Reviews

... but how? The murderer was obvious from almost the first scene but how? Like other reviewers, it was a different character arch for Sam in this storyline. For her to be sick - breathing problems, coughing and then spitting up blood - it all looked very serious. I did find it a tad unbelievable that this unspoken disease could be cured with antibiotics, but where's you faith? I loved the cast in this one: Kathryn Hunter (Sis Geraldine), Prunella Scales (Mother of the victim) and Philip Jackson (DI Mike Toner) were all top notch. I really love Philip Jackson from the Poirot series. It was so nice to see him in this. Good episode.

I'm new to this series and I've admired Sam in the previous three series. Yes, it is 1999 but AIDS is still prevalent. Why would Sam have sex with a man just released from prison? What point is she trying to prove? Does she want him to feel attractive, desirable? Is she smarter than the police in searching out the real killer? Is she trying to prove she doesn't need Connor's protection? Sam's "I Am Woman" attitude got very old in these episodes. She's definitely smart, but not very wise and they are two very different things. I did like her dig at Connor for being married but attracted to her. Again, Sam's not stupid, but still...

In the Houston area we have a cable channel called Story Television which apparently bought many old episodes from the History Channel (History = Story). I record many of these series and particularly like the Civil War. Even though their series on the Civil War was made 31 years ago, I learned a great deal. I found this episode especially interesting primarily because I have a friend whose son will be graduating from West Point in 2025. . I never gave much thought about WP graduates knowing each other in the Civil War. Never knew William Armstrong Custer crossed Confederate lines to attend the wedding of a WP friend, or that WP friends - one from the North and one from the South - sat at the bedside of a mortally wounded WP friend until he died. Such examples humanized this horrible war which divided our country. These men were trained to be warriors but on the way, they became friends.

I enjoyed this last episode for the end of a good season. I was a bit surprised by who the criminal "boss" really was, but thought it was an interesting way to link two plot lines. I will admit that after all of Inspector Sullivan's hopes and plans to escape Kembleford, it seems too easy for him to decide to stay. Capturing the bent copper in his past - a great evil character portrayed by Jonny Phillips - I didn't think Sullivan was given time to realize that what motivated his return to London had been replaced by a different motivation to stay. I also wondered about Sergeant Goodfellow's future and was curious about the missing presence of Mrs Goodfellow - not with him at church nor a celebration of his promotion?

No wonder people liked the location! Arkansas is lovely especially with its rolling hills and landscapes. Loved the shot of the Walton's 5-10 store on Main Street in downtown Bentonville - the original store owned by Sam Walton of the Walmart retail dynasty. Cool! Despite the local charm, the movie was lukewarm on charm. I agree with much that's already been said - the hair of the female lead should have been pulled back away from her face & secured so not to hang down as she cleaned. I also get soooo tired of female leads in mystery movies who never follow orders & have to be rescued from her own actions often endangering others. The ending was clever - for those still watching - is there a sequel in the wings?

After reading some of these reviews, I tend to agree with much that's been said. There are soooo many Christmas movies now, far beyond the days of Charlie Brown's Christmas or It's a Wonderful Life on Christmas Eve. A plot about a prince always plays into our romantic Cinderella fantasy, but this plot was a bit different. Instead of the 'cute meet' between the two leads which moves into a very quick love story, you have two people who've worked together for a year and become friends. I'm very familiar with Cindy Busby from her many Hallmark movies so it was nice to see her acting opposite Jilon VanOver who was new to me. I think their chemistry was good and I'd definitely like to see him again - he looks like a prince! Some production elements missed the mark - no wide angle shots of the lovely hotel's lobby, similar decorations at the hotel and her parents' home - but I loved their walk in the park with snow everywhere. So much better than some movies with spots of snow on the ground. When was this filmed? Overall, was it a keeper? Probably not, but the lead actors made it watchable.

Everything said previously is true: it's not your typical Christmas movie romance, more like an updated Christmas Carol, it's got great chemistry between all the actors, it's a keeper - worthy of watching more than once. I need to record it again and NOT delete it. The storyline is the perfect reminder during the hustle and bustle of the season. I've always liked Kelsey Grammer and I was glad to see he was Executive Producer on this, plus acting with his daughter, Spencer, who've I've never seen. The production values were top notch. Christmas isn't about gifts, as Santa tells him; it's about giving. Great line coming from Santa.

From the opening credits, I knew this Christmas movie would be different: a cartoon Sherlock Holmes searching for clues with his spy glass. It's not your usual holiday romance because romance is only hinted at. It's a mystery and the characters are classic stereotypes which fit the table game they start to play, like Clue. There's the Detective, the Liar, the Lover, etc. Don't look for reality here - are holiday movies real anyway? The actors are having fun, campy fun and they want us to join in. The production values are good: lovely estate, nice costumes. If you want a break from all the holiday sugar, I recommend this one! Sit back and have fun.

One of the most entertaining episodes in several weeks. As somewhat of a computer geek, I loved the links to modern day Facebook, movies of cats, hacking and even the scams from a "Nigerian Prince," who the Security Team at my company warned us about decades ago. One of the previous criticisms of this episode was that people back then didn't use those technical terms or speak that way. Well, policemen Murdoch, Crabtree & Brackenreid didn't use them, but the scientist Pendrick & his female assistant used them for this new, never before seen technology. The series began in 1895 but has been steadily moving through time. I remember the passionate kiss between Murdoch & Ogden on New Year's Eve to welcome the new century 1900. A January 2017 episode, "Great Balls of Fire," covered the Great Toronto Fire of 1904. Murdoch's timeline isn't stagnant. LOL!

I was familiar with this episode, having seen it previously. I was looking forward to the Big Birthday Announcement so I was quite surprised when it didn't happen! I had recorded it on the Ovation Channel & Ovation has the irritating habit of dropping in a commercial at specific times regardless of what's happening in the program - in the middle of a conversation, during a confession, whatever. Neal Dudgeon is listed in the title credits but if you blinked, you missed him at the birthday party. Tom didn't make his announcement; there was no shock from Joyce, Cully or Jones, and when the station called about the latest murder, there was no handoff to John. Trimming key points of this ending makes me wonder what else Ovation has cut. Bummer!

I know that these programs are dealing with the crime and the solving of the crime but the human relationships raise questions. Where were Carlnell Walker's friends? Did he have a girlfriend? Roommate? No one missed him? Was it Summer School at Morehouse? Did he miss class? Have a Summer job? Miss work? He was dead for three weeks and no one missed him?

Too many critics blame these movies on Hallmark. Just because it's made in Canada doesn't make it a Hallmark movie, especially if it's a recent movie. That said, this movie is definitely in the minor league which I saw on the UpChannel. The business plot was a bit hard to follow. The lead actors were stiff with little chemistry; liked the secondary leads. I always pay attention to the Big Kiss at the end. Not great.

I know these movies are filmed on a budget, but where's the crew member who checks for logic & consistency? When leaving a neighbor's home after checking her pregnant horse, why is the female neighbor wearing a hat in her own doorway but the female vet has no hat? The picturesque shot of the Dad's home is lovely but I don't think he'd park his truck down this slope of snow so far from the house (& it never moved!). I was intrigued by the use of a 1955 TV version of "Miracle on 34th Street" with Thomas Mitchell for the cute movie-in-a-barn scene. I agree that the dialogue was above the norm for "romance" movies, very nice in establishing relationships. I also agree that the romance moves very fast in spite of "the lady protests too much;" ditto the hero's pained expression at the roller rink. Typically, it all works out and ends with a kiss.

The movie starts typically - Journalist Alli is stuck in covering entertainment news but pushes her boss for her Big Break into real news. Her boss - doing a great Perry White imitation - agrees to consider the move if she covers the 65th Anniversary of the movie classic, "Christmas is You," in the small town where the movie was originally filmed. Alli is cynical of Christmas and the false magic of movies until she is caught up in the mystery of the movie's famous song. Did the former leading man write the song for the soul mate he met while filming the classic? Is his broken heart the reason for his reclusive lifestyle? Who is the real woman behind the song? The ending of this movie was quite a surprise - a happy and pleasant surprise - with memories of Astaire, Rogers, Kelly & Charisse. I especially enjoyed the editing of the "movie" scenes with current day scenes. Nicely done.

Definitely low budget, phony snow. Didn't believe it was Alaska in December. Little things by a good director could have helped. If I was tired, hungry & cold, I wouldn't let a cup of hot cocoa sit and get cold; ditto the plate of food in front of me. Take a sip or a bite. If you stand up during a serious conversation, don't just stand behind your chair. Why get up? It was also odd how serious things like the aunt stumbling, hitting her head & being out cold was waved away with "Are you okay?"; "I'm fine." Besides a head bandage, no mention of a possible concussion. The hotel clerk was a lousy employee, ignoring waiting customers & later asking them why'd they bother going into town. A Script Doctor was very much needed!

The plot was set at Christmas but Christmas had little to do with the plot. Ditto Paris. Don't you love it when the native, French-speaking actors speak English when they're alone? (I guess subtitles can get tricky even when used elsewhere in the movie.) The two leads were good looking but the romance moved too fast. One critic pointed out the Harlequin-romance-type hero and that was so true! Tall, dark, handsome, wealthy, etc. Etc. Glad she had a good job & didn't need to be rescued. The hero's asthma was an unusual frailty to give him; ditto the biological father/son relationship. I did like her Dad & his real grief for his dead wife. Sorry, but if I was his daughter, I'd tear up every time he did, but she didn't muss her makeup. I found the party people funny as they stood behind the couple during his proposal, her refusal, his insistence & finally her capitulation. These people would be watching in anticipation, cheer his proposal and then go back to chatting as the hero pleaded his case. In real life, I think anyone near the proposal drama would be glued to it. It was indeed a Harlequin romance.

I really wanted to like this movie but it was only so-so for me. The character of Molly seemed very immature. How old is she? 21? 24? We're told she's successfully completed college (in spite of her hovering father), and she's currently working at a neighborhood deli where the hero orders the same sandwich for lunch every day. Molly has applied for an entry-level position at PR firm in spite of being over qualified. Where'd all her experience come from? Working at her father's knee? Her insistence upon making her own way, not being helped by anyone became very "one note," repetitive. What's the hero to do but the very thing that upsets her? No thanks.

While the two leads make a handsome pair, the humor was forced by secondary characters. The eye rolling and grimacing of the Majordomo, Blevins, got old very quickly. Some of Dr Tasha's problems were just silly: being married to royalty for over a year and still not knowing which cutlery or glassware was appropriate? Not using her title/position to create the necessary children's wing at their local hospital? There was a cute bit of the royal motorcade driving through a burger joint so Tasha could get a cheeseburger. Another bit was totally dropped when her brother, Jeff, planned to propose to Royal Security Guard, Bella, by dropping the engagement ring in a cup of hot tea he'd prepared for her. As he set it aside to welcome his sister, a female hospital worker, picks up the lovely China tea cup to drink it - who does that? Jeff didn't try to stop her or warn her against the possibility of choking on the ring. I assume he took out the ring when the camera was focused elsewhere. Oh, well.. I don't imagine there will a fourth installment to this series. They tend to run in threes.