Unlimitedia Sick Product of a Sick System

Beanbioca As Good As It Gets

Afouotos Although it has its amusing moments, in eneral the plot does not convince.

Merolliv I really wanted to like this movie. I feel terribly cynical trashing it, and that's why I'm giving it a middling 5. Actually, I'm giving it a 5 because there were some superb performances.

kz917-1 You never know what small act of kindness may mean to someone. A young soldier finds his way to a small town after receiving a Christmas card sent by a woman in the town.He ends up spending the holidays with the woman and her family and working at the family sawmill. Just when they are realizing their may be feelings growing the woman's mostly absent boyfriend comes to town.Ugh. Is he a wet blanket. In the end cute family story for the holiday season!

Debzreview I've watched this one every year since I came across it on Hallmark. It's a wonderful story, heartwarming with a happy ending. All the characters were likable except Paul. Faith and Cody good for each other but I'd like to see them loosen up a bit, they came across as a bit stiff at times. But overall is good TV and I never miss it when it's on.

Heather Although it has every cliché you've ever seen in holiday movies, this movie does a better job of it than most. Usually, the leading lady's boyfriend is a terrible person, which destroys the happy mood and makes the woman look like a fool. The boyfriend in this one is nice and clearly has strong feelings for his girlfriend, but they have nothing in common, he expects too much from her, and he makes big decisions without consulting her because he thinks big surprises are romantic (romance movies lead people to wrongly believe it is romantic). The new love interest is normally a funny, charming guy who is too shy to say how he feels. The one in this movie is a military man, so he knows life is short and always says what is on his mind. He's pretty serious, but he's helpful to everyone he meets and is a hard worker. He doesn't fall in love with the leading lady because of her beauty; he is touched that she writes holiday greeting cards to soldiers. Ordinarily, the family in holiday movies have some weird holiday-related family business and live in a creepily happy fake town. This movie takes place in Nevada City, CA and was filmed on location. The family has a logging business, so they do sell holiday trees (among other things like sawdust), but in a small town in the mountains this seems like a logical career. I also liked that there is a music score the whole time.

SimonJack Most people with family connections to the military may find "A Christmas Card" especially enjoyable. I'm a veteran and come from a family of several vets. Others may like it too. It is a nice Christmas romance connected to modern times of military service. I especially enjoy the scenery of the towns and parts of country chosen for this and other Christmas holiday films. But, some aspects of this film have me, and perhaps other viewers who aren't otherwise love-struck, downgrading it overall. A couple of other reviewers noted this as well and have good analyses of the plot and performances.This TV movie for the Hallmark channel has a wonderful story idea. The acting jobs by Ed Asner (Luke), Alice Evans (Faith), Lois Nettleton (Rosie) and Peter Jason (Richard) are excellent. But, the performances of the two young male leads, John Newton (Sgt. Cody Cullen) and Ben Weber (Paul) were stiff and tepid. Both actors seemed wooden in their performances. Paul even acted hesitantly at times – in a way that makes one think the actor forgot his lines. I will grant that Cody was a quiet person, not someone who would be very outgoing. But, given the exuberance of the entire Spelman clan (Luke, Faith, Rosie and Richard), Cody seemed very wooden and out of place. Both of the young male actors seemed devoid of even the basic energy that all people have most of the time, regardless of their ilk. They seemed lifeless. This viewer thought that the other characters – especially Luke and Richard, overly prompted Luke to get a little life into him, as though they were coaching him to put a little more energy into his life (and role). Seldom do I linger this long on one or two character performances. But here they were so much in contrast that it was a real detraction from the story. The director had to share some of that responsibility, by not getting those two actors to put more into their roles. And the script and direction account for the choppiness at times, and weak connections in some scenes. As I said, this movie had so much going for it in the idea, the setting and some very good performances. These other shortcomings rob it of at least a couple of stars in my book. And, that means it isn't a film I will keep in my library for viewing at future Christmases and holiday periods.