from both the previous season and Superman. I can't help but feel like Gunn, writing two TV series and a film to kickstart this new branch of DC on TV and in film, as well as being chief creative and producer of all things DC, has overextended himself. The Peacemaker season 2 scripts are not as tight as season 1, they're not as funny, and they don't manage to balance the characters out nearly as well as season one. The season largely focuses on Chris and Harcourt (Jennifer Holland) to the expense of Vigilante (Freddie Stroma), Adebayo (Danielle Broosk),  and especially the new characters like Flagg Sr., Sasha Bordeaux (Sol Rodriguez) and Langston Fleury (Tim Meadows). With many of the episodes clocking in at barely 30 minutes, it's not really a surprise the season feels a little under-baked compared to the series before. There's nothing *bad* here, but it's clear that Gunn is an incredibly busy man, and if the show struggles, it probably in his ability to commit his full energy to one project.

META: The highlight of Season 1, a damn entertaining season of superhero-based television, was absolutely the opening credits. The dance sequence to Wig Wam's "Do Ya Wanna Taste It" was an immediate sensation, and I looked forward every week to a new episode just to see the credits. (Yes, I know I could have watched them any time on YouTube or social media, but it was so perfect at amping me up for the episode that followed). This season Gunn selected a new song, Foxy Shazam's "Oh Lord", to open the show. Unlike "Do Ya Wanna Taste It", which is modern Euro hair metal at its most infectious, "Oh Lord" is an epic power ballad that feels much more serious than fun. It took me aback, and I didn't know what to think of it for weeks.  But with each episode, I warmed to it, especially how the production would overlay the start of the song in the cold opens, and the end of the song's "La la la's" acted as a segue into the main episode. It did have the effect of making the show feel at once more epic and more intimate.

Also, I keep forgetting that the main city of Peacemaker is Evergreen...like in the Hallmark movies, lol. Isn't it delightful to think of Peacemaker existing in the same reality as Christmas in Evergreen (of course it's much more like the alt-world there... *tugs at collar*)

Also also, it was hilarious and very disarming that the first episode of, well, anything DC-related following the almost-wholesome Superman includes a pretty graphic orgy scene. Tits and dicks and simulated sex everywhere. Gunn has never lost his provocateur nature, and this is very provocative.

[Poster talk... the main poster is the "painted billboard" version that appears in the back of comic books, while the bus ads I've seen have been the banner with Peacemaker and Eagly touching noggings. The latter is just kitschy while the former is kind of brilliant. The alt-reality that Chris finds himself in has "The Terrific Trio" (Alt-Chris, his father and his brother) painted in a similar mural in the town's square, so this poster recollects that, where it feels like a celebration of heroes admired by the people rather than propaganda. Here, it's got Chris, in his full regalia, looking up at the image of the 11th Street Kids, again they are like a group of heroes, and yet that small image of Chris is on the outside looking up, hoping to one day live up to that image. It's really really good, very effective act capturing the emotional journey of the season in a nutshell.]

So this is Christmas Leftovers (2024) part 2

Tired of Christmas content? Me too. Speed round:

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Zoey's Extraordinary Christmas (2021, d. Richard Shepherd - Amazon Prime)

The What 100: Zoey (Jane Levy) got superpowers due to a freak accident and can now hear people's inner-heart's songs, and this weird telepathy manifests as song-and-dance number to pop music. 2 seasons later mow her boyfriend, Max (Skylar Astin...ugh, he's in this?) for some undetermined reason also has the power and is all about helping people whether they really want it or not. This is Zoey's first Christmas since her dad's death and she wants to recreate the perfect Christmases that he used to host, but  everyone is still grieving and not in the mood for holiday cheer.

(1 Great) There's a moment where Zoey's brother, David (Andrew Leeds) abandons his "family newsletter" full of all the wonderful things that happened to his family this year (all made up) and instead writes with honesty about what a difficult year it's been. I started sobbing. It has been a difficult year. There are a couple of moment s where this movie lets down the veil and allows honest emotion to shine through all the pretense. I imagine this is what the show was good at? 

(1 Good) I think Jane Levy is insanely charming, charismatic, funny, talented actress and am never sorry to watch her work. 

(1 Bad) I cannot stand Skylar Astin and never like watching him work.

META: I've had Zoey's Extraordinary Playlist on my long list of "to watch" shows for quite some time but watching this special, the two-seasons-and-a-movie finale that wraps up the show, I think I'm good. This does pretty well at standing on its own and being accessible if you haven't (like me) watched the show before. It explains the premise and sets up the "where we're at now" very quickly and concisely in the opening minute or two, and then sets off from there with a big shopping mall production number featuring Alex Newell.

As much as I like Jane Levy, and thought she was incredible with everything she is asked to do here (great comedic physicality), I don't know how much I liked Zoey... she appears here as a subtly self-centered character (Toasty, who wrote about this when it came out in 2021, and had watched the pretending two seasons, confirms that angle). Her friend Mo has this very minor side plot about dominating their boyfriend's kid's Christmas pageant that, had Zoey even bothered to inquire about, could have maybe steered them away from (Newell is a non-binary performer, I didn't catch whether Mo also used they/them pronouns). But Zoey just kind of takes more than she gives.

As noted, besides Levy and the characters playing her family (including Mary Steenburgen and Peter Gallagher), this finale had such "theatre kid energy". So much of the acting here is "performance", lacking subtlety, and the script is more of a blunt cudgel than gentle feather.  So it's to its credit that it manages to find genuine heart more than once.

But yeah, I'm good. Maybe I'll swap it off the list for My Crazy Ex-Girlfriend.

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Lego Masters: Celebrity Holiday Bricktacular (2024, 2-episode special)

The What 100: Four teams of two, consisting of one celebrity paired with one former Lego Masters contestant, square off against each other in holiday-themed brick builds for prize money to be donated to charity.  This year's celebs are Sophia Bush (One Tree Hill), Lil Rel Howery (Get Out), Eric McCormack (Will and Grace) and Holly Robinson Peete (Christmas In Evergreen).

(1 Great) The first build of the competition was inspired by Home Alone and the teams were tasked to build minifig scale homes with seasonally-appropriate booby traps. Hearing Brickmaster Amy, with her delightful Irish accent, say "booby" (buh-beyh) over and over again delighted Lady Kent and I so. Maybe the second best inflection on "booby" next to Maya Rudolph.

(1 Good) I find Arnett's hosting generally amenable if too "dad-joke" inspired but when Arnett locks in with a contestant comedically his game goes up many, many notches. Here with fellow Canadian performer Eric McCormack, they seem to have history and a very similar sense of humour, so the pretense of a rivalry between them lasted the whole show and kept paying comedic dividends. 

(1 Bad) What I enjoy most about watching Lego Masters is the often surprising, creative, phenomenal builds the contestants make, defying the brief and pushing bricklaying into an art. With these "Bricktacular" specials, the celebs are not brick masters, and the final builds may be nice but they're not at all "wow" inducing. There's also no real stakes to the competition, no eliminations...

META: I thought about doing one of my Advent Calendar posts about Lego Masters but in the "A Toast To HallmarKent" format, telling it as "Her story" from Hallmark queen Holly Robinson Peete's perspective. It would have been silly and fun, but I didn't have the energy.

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The Holiday Junkie (2024, d. Jennifer Love Hewitt - Crave)

The What 100: Jennifer Love Hewitt co-writes, directs and stars in this Lifetime-produced Hallmarkie where she plays Andie, the proprietor of an interior decorating/event coordinating/schedule planning small business. Her mom (Kristen Chenoweth) died the prior Christmas and she's still dealing with he grief when she takes on this venture capitalist client whom she hopes to impress so she can pitch her idea to evolve the business into a commercial brand of products. She goes to the guy's mansion in the perfect small town, where she will live-work for a week setting up, and she meets handyman Mason (Brian Hallisay, aka Mr. Love Hewitt). They clash at first because he's a Christmas grump (turns out his fiancee dumped him last Christmas to travel the world), but her enthusiasm returns his Christmas spirit and he shows her her potential for both business and life in a PST.

(1 Great) The film is dedicated to Love Hewitt's mother Pat, so there's a legitimate personal investment in this very stereotypical holiday romance movie, and it's felt. There's deep-seeded pain in the talking about/thinking about/being reminded of her mom scenes which really resonate on a level that most "dead parent" arcs in your average Hallmarkies do not.  Exploring this grief is more the point of the movie than any other aspect.

(1 Good) The supporting players here are top notch. Greg Grunberg is Mason's best friend, Lynn Andrews as Andie's gay best friend, Debra Christofferson and Joseph C. Phillips as the diner owners Andie makes friends with... they're all great. I guess this is what happens when you cast in L.A. versus from regional theatre.

(1 Bad) J-Love's haircut. It's like she said to hairdresser "I'm going to star in a Christmas romance, give me the Chabert." Doesn't suit her at all. Also, the first meeting of Andie and Mason is some of the worst acting. I guess when you've been married a decade and had 3 kids together it's hard to pretend like you don't know each other.  They both do fine beyond that.

META: I wasn't intending to watch this, it was just on when I turned the TV on, and I was mystified by the hair and wardrobe choices, such that I didn't recognize J-Love at first.  I wondered what cheap, shot-in-Winnipeg, Canadian off-brand production this might be. But as it went on I started to recognize various "that person" actors and the Hollywood back-lot sets. It's still a cheap production, just not the shot-in-Winnipeg, Canadian off-brand kind of cheap.

T&K's XMas (2024) Advent Calendar: Day 15 - Believe in Christmas

2024, Christie Will Wolf (A Cookie Cutter Christmas) -- download

OK, I truly loved this one. It was what I needed.

The Draw: Cuz Kent asked me to watch it? I suspect, for two reasons: because its about a trope-laden PST, much like Evergreen, or because its shot in Nova Scotia, Mahone Bay in particular, which is truly one of those lovely PSTs that I adore, even when its not Xmas.

Note: The linked post looks wonky because The Peanut Gallery deleted her Twitter account after it became the stinkiest of all stinky social media sites, Muskland.

HERstory: Beatrice (Megahn Ory, Hudson & Rex) and Emilia (Lindura, Christmas Time Capsule) are roomies. Bea is an orphan who is not very fond of Xmas because she never really got the whole experience having spent her childhood in foster homes. Buuut Emilia has a special treat in mind for the two of them for the holidays -- a trip to Christmasland !! Its like Christmas Island but without the 'I'. But seriously, its a town in New Hampshire that goes all-in for the Holiday Movie Experience, and Emilia loves the idea. Bea does not. Over burned cookies we start a "No, I will not go to Christmasland with you!" montage, but in the end Bea gives in as it could be a good story -- she is a journalist who does puff pieces and this is the puffiest.

Meanwhile Ethan Crane (John Reardon, Hudson & Rex) is coming home to Christmasland from Boston. His mom Carol (Cathy Jones, The Grand Secuction) runs the Inn and he is expected to pitch in and help her out, starting with a list of chores the length of his arm. There is a slight hint with these scenes that its how Emilia is describing Christmasland and maybe not quite real.

The girls are soon on the long wintry road to Christmasland, and if I didn't know better, the overhead shot of them driving the lonely road would tell me they are about to head into a horror movie. And they even break down with a flat, and no spare. Emilia is right there with it, commenting how this ALWAYS happens in the Holiday Romance Movies (she is right) and it shouldn't be long until the handsome man arrives in his (red) truck. She is right, as Evan appears with a puppy in his back seat and an offer to drive them into town. Emilia is delighted. Christmas Magic has begun!

When they arrive at the Inn, they meet Carol and settle in for the night. The next morning they also meet another guest, Porter Bryant (Kevin Hanchard, Hudson & Rex), and Emilia is immediately smitten. She is going to do pre-arranged Xmas Stuff (egg nog tasting; Bea is lactose intolerant) so Beatrice is going to just have a wander around the lovely PST. Carol sends Ethan to play tour guide.

At this point they should just include the entire main cast of "Hudson & Rex" and be done with it, including Diesel vom Burgimwald who plays Rex the police dog.

Migawd the setup of the PST is absolutely lovely, but it was shot in Mahone Bay and that place is lovely year round, even if not all fake-decorated for fake-Xmas. Ethan is sweet enough to know Bea needs real coffee, not a candy cane confection, and they grab one BUT also make a run by the famous local bakery for a famous cupcake, where Beatrice is coaxed into The Baking Competition, even though she cannot bake. They also do some maple syrup over snow tasting but Ethan implies its more local flavour, as opposed to Christmasland Experience Flavour. Liar.

Later that evening the ladies dress up to the nines for dinner at the rustic country Inn, which is weird, and not a red dress event at all, but sure. Ethan stays in plaid. They learn that Porter is here "on business" and is rather evasive. Emilia is beginning to suspect he is an actor in on the whole "experience" but is also kind of falling for him. 

Later? Next day? One of the troubles I have with these movies is the timing. Events have to jump from set-up to set-up, often only showing us a briefest moment to fill up the entire day. But both "couples" and they are definitely acting all paired-up by now, even with the assumptions of "experience" end up on horse drawn carriage rides (not enough snow for sleighs) with Ethan and Bea ending up at his grandfather's little quaint place. He claims its a small break and he has to do some search for his mom's missing crystal angel ornament (very sweet story how her husband got it for her, and after he died, it inspired her to get out of a depressive funk) but he also mixes in some really romantic-times by playing a slow-dance on the gramophone and getting all close close with Bea.

Next morning! The girls are creeping around discussing how Porter is trying out lines in a mirror so he must be an actor, and Ethan catches them being weird. To claim not-weird, they claim they are trying to find the creakiest door -- totally not weird. Its an actual chuckle moment, "Oh... cool... alright." But now we have to do the baking montage, as Ethan will help Bea out with his Gramma's recipe and they even throw flour at each other during the montage. Again, Christmasland experience or Xmas Magic happening? We are meant to be unsure. Not even the mayor being named Kris makes me think actual Xmas Magic is intended here. And Emilia is tickled pink at how all the tropes are falling into line, even the almost-kiss. Even later, Bea wins the baking competition and Shelley the baker who usually always wins is grumpy. It might all be a setup but Bea is truly falling for Ethan.

Also love the line the Mayor delivers that one of the bakers is "...from Mahone Bay" though the movie is very clear this is in New Hampshire.

And the complication comes around. Ethan's gorgeous Big City Ex shows up trying to rekindle things. Bea catches them mid-hug and now even she is seeing the tropes happening, and thinks she's being conned all along. She's hurt and upset and runs off, where she bumps into Shelley the Baker (Kirstin Howell, Haven) who does admit the whole Bake-off was a setup ("Did you even try your own cookies?") but she also sees that Ethan has been acting "off script" the entire week. Still, Bea is not sure she can trust anything and wants to leave, until she finds the Crystal Angel Ornament and it feels like maybe a little Xmas Magic is happening all on its own. Ethan explains that while he was originally a setup, to "handle the Grinch" (she is the requisite not-invested guest who has to be distracted so the other guests can have the experience) but he truly started to fall for her. They make up and finally kiss and ... will live happily ever after? Who knows, she still has a city job.

The Formulae: Emilia is constantly pointing them out for me, but that the movie starts with them being picked up on the roadside by a handsome hunk in a red truck (alas, not vintage) kicked it off for me. And the rest of the PST is Xmas Overload, which is absolutely delightful. But we got plenty of heart 2 heart moments, plenty of Xmas confection drinks, a carriage ride, a baking contest, a baking montage, an Xmas tree decorating scene (Bea has never decorated a tree before, which is weird, cuz why doesn't Emilia have a tree in their flat?) and a couple of interrupted kiss moments. The fun in the movie is wondering where the line between Christmasland setup blends into actual Holiday Romance Movie magic actually happening. Oh, and there is an actual Business Work Work Work thing going on, but its Porter who is a token Rich Guy here not to buy out something PST related but actually invest in expanding the whole idea of Christmasland. Good thing the experience worked perfectly on him. Ph, and as always, there are plenty of Dead Parents.

Unformulae: There's no job complication, and her job (puff pieces) barely even plays into the movie. They don't get trapped in Christmasland, as there is no flights-cancelling-and-roads-closing snow storm. In fact there is barely any snow in play. 

True Calling? I am not quite convinced it does fit the title, as there is very little discussion of the idea of Xmas Magic beyond the meta-textual discussion of Holiday Romance Movie tropes at play. And believing in Christmas is not required to fall foe the tropes.

I also hear the guy at Yonge & Dundas ("BELIEVE !!") every time I read the title.

The Rewind: The Mahone Bay-isms. If you looked closely in the background, you could keep on catching them forgetting to hide a few signs here and there, which claimed very clearly they were in Mahone Bay. Also, in the Inn there is a large painting of Halifax in the lobby.

The Regulars: The director, though this is my first exposure to her, is a mega-Hallmarkie director. Does that count? Meghan Ory has done only a couple, but I love that she also did an episode of Hudson & Rex. Reardon has also only done a few. Meanwhile mononym-ed Lindura, who played roomie Emilia, has done a TON. I don't know why, but I am disappointed that this is Cathy Jones first.

How does it Hallmark? It both provided some fun meta Hallmarkie playing with the tropes but also follow one of my favourite of the patterns, the absolutely lovely PST that dives deep into Xmas. As a romance, the budding affection between Ethan and Beatrice was very believable and the googley eyes surpassed expectations. I think this has hit the mark for me, a best of the season so far. Thanks Kent!

How does it movie? Meh. When I say "I loved this one" its not like I recognize it as a Good Movie, as it isn't. But it is what it is, and while I have admitted in the past to actually MORE enjoying the ones that are so bad, they need to be mocked, I do enjoy the ones where everyone is invested and its actually sweet and it dives DEEP into Xmas.

How Does It Snow? LOL not at all. You can often see melting "ice rink shavings" in the background but for the most part they don't even try, but for one scene outside Ethan's grandfather's place where you can almost see the crew standing on a crane with a wind machine, dumping soap flakes so we can see a blustery day.

T&K's XMas (2024) Advent Calendar - Day 14: Sugarplummed

 2024, d. Ryan Landels - Hallmark/W Network

The Draw: High concept Hallmarkie? Let's go!
(Liveblogging my watch because of time constraints today)

HERstory: The movie opens with flipping through channels before the bumper tells us "You're watching the Harmony Home Network, the channel with the most original holiday movies" and this week is a "Sugarplum" movie marathon of the channel's most popular franchise. But wait! There's a contest to find the most Christmassy house where "Sugarplum" would feel right at home.

Cut to the "real world" where we meet Evelyn who we can tell from her pencil skirt and wine-coloured blouse that she's a busy business woman, plus she's on the phone talking about something important. She has fruitcakes going in the oven and yells for Ben (husband) and Max (son) to get ready. Teen Nina is focusing on her music instead of cleaning her room, and wants to go to the Berklee School of Music instead of the plan mom has set out for her. (Nina is a deadpan, sarcastic redhead of the deadpan, sarcastic redhead variety. See also: Natasha Lyonne, Lauren Ambrose, Sarah Snook, etc).

Ben is working on a miniature model for his boss at the architecture firm. He complains about being micromanaged...by his boss, but it's clear he's getting it at home too. (Ben clearly gravitates towards a certain type a' person...). Teen Max is making dance videos but never posts them. He's not fitting in at school. 

Family meeting. The Holiday Checklist: 5 thinks Evelyn mom used to do to make Christmas perfect. She's so "type A" (like this is 2016 all over again), Mom needs everything perfect and plans things out the wazoo, but the family all has their own lives and can't stick to the plan. She wonders "when did this family give up on Christmas".

But just for comparison, we meet neighbour Debra who is even more type A and particular about *everything* and complains to Evelyn (who is tossing out her burned fruitcakes in the garbage can) about "strong smells" like mulled cider and... burned fruitcakes. 

At work, Evelyn's assistant is watching Sugarplum movies at her desk, and while mildly annoyed, Evelyn seems to be elated to have someone to talk Sugarplum movies about, and they start discussing the rules of the movies like: every house has to be perfectly decorated, whenever there's a perfect gift for a loved one they always manage to get it, and at the end of the story it's always tied up with a perfect kiss on Christmas Eve. Evelyn's so "type A" she's even too hyperfocussed on discussing Sugarplum movies to the point of annoying her assistant (and probably putting her off of watching Sugarplum movies ever again). What does Evelyn do at this busy office? Not established. What does she ask her assistant to do? Pull her Christmas decoration bins out of storage. You know, work shit.

Evelyn returns home, lamenting about how she wants everything perfect and nothing is ever perfect. Even her assistant basically told her to relax her expectations and give up on the Holiday Checklist. (This is clearly a "lesson movie" where our protagonist has to learn to let go of her standards and just accept (and love) her life for what it is.) Her house, by the way, is open concept and spacious, not cozy and cluttered with Christmas like most Hallmarkies. And the decoration bins were accidentally sent to the office instead of her house. (I guess her beloved assistant isn't great at her job?)  So Evelyn, with "a perfectly decorated house" #1 on on her checklist, goes back to the office to pick up the "bins" which turns out to be a large box with no tape on top, or on bottom as it seems (how did it even make it to the office?) and everything spills out. It's a real random assortment of ornamental crap that doesn't seem at all what one would need to make the "perfectly decorated home". She picks up a gold star tree topper which has writing on it that says something about granting a worthy wish.

Suddenly, her assistant's monitor pops up, and it's a "Sugarplum" movie playing. Jess looks at Sugarplum and decides to wish for a more connected family, a magical Christmas like in the movie, one where she checks of every item on her list, and she wishes for a Sugarplum Christmas. The music swells. Nothing happens immediately. She deflates. Then the star starts glowing, the lights in the office start going crazy, the monitor starts flickering, and suddenly Sugarplum pops out of the TV.

Sugarplum is surprised but somewhat unphased by her new surroundings. She asks Evelyn to point her back to her perfect small town of Perfection. Evelyn tells her she's come out of the movie, and Sugarplum says "we're outside the movie? That's not supposed to happen." (Ugh, this movie may have just lost me here...Sugarplum, the character from the holiday TV movies is already aware that she's a TV movie character...that just doesn't work for me conceptually...let's see how it plays out). But learning that Evelyn made a wish on a Christmas star perks her right up... "It's Christmas Magic!" Suddenly she's into it and wants to help Evelyn with the perfect Christmas. "Does the town bakery need saving?"

Evelyn thinks she's having a breakdown. The janitor shows up and can see someone is with Evelyn, but part of the magic is only Evelyn can see she's Sugarplum (you know, from the movies). "Why isn't everything covered in Christmassy snow?" "Because it mostly rains here, like, a lot". (It's Seattle, so, fair).  Sugarplum poo-poos the list... but because Sugarplum has a book... a book called "The Rules" ("Rule 142: Flannel is a natural aphrodisiac").  

"Rule 61: Whenever a holiday traveler is stranded in a faraway place, they'll be invited to find a harmonious home with new friends." What Sugarplum knows is following the rules leads to a happy ending. So Sugarplum is back at Evelyn's home, under the guise of an old college friend passing through for the holiday Sue Garplum (but sleeping on the couch? I can't believe this is to Sugarplum's satisfaction). 

First thing in the morning, Sugarplum has a whole crew decorating the house to the nines like a holiday movie, and the bill, handed to Evelyn is $5300. Sugarplum is shocked that these people aren't just doing it out of the kindness of the holiday spirit. She also doesn't understand sarcasm. Nina is suspicious, but Max likes her (I like you too!). Sugarplum has a plan to cover the cost of the decoration, by pawning a tiara she was given by the Prince of Armstrongia. She has whole bag full of flawless jewellery from all the various princes she met.  

Sugarplum is shocked to learn that Evelyn is a big city girl who didn't turn her back on her career to find love in her hometown, and insists on seeing her at work, because she's just never seen the like before. Evelyn, I guess, is a lawyer? And her client is trying to keep her family ski lodge/Christmas tree farm out of the hands of a ruthless developer. And the client (Hallmark regular Fiona Gubelmann) and the developer (Hallmark regular Victor Webster) can't stand each other. Oh, of course this sounds right up Sugarplum's alley. She knows all the rules for this scenario. The fact that she so easily fixes the scenario with the perfect Hallmarkie solution shocks Evelyn, but it also frees her up for the holidays to spend more time with the family. Checklist item #2 done.

Item #3, Christmas shopping, and Sugarplum is into it. But Nina wants limited edition headphones sold out everywhere, and Sugarplum doesn't understand. But they learn there's a competition to win prizes at the store. The competition is all Christmas related like gift wrapping, snowflake making, knitting, gingerbread house decorating, and of course Sugarplum is excessively amazing at all of these and wins the headphones.

Oh and it turns out that the home decorating service entered her home into the Harmony Home Networks' most Christmassy home competition. (Rule 51: When a festive competition is introduced into the story, a fun and winning new perspective on the holidays is guaranteed for all... you know what, I want a copy of this book. Is it at Hallmark stores?).

It's career day at school, and Evelyn was supposed to go to Max's school, but she needs to work on the deal, so Sugarplum subs in. But telling her movie stories starts embarrassing Max in front of the class (especially the girl he likes). But she gets him to shake the magical snow globe Santa gave her and it snows inside the school. The kids have a snowball fight indoors, and suddenly the girl he likes is impressed with him. 

[Omigard, fast forwarding as this is only the halfway point]

Nina wants to talk about her Berklee scholarship application, but Evelyn pushes her off to talk about getting selected as a finalist for the most Christmassy home. All the perfect things Sugarplum start going awry just as Evelyn is starting to embrace the rules ...like Sugarplum gets arrested for "vandalizing" the school in "a snow-related incident". And it's all because Evelyn is paying attention to "the perfect Christmas" instead of her family's needs.

Evelyn turns up as Sugarplum's lawyer and despite being a contract lawyer it seems she keeps up on the criminal code and other laws. She has Sugarplum released into her custody (her fingerprints are snowflakes). Ben has his project due date updated to Christmas Eve, Max is suspended from school, and Nina is not happy with mom, feeling ignored.

"The Rules" are backfiring. The Christmas magic is fading. Sugarplum is in huge, huge trouble...and not the legal kind. This is a Frosty is melting kind of scenario. 

But maybe reinvigorating the magic is finishing the Holiday Checklist, and #5 is making a memory as a family. Evelyn thinks this needs to winning the TV competition...but Sugarplum is unsure that this is the right approach. Max wants Christmas Eve traditional eggnog, and Nina is anxious about her performance which is happening right after the broadcast and Ben is stressed about work...and all Evelyn is focusing on is the competition. Everyone turns on Evelyn's plan for "a perfect Christmas" and maybe it's finally clear to her that she's, quite literally, lost the plot.

Evelyn has kind of gotten everything she wished for, but it was all for her, and not for her family. Sugarplum advises letting this Christmas be "perfectly imperfect". Evelyn sends the TV crew home and races to Nina's pageant, where Nina's freaking out because the Berklee admissions officer is in the audience? It's up to Mom to finally encourage her daughter instead of holding her back.  Evelyn also tells Ben that she's going to live in the moment and needs Ben to live in the moment too. Just then his boss shows up (yes at the school), but Ben gives him a stern talking to and threatens to quit if he doesn't get more time with his family. Nina's performance is a peppy poppy and upbeat tune (if a little generic) and she gets a standing ovation.

Ben's boss turns up at the house and has had a change of heart, and all the storylines have come together with a happy ending. Sugarplum has to return to Perfection, but with lessons learned from being with Evelyn and family, that maybe it's the imperfections that make the perfect Christmas. 

Evelyn and Ben have a "mistletoe moment" that Christmas Eve kiss, and the family sit down to watch a Sugarplum movie...only for Ben to ask... "Is it just me, or does Sugarplum look...a little familiar...?"

The Formulae: It's constantly talking about "The Rules" and showing "The Rules" in action (even if it only covers a fraction of a book which contains hundreds of rules).

Unformulae: Well, "The Rules" start falling apart, but they need to fall apart in order to come together.

True Calling? "Sugarplummed" feels like Hallmark trying to force a phrase into the lexicon. It means nothing until you watch the movie, but once you know what Sugarplum is, it does make sense, even if Sugarplum is a horrible name even for a Hallmarkie-within-a-Hallmarkie character (the preciousness gets more intense the more Meta things get).

The Rewind: Every time they cut to "The Rules", the character always reads one page, but there's a second page on screen they don't read, so the rewind is to see some of the other Rules not employed in the film.

The Regulars: 
Maggie Lawson (Psych) is Evelyn, and is a Hallmark regular including a veteran of the Christmas In Evergreen series.
Janel Parrish (To All The Boys...) is Sugarplum, and is also a Hallmark regular, including Never Been Chris'd.
Brendon Zub is Ben, and he's been all over the holiday romances (Hallmark and Lifetime) and not just the Christmas ones.
Plus the aforementioned cameos by Hallmark superstars Fiona Gubelmann and Victor Webster having their own intoned cliche holiday romance in the very far backdrop of this film.
This is writer-director Landels' second Hallmark, after Santa Tell Me. I think this guy has the juice for making vaguely meta-but-not-too-meta Xmas fantasy movies. Hope to see more. 

How does it Hallmark? This honestly doesn't feel like a Hallmark movie at all. Hallmark has deviated so far from the formulaic "holiday romance" over the past few years that now they're just kind of making legit "Christmas magic" movies that play in their own space without needing to adhere to "holiday romance" tropes.  For a meta holiday movie, this one swings away from the romance and instead focuses on, as predicted, teaching a lesson to the main character.

How does it movie? Honestly, this felt like an old-fashioned, pre-Hallmarkie Christmas movie. It's not theatrical grade, but it stands up with the more enjoyable fantasy TV Christmas movies pretty well. It's charming, well-acted and it turns out I flat out loved "The Rules" as a storytelling device. There's a total Mary Poppins vibe to Sugarplum and even though her movies-within-the-movie character is of the "holiday romance" persuasion, she adapts quickly to the scenario at hand and is ready to help. She's even got a bag of holding within which contains multiple wardrobes, countless precious jewels and more.  I could see this being a franchise movie where Sugarplum is called out to help in all different sorts of Christmas movie scenarios. I figure the third film would focus on Sugarplum herself with things going wrong within her own world.

As noted, I was worried the meta-ness of the story would wear on me. The last movie I recapped, A Hollywood Christmas, was a more-of-the-same meta-holiday romance, and to be frank I'm kind of tired of that subgenre. But this type of meta-as-Christmas-magic really works for me and it stands out from the pack. It's not transcending anything, really, but it was quite enjoyable. I do wish it were funnier, but Hallmark, generally, has a hard time with comedy.

How Does It Snow? It's Seattle, so it rains (I'm guessing it was shot in the springtime, given the sunnier scenes are real sunny). But the magical snow globe makes it snow indoors, twice.

T&K's XMas (2022) Advent Calendar Day 22 - Sister Swap: Christmas in the City

Woo hoo! Another advent calendar almost done (my seond last post). I still have a few Hallmarkies left in my queue, which I will probably watch on Xmas day and post on the Leftovers post, before going on an extended holiday.

2021, Sean McNamara (Sister Swap: A Hometown Holiday) -- download/Hallmark

The Draw: As mentioned prior, Dan Harmon's post, and just the fun of seeing the same story from the other side of the fence.

HERstory: When last we left our sisters, (Classic Aunt) Meg (Ashley Williams, Warehouse 13) had decided to stay in Salt Lake, at her sister's place, a way of decompressing from her grief over Uncle Dave's (Kevin Nealon, SNL; who gets actual flashback scenes in this one, instead of just on a video screen) death. This was the time of year when she & Dave would normally be planning their France trip, and as the dates get closer, the weight lies heavier on her. Not that you can really tell, as Meg is one over-the-fucking-top, annoying level, chipper person. She shows up at her sister's resto, to say hi to people she knows, meets the new General Manager Joe (Keith D Robinson, A Christmas Love Story), who is affronted by her buttinsky attitude. I don't blame him; she's annoying AF and without any real qualifications. In fact, I may have missed (even with two movies worth of details available) what exactly Meg did. Did she just work at her uncle's theatre? Who knows, but whatever it is, she is not qualified to be making decisions for the resto, nor waiting tables, nor commenting on the food. But she does. Constantly. But in the most charming way! (!!)

"It's a joke! I was joking !!"

Now, her sister Jenn did ask her to help with "the Xmas party" which for some reason is part of a competition to ... hold the best party? Yeah, some organization/magazine is comparing resto holiday parties and the bestest of the best will receive a big check they can donate to a charity of their own choice, and be mentioned in some magazine or a website or whatever. The reasons for these "events" are never really clear nor logical, but it gives The Mains something to interrupt their daily routine with, so they can have time to chat and fall in love. And when I say, "interrupt their daily routines" I mean Joe, as Meg really has no life at the moment, but I still think Joe really needs to be MANAGING THE RESTO.

So, back to the dual-movies conceit. The first thing I noticed is that there are going to have to be some shared scenes in both movies, because either Jenn and Meg were in both scenes together or they were talking to each other. What I was not expecting was them to change things up and show the shared-scenes from different angles! How... innovative. No irony in the statement; its a neat idea and they have fun with it. Amusingly, when they cut the split-screen scene, they actually reference a "sister swap". Snort.

Anywayz, Meg and Joe start up on the trope train pretty much right away, heading off to an Xmas Market (<insert note about where this market is shot>) where Meg explains the different between holly and mistletoe, while wearing her best red coat. She is so fucking chipper and I constantly waver between finding her infectious and, as Joe does, really fucking annoying (have I said that yet?). He refers to her as a "town busybody" and she doesn't disagree. She has already taken over the Xmas Party planning (nor sure Jenn explained to Joe why she was there), and has Joe following her around from interstitial scene to interstitial scene, so he drags her along to his passion project -- the local food bank, which will be the resto's recipient of the charity money, should they win. They have an idea, an idea borrowed from the Evergreen movies, where the foodbank will be operated like a market square, with little stores for each item group. I suppose if you are doing multiple movies all for the same production company, you are allowed to lift, steal and borrow ideas beyond the shared multitude of tropes. That said, The Mains vibe between the two is taken kind of slow, rather than the usual "I wuv woo" energy that usually happens instantly in these movies. Neither is looking for someone, with no Dead Spouse energy, and spend most of the time not thinking along those lines. BUT I guess Meg's energy does become infectious when she applies it to the food bank.

So, the big tension act comes when they let the head chef of Jenn's resto quit the week before Xmas. OK, I get being a family like business, and caring for your staff, but her primary driver in quitting is a BETTER JOB. If it was family only, yes, but she's moving on. Keep her ass in the kitchen until you finish the Big Event or Find a New Chef. But nah, she's out so Meg and Joe run around trying to find applicants who are willing/able to quit THEIR gigs the week before Xmas. After a few failures, and a throw-Joe-under-the-bus moment, the movie swings around to one of the B Plots (head waiter is dating a food stand guy) AND brings in the movie cross-over scene where Meg convinces Jenn to hire food stand guy. What I didn't know from the other movie, was that Meg fabricated this whole scene by sending Food Stand Guy an article on Jenn and her resto, allowing him to use flattery as a driver instead of ... well, skill ? No matter, day saved even if they discover a few weeks later that he cannot cut it in the kitchen.

But...

Oh noes, the special resto contest is Snowed Out ! But Meg saves the day, by having all the restos in the contest bring their food to the IG spot in a hotel, and convinces the contest holder to split the money. Considering this was all for charity, she loses major points by not inviting the food insecure to the party, because even if all the restos were within walking distance, their staff might not be. No matter, everyone shows, including all her family despite I don't recall there being a scene in the other movie where everyone (and I mean EVERYONE) drives back to The Big City to attend her IG worthy Xmas Party, where there is no blue dress, no red dress, just a ... burgundy jump suit? How progressive Meg. 

Now with her party a success, a new chef found, Joe having jumped ship to the now further funded Food Bank, and Meg taking his job, they now have time to smooch.

The Formulae: Cookie decorating station ! I actually ordered piping bags because I was inspired by Meg's cute reindeer in an ugly sweater; alas, Amazon lost them. Tree lighting ceremony! Meg makes it back to Hazelwood (technically, the other movie) for theirs. Special Event almost cancelled! Meg saves the day by bringing all the restos, and their food, to the IG worthy spot in Salt Lake City commenting on how small the downtown must be if they can all walk through the snowmageddon to the hotel. Xmas Party! Meg arranges a big party at Jenn's place for all the staff of the resto. Ummm, so she closes Jenn's resto during the holiday season, so EVERYONE can come eat finger food? Hope Jenn OK'd this, but knowing Classic Aunt Meg, not likely. Ice Skating! Joe sucks at ice skating, but there was an awkward almost-kiss scene under mistletoe. Sleigh/Carriage Ride; Joe and Meg waste more time to talk about life goals, relationships and sacrificing Me Time for work. Meg is figuring out "what's next" but I am still not sure "what was before".

Unformulae: Well, this movie's conceit is that the PST girl goes to spend Xmas in The Big City. Said Big City is only an hour away. Also, she is not dumping any career aspirations for Joe, as she seems to do nothing but live off her family. 

True Calling? Yes, quite accurately.

The Rewind: While not for the usual reasons, we actually did pause & rewind so the Peanut Gallery could comment on the types of tubas Meg was playing. Yep, I didn't know there were types of tubas either.

The Regulars: Literally copying & pasting this from the other post. Well, Kimberly Williams-Paisley has only really started doing these movies while her sister Ashley IRL (as well as in the movie) has done... well, fewer than I thought she had. She really got started with the first movie in the Evergreen Cinematic Universe, Christmas in Evergreen, and has been going strong since. Mark Deklin has also done far fewer than I expected. So... all new regulars, I guess?

How does it Hallmark? I enjoyed this side of the dual movies more, but primarily from my love-hate-on for Classic Aunt Meg. Despite the innovation they were seeking for these dual-movies, I think they did a successful stock Hallmarkie.

How does it movie? Almost to the point, I might watch them again. Almost.

How Does It Snow? Other than the scenes shared, most of the snow is pretty standard cotton batting.

T&K's XMas (2022) Advent Calendar Day 20 - Sister Swap: A Hometown Holiday

2021, Sean McNamara (Christmas in Evergreen: Letters to Santa) -- download/Hallmark

The Draw: Entirely because of this.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Dan Harmon (@danharmon)

HERstory: So, as the IG post above by Dan Harmon suggests, there is no guidance on which one you should watch first. So, we chose the proper PST one, where Sister 1, Jennifer Swift (Kimberly Williams-Paisley, Father of the Bride) decides to come back, from the Big City of Salt Lake City, Utah, to the PST of Hazelwood, just an hour outside the city. Being an hour, this is a situation where people can easily jaunt back and forth between The Big City and the PST. And they do. Anywayz, Sister Jenn decides to spend Xmas in Hazelwood, while Sister 2, Meg (Ashley Williams, Christmas in Evergreen), stays in her place in The Big City.

You see, their Uncle Dave (Kevin Nealon, SNL, in pretty much a less-than-a-cameo role only seen in memories, photos & family videos) passed away in the last year or so, leaving his beloved movie theatre, the Madison, empty. It was one of those hometown cinemas still running on an old film projector, selling popcorn & candy from a concession stand, and a place where everyone in town had their first kiss; and probably a few other firsts not family-friendly at all. The place is now run down, and Mom just wants to sell it off, as the memories inside are just too painful. Uncle Dave, ever the bachelor and childless, seemed to be a rock for the family. Its all been too much for Sister Meg, so Jenn offers to take care of it, so Meg can be alone with her grief, in the city.

The movie does do a brief opening in Salt Lake, to let us get to know the sisters via a couple of family traditions (red hats??)  and a terrible "Meg plays the french horn tuba" toss away scene and then its off to the PST. 

"Classic Aunt Meg!" <insert laugh track>

Mom & Dad run the cornerstone bakery in Hazelwood, but there also seems to be money in this family. Big money. Typical Hallmarkie upper-upper-middle-class money. Eric (Mark Deklin, Christmas in Evergreen: Letters to Santa), the Leading Guy, is a single dad working with the town council to preserve the Madison in its original state, while also monitoring the deal between the local broker and the Big Cinema Chain rep. For a moment there, I thought there might be a Story B between the rep and the broker, but I guess they realized that would be too confusing, considering they are already being rather experimental by having a Story B in another movie entirely. Anywayz, Eric and Jenn are exploring the dilapidated cinema (she's handling the sale, to give her sister and mom a break from the grief it dredges up) when Jenn becomes obsessed with doing a "one more movie night" for the family, which after a brief confused moment, becomes a "one more movie night" for the entire town.

Like most of these movies, the Story A ("one more movie night") provides continuous interruptions that bring the two leads together. Like, at the tree lot, they argue about whether the movie nite should happen, as the ton of renos might jeopardize the sale, which is already in jeopardy as Big Cinema Chain rep guy (who always looks cranky; didn't he get get the "always be smiling" memo?) is the only potential buyer. Surprisingly, they are light on the potential romance, as each has a Dead Spouse, live in different cities and have lots of baggage. Usually that doesn't interfere with the making of the goo-goo eyes, but this movie lets it develop slowly.

Come the movie night, everyone is excited. They chose a random movie, the only film they could find that would run through the broken down projector, there is no heat and... ZAP, the power is shorted out and the popcorn machine catches on fire. Hearts broken all around.

But Jenn's not throwing in the towel just yet! Her son Simon finds a digital projector, and all the supporting tech, in a back room in boxes. Apparently Dave had been preparing to update the theatre when he got sick. Movie night is BACK ON ! I won't let my tech background comment on how difficult it would be to install a full digital system, but they finally have their chance to do it all right. Jenn and Eric share a kiss, and acknowledge they could have a chance together. BUT...

But, Meg shows up with news about Jenn's resto. Apparently they let the head chef up and quit on the week before Xmas. Suuuure, they are all about supporting their staff, but to let the chef just walk away during such a key period of the year? Way to go Meg ! Jenn is very (understandably) upset and rushes back to Salt Lake to take care of things, which pisses off her son (dude, its an hour away) and disappoints Eric (DUDE! its an HOUR ... AWAY) just as he was opening his heart. But don't worry your little heart, as a little intervening by a plot point from the other movie (we have the perfect underdog chef choice and he runs a... food stand?) and everything is back to being perfect. Everyone rushes back to the PST for the perfect digital movie night, which is not even dashed by the cinema chain deal falling through, because Jenn and Meg have an even better plan! Jenn will setup a movie theatre resto combo in the PST, while Meg will run the old resto because...some how she's qualified?

The Formulae: So so much! We got career gal Jenn (she owns a well known, profitable resto in Salt Lake) running back to her hometown PST to be challenged by a "well known seasonal event in jeopardy". And while dealing with said challenge, we get visits to tree lots, charity cookie deliveries, endless mountains of xmas cookies, a quaint little hometown bakery, a dead uncle, a dead husband AND a dead wife! We get decorating montages, we get pretty little red vintage truck toys in the background, we get red coats AND blue dresses. We get plenty of coffee cups held in two hands, AND we get hot chocolate galore. We get a mild misunderstanding, which is quickly reconciled so the two leads can kiss and be perfectly happy forever after.

Unformulae: Well, primarily in the experimental structure of the movies that are happening at the same time. Beyond that, everything is by the books.

True Calling? Why yes, as both sisters swap where they normally spend Xmas for the other's place.

The Rewind: "Classic Aunt Meg!"

The Regulars: Well, Kimberly Williams-Paisley has only really started doing these movies while her sister Ashley IRL (as well as in the movie) has done... well, fewer than I thought she had. She really got started with the first movie in the Evergreen Cinematic Universe, Christmas in Evergreen, and has been going strong since. Mark Deklin has also done far fewer than I expected. So... all new regulars, I guess?

How does it Hallmark? Again, despite the experimental release format of this and the other movie, the Hallmarkie formula and sincerity is strong in this one. 

How does it movie? I think I need to start shoe horning this post category into the, "Would I watch it again?" and honestly, maybe just maybe on the very cusp of, "If it was on in the background while I am baking cookies."

How Does It Snow? The snow in some scenes, like Hazelwood, all look inserted and fake and cotton batting land, but on occasion, usually when cutting to the shared-scenes between the two movies, we see real snow, as in properly shot while there was snow on the ground in The Big City. I almost feel this doesn't count for the movie set in the PST.