User reviews

I saw this movie last night on WhiteSprings TV. They play many old old made for TV specials. This movie seems like a play on a stage. It is warm and cute, with many warm moments to make a warm smile come to you face.

The movie is all about letting go and Iris teaching John how to do this. It is a story of two people not getting what they expected but getting something even deeper in return.

I don't think the secret of Iris ruins the movie in the end but rather teaches a lesson that we don't always get what we expect. Her secret also teaches John how to open up and let go and in the end move on with his life towards other horizons .

Julie Haris is an absolute angel. This is not a fast paced movie, but rather slow and reserved and not depressing at all.

BEWARE OF BOGUS REVIEWS. SOME REVIEWERS HAVE ONLY ONE REVIEW TO THEIR NAME. NOW WHEN ITS A POSITIVE REVIEW THAT TELLS ME THEY WERE INVOLVED WITH THE MOVIE. IF ITS A NEGATIVE REVIEW THEN THEY MIGHT HAVE A GRUDGE AGAINST THE FILM . NOW I HAVE REVIEWED OVER 200 HOLIDAY FILMS. I HAVE NO AGENDA. I AM VERY FARE ABOUT THESE FILMS

This film is such a pleasure to watch. Older adults will enjoy this more than people under 30. It also nice to see a film where great actors are given great material to work with.

In this film Widower John Tanner (Jason Robards) is unhappy that he has to miss a longstanding Christmas gathering with his son Jim (Jim Eckhouse) and his family. So to avoid being alone, he decides to hire a platonic companion for the holidays, enlisting the services of forlorn escort Iris (Julie Harris). He makes it clear from the beginning, however, that there will be no hanky-panky between the two. But sparks begin to fly when charming John begins to warm Iris' bitter and bleary heart.

This film is not what you will expect. The film really shines because it does show on hard hard the holidays can be for people when they are facing it alone. It also shows however "The person you are may not be the package you are presenting".

I will watch this again. Its special.

A muted film for the mature. Not a "pretty" film, nor is it sugar-coated with a "Hollywood" ending. Instead, to get the most out of this film, one must have lived, suffered, and know deep loss. Somehow, out of this accumulated life experience, the mature viewer comes away nodding at the film's many truths. My wife and I nodded in agreement and understanding with the characters' well-crafted lines, awkward silences, and moments of discovery. We loved "The Christmas Wife." And yet we can understand those who did not enjoy this film. Perhaps they were looking to be entertained rather than to be challenged or reminded that life can be full of surprises, no matter how old one becomes. There was an air of genuine pathos as the film began, yet, at the end, one came away amused, stimulated, and wondering what the protagonist would encounter as he moved on in life after loss.

This short drama was satisfying to watch even though there wasn't much action. It was almost like a two-person play. Get yourself a cup of hot chocolate, relax and enjoy.

It is a surprisingly good drama for a lazy, frosty, Christmas-season evening. It's well-acted, well-written, and well-crafted -- definitely sentimental, but without being fluffy or soppy. The cast is led by veteran acting greats Jason Robards and Julie Harris, which in itself should make the movie worth a consideration. Robards portrays John Tanner, a recent widower (10 months) who doesn't quite know what to do with the changes imposed upon his life. He spends Thanksgiving in a diner, reading a book, and when the annual family trip to the cabin for Christmas is jeopardized (his son and family want them to visit their house), he attempts to rescue his traditions in a radical way: he finds an escort service, makes it very clear that there will be separate bedrooms, and "hires" a woman to be his companion and spend the Christmas weekend with him. Julie Harris is the sad, perceptive, and mysterious woman, Iris, who agrees to be his "Christmas wife" - but does not want any questions asked about herself.

Tanner turns out to be quite hospitable. He cooks (a candlelight dinner, nevertheless), trims a tree, and even brings a gift for his new friend, and himself, to exchange on Christmas day. It's sad that he doesn't believe in an afterlife, as the Lord Jesus Christ, the God of all comfort, died for our sins, was buried, and rose again so we could have forgiveness of sins, an eternal home in heaven, a taste of Heaven on this earth, and help for all of our problems.

This is a quality "G" movie. I enjoyed watching it with my wife (you never know how long you'll have them), and she thought it was good. Adults who have some experience with age or loneliness may discover a tale striking quite a responsive chord.

I enjoyed this movie and thought it was artfully done, and very poignant. It was a definite "chick flick". Sadly for me, the CD, which I checked out at the local library, had a flaw in it right at the critical moment which lead up to the "secret". I could not get it to play and I had to skip to the ending. It stopped right as Iris was going to tell her secret. Please, someone let me know what that secret was. I missed all of the scene from where she was pouring him coffee and onwards. The next scene I saw was when he dropped her off at the bus stop. I would really like to know what her secret was!! I can imagine all sorts of things, but my suspicion is that she was married.

I just watched this movie recently for the first time, although it is over 20 years old, and found it to be generally well-acted and entertaining but had some obvious flaws. First of all, the main actors, Jason Robards and Julie Harris, were outstanding in the roles of two people meeting for the first time for a weekend of friendship and company. Robards as the male lead who arranged the weekend liaison through a dating service seemed very comfortable as the ageing architect with family and friends but longing for that special someone. Julie Harris was the woman he was matched with and she was also convincing as the shy but quite compatible weekend companion. The two together find great pleasure in the beautiful setting by the lake, their Christmas dinner, and their play time. There is no particular need for love-making; that's not part of the plan, as sketched out by Robards, which is a huge relief to his companion who prefers a totally platonic holiday. The two seem so well matched and yet there is a gulf between them. The ending will not be to everyone's liking but then life can't always pan out as we would wish.

I found the film-making paid little attention to detail as the Christmas setting was more like Thanksgiving than Christmas. Even in the United States people know that fall colour is over by December 25. It was also obvious to anyone familiar with Toronto that the movie was filmed there and not in the eastern United States, as the film would imply. These incongruities detract from the movie's appeal. Nevertheless, it is worth watching for the interaction between the two main actors.

I saw this movie 2 days before Jason Robards' death. He is such a fine actor, I will miss him. --- The movie is about a widower who doesn't want to spend Christmas alone. He contacts an agency to set him up with a woman who is also in need of company. The drama unfolds as the two spend the holiday together. Very touching, heartfelt movie.

Awkward, odd, strained, maybe even inappropriate.

Jason Robards is a widow who doesn't want to travel to see his son's family, but still doesn't want to be alone for Christmas. So what does he do? In effect, he asks a strange man at a strange "relationship" agency to set him up with the equivalent of an escort, but one his own age. Hanky Panky? Oh, no, he says, "two separate rooms".

Whether you like this movie will be strictly a matter of taste. I found it slow, and yes awkward. The situation was so strange, I just couldn't relax with it, and I think that's what you would need to enjoy it.

The acting was fine. The plot was, well as I said, strange. It wasn't helped by the fact that it is a short story adapted to a TV movie and as a result, there isn't a lot of substance to the plot. Most of what you get out of it is between the lines.

Jason Robards is John, a widower of only 10 months who doesn't want to spend Christmas alone. He gets a call from his grown son Jim, who tells him that his family isn't going to bother flying up to spend Christmas with him at his cabin in the woods. However, they would like for John to fly down and spend the holiday season with them.

I dunno. It sounds reasonable to me. Jim doesn't want to pay for four plane tickets to spend Christmas moping around a cabin thinking about his deceased mom.

John, however, decides that he doesn't want to see his son and grandchildren for Christmas. He thinks it's a better idea to go to an agency which organizes "social encounters" between people. (Chuckle...chuckle) Well, anyways...he pays $500 to have a somber woman named Iris (Julie Harris) go with him to his cabin for Christmas.

The acting from both Robards and Harris is professional, as you might expect. I just could never fully enjoy this movie because it all seemed so strange and inappropriate. There is only one touching moment in the film (which I won't spoil). The awkward secret which Iris has been hiding during her cabin adventure only makes the film all the more disappointing. 3/10

The film gives not a story but the ingredients of a state. That does it precious. It is a splendid performance demonstration and a heartbreaking romance about loneliness, refuge in past, compromises and a elicate friendship. Jason Robards is just magnificent and Julie Harris offers the most delicate and precise portrait of Iris. So, just pure delight.

When I first heard of this movie, I jumped at the chance to see it. After all, Jason Robards starred in this film AND he also starred in one of the best forgotten made for TV Christmas movies (THE HOUSE WITHOUT A Christmas TREE). So, I naturally assumed it would be excellent. Well, I was half right. Jason Robards was a wonderful and incredibly talented actor, so I did appreciate him in the film. BUT, the story itself was dreadful and so depressing. It seems that Robards' character is old and lonely so he pays an older woman to pretend she is his wife and they spend a VERY depressing and awful Christmas together. I really don't think there was much point to the movie other than this. This is the sort of holiday film that could make a Scrooge out of most viewers.

I love this movie. Easy and enjoyable with great acting. I don't believe that every movie has to be thought provoking or deep. Sometimes, people just want to sit back and relax, fall into the story line and enjoy and hour and a half without having to think too much. This movie is a staple for me every Christmas. As I said, the acting is great; I believe the story and that I am at the cabin with them. I also feel the heart ache at the end when she wants to stay but can't. People are lonely during the holiday, and sometimes they are more alone with family than without. This movie moves me in so many ways. Simple, clean and believable.

I really liked this movie. Who was this woman? Why was she here? All questions are answered, but the answer may surprise you. This is an easy movie to watch, no foul language, no violence or explicit sexual content. If you're looking for something fast paced rock-em-sock em,this is not your movie....but for a wholesome, a bit intelligent movie, you can't beat it. The main actress has been on other movies from the 50s to the 90s, maybe more recently I don't know. I've seen her in East of Eden and The Christmas Tree.The main character, the male actor, had a problem, an event in his like that had been causing him pain. He expected this encounter to solve it, which it did, but in a way he did not expect. Neither will you. See it. ITs good

Jason Robards and Julie Harris are wonderful in this leisurely film that is reminiscent of the great classic movies. However, the revelation of Julie Harris's "secret" in the last 15 minutes totally ruins the story and it leaves you feeling cheated, or at least it did for me. Recommended, but be prepared for a big let down at the end.

In the same way that 'Murder, she wrote' was a murder mystery series for retirees, this immediately makes its mark as a TV movie geared for a very niche audience. A widower in his golden years, a distant family ambivalent about travel, unfamiliarity with or hostility to certain modern social sensibilities - anyone can enjoy it, but this is written and intended for those of advanced years. Considering how comparatively few titles there are for this market, I suppose it's rather refreshing in a way. In fact, more so than I would have thought - this bears many hallmarks of carbon copy holiday romance films that proliferate every year, only without the pretense and ham-handedness that can make the genre overbearing. It's not an essential, riveting classic, but 'The Christmas wife' is gratifyingly charming and enjoyable.

Nigh all about the film echoes the same specific slant. Chief cast members Jason Robards and Julie Harris both claimed a large number of credits and accolades in their careers, yet outside of a few particular titles, they are best known for work of which the intended audience is probably most familiar. Their characters share mildly sharp dialogue - barbed, but in a restrained manner - reflecting their personalities and idiosyncrasies. John (Robards) is warm but expectant, with notions demonstrating frequent recollections of his late wife. Iris (Harris) is friendly yet guarded, defying John's assumptions and in some ways serving as a foil. Together, their repartee builds scenes that indicate a seeming purpose of totally embodying the broader genre of romantic dramedies, yet with a deeply relaxed, unbothered tone and pace crafted wholly to match the simple comfort and entertainment of an older generation.

As simple as the premise is, and the narrative - little more than the chance meeting of two people over a weekend - it's hard not to love this. The cast is swell, and the story is wonderfully well written - heartfelt, genuine, and uncomplicated. For all the grand embellishment that characterizes the vast majority of cinema generally, and holiday movies especially, it's a welcome change of scenery to sit for a feature so unadulterated. With that said, anyone anticipating the more bubbly, frenetic stylings of Hallmark, Lifetime, or Hollywood Christmas comedies will be put out. For the intended audience, however - and definitely for anyone open to the sort of low-key fare that this represents - 'The Christmas wife' is disarming, endearing, and curiously satisfying. It's the type of picture one can truly unwind to - and is, to my delight, worth far more than the 73 minutes it takes to watch.

Highly recommended!

Instead of the usual trite story of hometown girl who left small town and made it big in the city and then returned home at Christmas for whatever reason and reconnects with old boyfriend, this is a love story about and for adults.

I really thought I had the ending figured out and was shocked when I was wrong. I never saw it coming.

Every older woman who watches it will fall in love with Jason Robarbs and got to bed with renewed hope in her heart.

I immediately watched it a second time. It is in my top five Christmas movies now.

And, it is free to watch on TUBI!!!

And why don't men wear bow ties any longer????

When I was about 10 -11 years old, I went to see "The Ballad of Cable Hogue" (1970) many times, not only to see Stella Stevens' ass - super sexy - but also to see him, Jason Robards, I was so impressed by his acting, the character he created and the whole story of the film, one of the best ever made (director Sam Peckinpah, a giant!). It wasn't until a few years later that I saw Robards in Sergio Leone's superfilm, "Once Upon a Time in the West" (1968), making me a steadfast admirer. I know Julie Harris from "East of Eden" (1955) and "The Haunting" (1963), a sweetheart! I knew before I saw this "The Christmas Wife" that I would see something special, of good quality. And, I wasn't wrong. Jason Robards is a guarantee that you will see something of quality. And Julie Harris too. A simple, sensitive film.

This is a bit of a sleeper. It is late and I did nod off for a second about 2/3 the way through. This is just that comfortable a film to see. It is very subtle in the lesson it teaches, right to up to the end.

Both the characters are pleasant and it is easy to just see them as people interacting as people might just do in such a situation.

You know one person's side and you imagine enough to fill in the other and you just watch things go on their pleasant way.

Then they start to drift into the way of films about a man "renting" even platonic companionship for the holidays. And then they don't and you are a bit distressed to find out why.

Then, by way of a little encouragement you are gifted with a pleasant pick me up at the end and you see that it really was all worthwhile after all.

This was a good little film about loneliness. And how a tiny adjustment in our sense of risk assessment has the potential to repay a substantial reward.

I do like happy endings and I don't to think it is a spoiler to say that this has one, it is just not quite like I thought it would be.

All of the above reviews offer an insight I can understand. I wish to add that this is so very rare a film, for me, because there is romance, in the sense that one can feel real chemistry between these two great performers. There is the real feeling of the possibility of desire, of a physical attraction that emerges, unexpectedly, really, between elderly people.

This possible couple had grace, charm, and, delightfully, both became more desirable as one watched. The film had credibility, warmth, charm, and an ending that can best be understood by those who have lived a little.

One cannot say enough about the quality of this movie. The writing, directing, and the screenplay are superb, and the music is beautiful. Jason Robards and Julie Harris are both magnificent in their portrayals of John and Iris. I was so pleasantly surprised by how enjoyable this film was, especially considering the subject being loneliness. Sometimes these types of films can be rather mundane but this one rose above and gave a performance that brought both laughter and tears throughout. I was so impressed with Jason Robards acting that I will be watching this again on Christmas Day in the future. What a wonderful treat to watch. Thank you to whoever had a part in making this movie.