Another rant, of mine, against the Hallmark type Christmas movies.

[Rella ~ I am a woman]

Thank you for your thoughtful post.

I agree with most of your comments, especially regarding the cultural decline of Hallmark movies (Hallmark being one of many in today’s corporate world). Perhaps to be expected when leadership has abandoned God?

So, if you were the CEO of a company that made a lot of romantic and rom/com movies, how would yours differ? Different plots? Characters that prayed to give thanks to God as well as to ask for help from God? Other? Might they be modeled after the Book of Ruth or instead the Book of Esther?

Some past Hallmark movies with religion woven in: “Christmas in Seven Fall,” in which Rachel Boston plays a visiting angel (heresy?); “Shoe Addict‘s Christmas,” in which C C Bure is visited by a guardian angel; “Double Holiday,” in which one of the main characters, who is Jewish, must plan a Christmas party (and we learn lots about Hanukah).

Peace and Blessings.

Bob,

Sigh.

Once again I was writing a lengthy reply and I went to check a source and the reply is gone.

Ill try to reconstruct it tomorrow.

 

[Bob]

Bob,

Sigh.

Once again I was writing a lengthy reply and I went to check a source and the reply is gone.

Ill try to reconstruct it tomorrow.

You have my sympathy: the Forum does not allow one to easily leave a Reply in progress and return.

In the meantime, your post has engendered more thoughts.

A large part of Hallmark movie’s original appeal is that they espouse a secular version of Love Thy Neighbor.
(See Romans 2: 14,15 as well as Acts 28: 1-7.)
In other words, many of the Hallmark characters model caring & sharing (Mathew 25: 35,36), honor their parents, use persuasion to achieve ends (not force—Commandments 6 - 10), and are committed to lifetime monogamous marriages between men and women.

So, how would a script writer take the next step, and create a Christmas movie that weaves in the elements of Advent? Central to that end would be to include the birth of our Savior. (One of your points.)

If, however, this movie is to not leave secularists scratching their heads, it would need to address the reason we need a Savior!!

Peace and blessings.

 

[lforrest]

Those movies are very predictable. It can be fun to guess the plot within the first few minutes because the movie trope is always the same and the target audience is older women.

 

[Rella ~ I am a woman]

Those movies are very predictable. It can be fun to guess the plot within the first few minutes because the movie trope is always the same and the target audience is older women.

Unless you are my 70 year old male cousin who tapes them all so he and his wife can watch together.

 

[BarneyFife]

Year after year, since I first discovered them I have been more and more watching the "Hallmark" type Christmas movies.

It has been a progressive annoyance from those who had to have a town celebration in a barn in a two week period of time and where it had to be cleared of the animals, cleaned of the straw, and decorated... right up to their "Hallmarks" progressiveness into more and more woke.

It was with happiness that I learned that one of the big wigs at Hallmark left and the Great American Family Christmas movies were birthed and many of the stars on Hallmarks payroll jumped ship to the new GAF.

We were not given GAF by Verizon until last year, but the movies were fresh and not embarrassing to have my mom watch them.

Finally it seems as if Hallmark has seen the light from GAF and also UP and has toned the woke down.
Though I will more often check out Up and GAF before anything Hallmark these days.
Once bitten and the sting remains.... I guess.

But I have another peeve and this one is seen all over the place.

You have a silly Christmas movie only centered on romance.

People reunited from high school, or people who meet for the first time.... each and every single one of those movies is a romance. A Christmas romance.....

Except for one last year on GAF with Candace Cameron Bure ....."A Christmas... Present"

If you get a chance... this one IS worth watching.

Anyway...

I actually find it so offensive when they get through the fru fru of these shows and at the end the "boy" asks "the girl" to dance... in response to her saying "I love this song", or "This is my favorite" and they end up romantically slow dancing to a christmas hymn... Especially like one that came on this morning
we all know... Silent Night.

What a smack in the face to our Savior.

So now there will be weeks and months on unviewable television because the other garbage that is on is not worth watching.

OKAY... Off my rant

I love it! Nice rant!

I must admit, though, I love a good B&W Christmas movie.

I can't account for my taste, really, but I grew up watching some that I have a hard time not breaking out every year.

I particularly love these:

(In no particular order)

The Bishop's Wife (1947)
Christmas In Connecticut (1945)
It Happened On Fifth Avenue (1947)
The Shop Around The Corner (1940)
Remember The Night (1939)

My wife likes "We're No Angels" (1955) for a reason I can't disclose (spoilers, you know), and I watch along with her because I was a hopeless Humphrey Bogart fan as a child.

And for a real treat, you have to see the Oscar-winning short film: "Star In The Night" (1945). About the only place you'll find it, though, is on TCM between feature films. Although I have spotted it on YouTube before.

.

 

[L.A.M.B.]

Year after year, since I first discovered them I have been more and more watching the "Hallmark" type Christmas movies.

It has been a progressive annoyance from those who had to have a town celebration in a barn in a two week period of time and where it had to be cleared of the animals, cleaned of the straw, and decorated... right up to their "Hallmarks" progressiveness into more and more woke.

It was with happiness that I learned that one of the big wigs at Hallmark left and the Great American Family Christmas movies were birthed and many of the stars on Hallmarks payroll jumped ship to the new GAF.

We were not given GAF by Verizon until last year, but the movies were fresh and not embarrassing to have my mom watch them.

Finally it seems as if Hallmark has seen the light from GAF and also UP and has toned the woke down.
Though I will more often check out Up and GAF before anything Hallmark these days.
Once bitten and the sting remains.... I guess.

But I have another peeve and this one is seen all over the place.

You have a silly Christmas movie only centered on romance.

People reunited from high school, or people who meet for the first time.... each and every single one of those movies is a romance. A Christmas romance.....

Except for one last year on GAF with Candace Cameron Bure ....."A Christmas... Present"

If you get a chance... this one IS worth watching.

Anyway...

I actually find it so offensive when they get through the fru fru of these shows and at the end the "boy" asks "the girl" to dance... in response to her saying "I love this song", or "This is my favorite" and they end up romantically slow dancing to a christmas hymn... Especially like one that came on this morning
we all know... Silent Night.

What a smack in the face to our Savior.

So now there will be weeks and months on unviewable television because the other garbage that is on is not worth watching.

OKAY... Off my rant

Yeah........no, I do not like the Hallmark channel at Christmas or otherwise.
I'm not sure I believe the hype of being " in love".
I fully embrace the love of a mother to her children, but all outside appears to be about mutual respect, support and a commitment to another.
The greatest and most understandable to me is the love of the Father through the Son to us whom truly deserved death.

It's a serious thing when we consider the " truth" of love to another.
John 15:13 Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.

I'm asking myself this alot lately, how do I measure up to Jesus' words !

 

[BarneyFife]

 

[Behold]

Unless you are my 70 year old male cousin who tapes them all so he and his wife can watch together.

A '2023 Hallmark "Christmas" movie...... has 2 married women who are expecting their ": "2nd Child" as one of the Lesbians was artificially inseminated, again.

I saw the preview.

5 yrs ago, before Ellen Degeneres put Hallmark in the spotlight for not giving Gay's their due, you could watch Hallmark, as it was about the last Channel on Cable that didnt completely offend Christianity.
Now, this seems to be the purpose of the Hallmark Channel.

 

[BarneyFife]

I was just watching "The Homecoming: A Christmas Story," which is essentially the pilot movie for "The Waltons" TV show and spotted Sheriff Bridges depositing cocktail peanuts in his red-colored soda pop.

Boy, does that bring back memories.

.

 

[Behold]

I was just watching "The Homecoming: A Christmas Story," which is essentially the pilot movie for "The Waltons" TV show and spotted Sheriff Bridges depositing cocktail peanuts in his red-colored soda pop.

Boy, does that bring back memories.

.

Mama Walton (Patricia Neal) in that Pre-Waltons pilot is in a B/W movie with Gary Cooper.

Its titled "The Fountainhead"

Ever seen that one?
Its interesting, as its based on Ayn Rand's Theology.

It comes on Turner Classic Movies Occasionally, if you not already seen it.

 

[BarneyFife]

Mama Walton (Patricia Neal) in that Pre-Waltons pilot is in a B/W movie with Gary Cooper.

Its titled "The Fountainhead"

Ever seen that one?
Its interesting, as its based on Ayn Rand's Theology.

It comes on Turner Classic Movies Occasionally, if you not already seen it.

I've seen it a time or two. I used to be quite a hopeless cinephile in my youth.

A Merry Christmas to you, my friend.

.

 

[Behold]

I've seen it a time or two. I used to be quite a hopeless cinephile in my youth.

A Merry Christmas to you, my friend.

.

Yes i understand.

Merry Christmas
= Happy Jesus's Birthday

To you and your's also.


-Blessings