The recycled plot is a little worn but James Denton (Ethan) and Teri Hatcher (Joyce) make it charming. After playing a couple for 8 years in Desperate Housewives they slip back into character like a pair of old shoes. They make you believe and root for Ethan as he fights for his family.
Ethan is a commercial real estate project manager who has been passed over for promotions for the last 20 years. Joyce is a private school teacher who wants to be a lawyer so she can fight for the underdog. They have two adopted teens (Colin and Trisha).
On Christmas Eve, Ethan has been dispatched to evict the owner of a newsstand by his boss (Sean) who promises to recommend him for a promotion. While waiting for the newsstand to open, he tells Santa that being a "good guy" has stalled his career. Twenty years ago he met and fell in love with Joyce while they were trapped in an elevator for 4 hours and he missed the meeting that started Sean's meteoric rise. He wishes he had gone up in the other elevator with Sean.
Instantly his Christmas wish is granted and he is whisked away to an alternate reality where he is rich and a partner of the firm but no wife or family. In fact, Joyce hates him. Santa tells him he has until Christmas to learn some lessons and get his wife and family back or his memory will be wiped and his current situation will be permanent.
Ethan is a commercial real estate project manager who has been passed over for promotions for the last 20 years. Joyce is a private school teacher who wants to be a lawyer so she can fight for the underdog. They have two adopted teens (Colin and Trisha).
On Christmas Eve, Ethan has been dispatched to evict the owner of a newsstand by his boss (Sean) who promises to recommend him for a promotion. While waiting for the newsstand to open, he tells Santa that being a "good guy" has stalled his career. Twenty years ago he met and fell in love with Joyce while they were trapped in an elevator for 4 hours and he missed the meeting that started Sean's meteoric rise. He wishes he had gone up in the other elevator with Sean.
Instantly his Christmas wish is granted and he is whisked away to an alternate reality where he is rich and a partner of the firm but no wife or family. In fact, Joyce hates him. Santa tells him he has until Christmas to learn some lessons and get his wife and family back or his memory will be wiped and his current situation will be permanent.