Movie Review :: Hallmark Channel’s The Christmas Charade

Hallmark Channel

One cannot really argue that the Hallmark Channel has a formula for its TV movies. There is a joke that there are about five stories that are just retold over and over again with different characters. That may be a little unkind, but it also can’t be ignored. This ‘Countdown to Christmas’ movie, The Christmas Charade, really thinks outside the box and turns that formula on its head, giving us one of their more insanely enjoyable movies that feels fresh and different.

The movie starts off with a very James Bondian scene, with special appearances from Kristin Booth and Jefferson Brown, that turns out to be a scene from a James Bondian movie being watched by Whitney (Rachel Skarsten) before heading off to work at the elementary school library. Whitney, it turns out, loves to embellish the stories she reads to the kids with safety tips because her parents owned a security company, instilling her with the knowledge of every way to keep one’s self safe and secure. But the effect of that was to make Whitney a complete loner afraid to put herself out in the world, preferring to stay behind locked doors and indulge in escapist movies through which she could live vicariously. Her co-worker Rachel talks Whitney into going on a blind date with a man who is a friend of her boyfriend, and Whitney reluctantly agrees to meet the man in a green sweater at a nearby restaurant.

The day comes and Whitney makes her way to the date at the same time another woman, Kiera, is making her way to the restaurant to meet a man in a green sweater. That man in question is Josh, and he’s an FBI agent given one last chance to crack a case that has so far yielded no leads. He has one now, a sure thing, but his boss insists he has a partner this time, no more lone wolf stuff. Whitney makes it to the restaurant first and immediately sees Josh, missing her actual date Mark because he had to bend down to pick up a utensil that he’d dropped. Josh is confused because Whitney is not giving him the cover story he was told, and Whitney is confused by Josh’s behavior. Kiera arrives and Josh suddenly realizes he’s been talking about the case with the wrong woman but his marks, Lou and Patty, have already arrived and it would be totally suspicious if he suddenly swapped out his girlfriend for another woman. Josh has to pull Whitney aside and bring her up to speed and begs her to play along so he can finally bring the case to a close, which is going to involve the theft of a priceless necklace at an annual holiday ball. Whitney agrees and she hits it off with Patty, who invites Whitney to help her get things for the ball set up. Josh keeps trying to signal ‘no’ to Whitney, but she goes rogue and accepts. She also has to juggle her holiday traditions with her parents, forced to move their Christmas Eve game night to December 23, and having to present Josh to them as her boyfriend … which sets off all their security alarms. Will Whitney be able to keep it together without giving away the game to Patty and her parents, or will everything be completely exposed, leaving Josh with egg on his face with the Bureau?

Hallmark Channel

The Christmas Charade — a title with double meaning as Whitney’s family game night is Christmas-themed charades — is one of the best, most delightful holiday movies Hallmark has turned out so far this year, their 15th ‘Countdown to Christmas’ event. Kate Pragnell’s script is clever, it’s funny, it knows when to give us just a bit of drama without making it too sappy, it keeps us guessing as to who is actually going to steal the necklace. And it really avoids any overt suggestions of romance between Whitney and Josh until the game night when it seems there just may be something brewing, but we’re still left to wonder until the very end if anything has sparked between them. What is even more surprising than the clever screenplay is that the movie’s co-star, Corey Sevier, directed, this being his fourth feature for Hallmark, showing some great skill in constructing compelling visuals to tell the story, really giving this caper some high quality, theatrical film value. If I have one critique, it’s the climactic moment when Whitney and Josh have to jump from the top of a building using only a rope, not to swing from but to hold — WITH THEIR BARE HANDS — as they slide to the street. You can’t help but hoot at that because by the time they got to the ground, you’d be able to see bloody bones in their hands from the burns they would have gotten holding on to the rope. It was quite (unintentionally?) funny, but by this point you are so invested in the characters and the story you can almost overlook the absurdity. Production values are also very high for this one, and the music is also pretty amazing, giving a real cinematic sound to the score.

Speaking of the characters, Skarsten (perhaps best known to TV viewers as Alice/Beth Kane on The CW’s Batwoman and Elizabeth Tudor on The CW’s Reign) is one of the most original, winning, utterly charming leading ladies Hallmark has among its regulars. She brings a delightful quirkiness to Whitney, showing both her focus on security and then relishes this new adventure she’s fallen into, giving her a chance to become the characters in the romantic action movies she enjoys so much. She has great chemistry with Sevier, and she totally makes her newfound ‘spy work’ authentic, especially when she’s working with Patty on plans for the ball, or thinking outside the box to help Josh solve the case, coming up with the idea for a duplicate necklace. Her surprise tango with Josh is also a delight as she guides him through the steps so as not to cause suspicion. Skarsten is fantastic and is a favorite of the leading ladies we’ve seen thus far. Sevier, pulling double duty acting and directing, is also terrific, feeling much more at ease here than he did in The Handyman and the Heiress. He makes Josh a completely by the book agent, but he reveals more of Josh’s personal side and how and why he treats Christmas as just another day on the calendar. It’s got to be difficult to act in a film in almost every scene while directing at the same time, and Sevier pulls it all off with the greatest of ease.

Cynthia Dale and Rob Stewart are also wonderful as Whitney’s parents, Cheryl and Jim, completely devoted to their daughter as well as upholding the family holiday traditions. Matt Wells is fine as Lou, the guy Josh believes is the jewel thief, but he’s really not given much to do except act overly suspect. Kate Hewlett is terrific as Patty, seemingly completely oblivious to what Lou may be doing, easily connecting with Whitney and forming what may be a real friendship. All of the other supporting cast members do some great work, totally elevating this movie beyond normal TV movie standards. This is a movie you actually could see playing on the big screen at your local cinema. The rest of the ‘Countdown to Christmas’ movies are really going to have a lot to live up to following The Christmas Charade, which is the most fun, enjoyable, thrilling Hallmark movie to date. This one is not to be missed.

The Christmas Charade has a run time of 1 hour 24 minutes, and is rated TV-G. The film is available On Demand and is streaming on Peacock.

Hallmark Channel