Christmas at Dollywood premiered on Hallmark Channel's Countdown to Christmas on December 8th and stars Danica McKellar (Rachel) and Niall Matter (Luke). It's no surprise that there is an amazing cameo by Dolly Parton (who is 73 years YOUNG!).
RATING (out of 5): 🎄🎄🌟
General Movie Details: Rachel is a NYC event planner who gets some time off for the holidays to spend with her family. Since is she of course also in line for a possible proportion at work in the future. So when the opportunity to go home to Tennessee to work on the 30th anniversary of Snowy Mountain Christmas at Dollywood lands at her feet, she can't help herself. Luke is the Operations Manager at Dollywood and he wants to take over the holiday event so help secure his chances to get the General Manager promotion at the park.
Meet Cute Moment: Rachel is looking over what has been planned so far and gives his negative feedback on what he's planned thus far. They wind up meeting again while waiting to meet with the board. He thinks that she must be his competitor for the GM position.
Obligatory moment of snark/personal rant: So Rachel obviously loves her job so why is her family (and Luke) trying to convince her to leave it and start writing again and leave NY. I mean it's OK and reasonable to start writing again slowly as a hobby before chucking it all to become a writer. I mean she hasn't really shown a real desire to completely change paths right now. I mean I get that she can tell a mean bedtime story to her daughter but that doesn't mean there is a smooth path to children's book author, just saying. But based on the flash forward closing scene of the movie, it's obvious that I don't know what I'm talking about.
There are less pressing issues with this film too, no worries. Let's start with her parent's house. It's cluttered with Christmas stuff. Maybe it's just me but it seems like there is just too much Christmas stuff in every room. I am not a bah humbug (or minimalist) and a seasonal snow globe or Santa hat in a room seems fine but Christmas tchatchkes everywhere feels a bit oppressive. Is this what I could look forward to in retirement is the time to redecorate my whole house done to the knick-knacks for Christmas? Until then work and other hobbies are going to be where I choose to spend my time. Don't get me wrong, I love Christmas but I limit my whole house put up and take down to 1 day.
There is a major fake snow sighting when they are building snowmen in the town square. So I checked December weather in Pigeon Forge and sorry to say they don't typically get snow. The average high is in the mid-40's for the month of December and they get some days where is hits near 60. They get some lows that are around freezing or a bit lower but it's not really even cold enough for snow making to ensure that the event could take place. I appreciate the holiday spirit but why does Hallmark need to paint every location backdrop with a snow brush. I get that it's an easy way to forecast winter and holidays but if it's not the case for the location just don't do it. I imagine that if I lived in Pigeon Forge I'd be laughing all the way through this one over the presentation of winter here. Hallmark should save themselves some money on the budget and show a more accurate portrayal of the towns/locations they highlight. If snow isn't a thing there, it shouldn't be in your film. Hallmark just needs to get a bit more creative in how they communicate winter/holidays to their audience. It would be nice for people who don't live somewhere where November/December = cold and snow to see something that aligns with there experience. I've always wondered what it feels like to live in a climate where it is warm and green at Christmas. Or taken a step further, take me down under to the southern hemisphere where Christmas happens in the middle of summer!
Hallmark Movie Connection: Danica was previously in Christmas at Grand Valley (2018) with Brennan Elliott. Naill is a Hallmark M&M regular co-starring in the Aurora Teagarden series of movies with Candace Cameron Bure.
Let me know if you think Hallmark could pull off a warm and sunny backdrop for a Christmas movie.
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