As far as Hallmark movies, especially Christmas ones, go, this one checks all the boxes. And with an added bonus, a beautiful song performed by Kristin Chenoweth and her young co-star.
One of the story arcs - that little twist at the end when you learn that Danny is Chenoweth's biological son, that she gave up for adoption - didn't sit well with me, as an adopted child myself. While I don't normally care that these movies are works of fiction, this hit a little too closely. Chenoweth, also an adopted child, is an advocate, but she is among those who paint adoption rosy and magical. Sure, this movie touched on the biological mom and child reuniting, but as what happens with most movies that attempt to cover adoption, the story ends with "all is well." This happy conclusion feeds the very one-sided view of adoption that most people have, and that Chenoweth pushes. It doesn't begin to cover the pain and rejection so many adopted children experience when their attempts to meet their biological mother and/or father go south, and it happens more than you'd think.
All that said, this being a Hallmark movie, my expectations should not have been anything more than how the movie ended.
One of the story arcs - that little twist at the end when you learn that Danny is Chenoweth's biological son, that she gave up for adoption - didn't sit well with me, as an adopted child myself. While I don't normally care that these movies are works of fiction, this hit a little too closely. Chenoweth, also an adopted child, is an advocate, but she is among those who paint adoption rosy and magical. Sure, this movie touched on the biological mom and child reuniting, but as what happens with most movies that attempt to cover adoption, the story ends with "all is well." This happy conclusion feeds the very one-sided view of adoption that most people have, and that Chenoweth pushes. It doesn't begin to cover the pain and rejection so many adopted children experience when their attempts to meet their biological mother and/or father go south, and it happens more than you'd think.
All that said, this being a Hallmark movie, my expectations should not have been anything more than how the movie ended.