‘Tis the season of Christmas, a.k.a. the “happiest time of the year.” Between baking cookies and shopping/wrapping presents, everyone has their own particular traditions. Although these traditions may vary, Christmas movies are a significant factor when it comes to getting in the Christmas spirit.
We all know the mainstream movies such as “The Santa Clause” movies, “Elf,” “A Christmas Carol” and “Home Alone” (and people can’t seem to get enough of ‘em). Between Freeform, formerly ABC Family, and Hallmark, viewers are covered with Christmas movies from dusk till dawn, giving people options such as Freeform’s “25 Days of Christmas,” The Hallmark Channel’s “Countdown to Christmas,” as well as a countdown to “25 Days of Christmas” on Freeform. Although Hallmark’s Christmas movies tend to be “all the same,” are you telling me they don’t continue to put you in the Christmas mood?
But between the classic movies, there are Freeform’s (or “ABC Family”) and Hallmark’s original movies that give us life—most of the time. It’s hard to not be content while watching a Christmas movie, but it’s also hard to be in the jolly holly mood when you’re watching a film that makes you want to pull your hair out. In order to prevent that from happening, here are five original Christmas movies scheduled to air on Hallmark and Freeform you should avoid this season.
1. The Mistle-Tones
In 2012, ABC Family aired an original holiday musical starring Tia Mowry and Tori Spelling. The Mistle-Tones revolves around “a talented singer forming a musical group and challenges her rivals to a competition on Christmas Eve.” This holiday movie has been rated pretty well, so I had high expectations when watching this movie, but even if I had low expectations, I still would have wished I never watched it in the first place. The acting was brutal, the storyline about a “mall singing competition on Christmas Eve” was unrealistic, and overall, it felt like I was wasting my time watching it.
[su_youtube url=”https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NWEHNKRx_Zg”]
2. A Holiday Engagement
In 2011, Hallmark Channel released this movie that was oddly just like ABC Family’s original “Holiday in Handcuffs”—but a much worse version. It is about how “a woman (Bonnie Somerville) hires a man (Jordan Bridges) to pose as her fiancé when she returns home for the holidays.” Sounds familiar, right? This romantic comedy fell short of making me laugh being overall impractical with overrated actors.
For comparison, here is the “Holiday in Handcuffs” trailer…
[su_youtube url=”https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I24mL7Ax1aw”]
…And here’s the trailer for “A Holiday Engagement.
[su_youtube url=”https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o_l03PDdzLo”]
3. Snowglobe
An ABC Family original movie, “Snowglobe” stars Christina Milan, but don’t get too excited. This movie is about “a young woman who discovers a Christmas-themed dreamworld inside a magical snowglobe.” The plot itself is a huge stop sign. Although it was better than expected, the entire movie was cringe-worthy and hard to watch. The only reason people tend to watch this movie is solely because of Christina Milan, sadly.
[su_youtube url=”https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qaFweYEmWzs”]
4. A Christmas Detour
Starring Candace Cameron Bure, this Hallmark original revolves around “an anxious bride-to-be throws in with a broken-hearted guy and a happily married couple for an emergency ride to NYC, learning about each other and themselves along the way.” It aired in 2015 and although it had some potential, we all know the ending and in order to confirm it, you have to watch a lot of poor acting and dry humor.
[su_youtube url=”https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BzzJtCQn0kM”]
5. Christmas Cupid
In 2010, ABC Family aired “Christmas Cupid” with high hopes. The cast was full of familiar names from Ashley Benson to Chad Michael Murray and Christina Milan, but don’t be fooled by the impressive cast. The title itself made no sense compared to the entire movie, and it was a pointless movie with dreadful acting and no purpose whatsoever.
[su_youtube url=”https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2qtPpH-CRHs”]
