Review of Magical Christmas Ornaments

As most have succinctly put it, this is a 90+ minute ad for Hallmark's ornaments. Spent way too much time going through their surplus and perhaps a little less time on the title. The innocuous straight forward sale. Hiding in plain sight tactic could possibly work. But it's somehow a nice background flick that works for those who are broken hearted this time of year. Especially if you attempt to re-kindle a past flame but find it lacking in...magic. Marie (Jessica Lowndes) is a big city book editor who has lost all spirit of Christmas. Her next door neighbor Nate (Brendan Penny) likes to celebrate Christmas when he can away from his folks who dwell in Florida. He longs for a white Christmas, works at a children's hospital and wants to be a doctor someday. I'm not sure if they attempted to cram in, maybe something more endearing in a previous draft, but I don't think the story could handle any more ideal person in a garbage pit such as New York City. This is the 90's NYC where everyone holds the door for one another and wishes each other a Merry Christmas. So, you have to suspend that disbelief. Not to ruin the story for you, but yea, she falls for Nate's charms. Through thick dark eyeliner that makes her look really spooky and a Carly Simon level wide mouth, she is adorable herself. Pining for a lost first love that can't be re-kindled despite the fact that beau-hunk Clark (Stephen Huszas) returns wanting a second chance. The core of the story is magical ornaments, in case you didn't read the title. Marie's parents send these family ornaments that somehow serendipitously come true once hung on trees. A great gag for women, as they tend to believe in romantic magic. And pretty soon we see her guided by those events. Yes, corny as per Hallmark, but still one to get sucked into. It's good natured even in its perceived cynicism of the holiday. I often wonder if the card writers at Hallmark are more suicidal than the rest of us. It's enough to make it worth a peek during dark times around this holiday.