'Countdown to Christmas' movie review: 'The Christmas Club'
On paper, very little happens in holiday romance “The Christmas Club” (premiering Nov. 26 as part of the Hallmark Channel's Countdown to Christmas), allowing this character-driven romance to leisurely tell a genuinely story about rediscovering love and finding the courage to take a risk.
In short: Work-focused strangers Olivia and Edward (Elizabeth Mitchell and "Home & Family" co-host Cameron Mathison) help an elderly woman find her lost Christmas savings - along the way, they find true love.
It's no exaggeration: "Christmas Club" has just the minimal amount of plot structure. A crazy fluke brings Olivia and Edward together -- and a crazy string of coincidences keep bringing the two back into each other's orbit. Normally a story so dependent on coincidences would be irritating. And the lack of a plot would be silly. But "Christmas Club" is a bona fide romance totally invested in Olivia and Edward. It's a wonderfully positive and encouraging romance without contrived reasons to pull them apart or make them doubt each other.
Underneath it all, "Club" finds the heart of believing in one's self, especially in the midst of a bleak situation. Olivia's world is rocked when her employer decides to retire and shutter her dance studio, where Olivia is a dance instructor. She's completely thrown for a loop, unsure of what she'll do next or what the future holds. Without wanting to spoil anything, some crazy Christmas "coincidence" has Olivia cross paths with business-focused Edward. Although they are very different people, Olivia and Edward have one commonality: they have put their careers above looking for love.
The fact that "Club" doesn't have much of a "plot" actually becomes this movies strength. Unencumbered with some overly complication string of events, "Club" keeps finding surprising and sweet ways to bring Olivia and Edward together. The open-ended scenes have time to breath, giving Olivia and Edward a chance to spend time together. So when they start to fall in love, it doesn't feel rushed or unjustified.
While "Club" endears when it allows Olivia and Edward's relationship to blossom, it does get weirdly hung up on a particular plot point: specifically where the kid's dance recital will be held. There are bigger things at stake in "Club," like Olivia and Edward rediscovering their faith in finding love again or starting anew. So it's just a little odd that the movie spends so much time on a story point that, while important to Olivia, does not progress her story much (if at all).
It is funny to note that in a movie founded on far-fetched coincidences powered by a strong undercurrent of Christmas magic, the least believable parts would be the completely mundane details. Entire real estate transactions begin and end in a ridiculously short time frame. Anyone who has ever had to buy or sell property know the whole soup to nuts real estate process doesn't just happen in a few days.
Final verdict: "Club" lets its protagonists fall in love and pushes them to grow - which is what every Hallmark movie aspires to be but few achieve as well as this lovely, magical romance.
Score: 4 French hens (out of 5)
"The Christmas Club" is rated TV-G and has a running time of 90 minutes. The movie premieres on The Hallmark Channel on Nov. 26.
