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Showing posts from December, 2018

Mr. 365 (2018) and The Art of Us (2017)

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What do they have in common?  They both have adorable dogs who play major parts in the love stories.  Let me know if in this case they used the same dog.   I think he is the same one. Such a great actor.  Vincent in THE ART OF US, and Romeo in MR. 365.  I've seen him in many other movies Director: Kristoffer Tabori (as K.T. Donaldson) Writers: Karen Berger , Teri Wilson (author) Loosely based on "My Fair Lady" it's about a Doctor of Visual Arts and a dog walker with a hidden talent he developed during art therapy.  They meet by chance because of the cute dog called Vincent.  I just don't get why she had to introduce herself as Dr. Harper Higgins, just to show how disparate they are.  Is that how insecure she was?  Oh well.  I love the dog and the artwork.   When reality show producer Sophia (Chelsea Hobbs) is assigned to convince Christmas fanatic Will (Christopher Russell) to be on their holiday special, she imagines him to be an oddball Momma’s

Memories of Christmas (2018)

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Noelle (Milian) was raised by the queen of Christmas. When she inherits her late mother's house, she finds out that her mother had been hiring someone to decorate it - Dave (Taylor). The deal is off, but Dave convinces Noelle to let him carry on the tradition. As the display goes up, Noelle's defenses start to come down. She embraces the town's Christmas gala that was her mother's legacy, finds unexpected love, and develops a joy for the holidays that she never thought possible. — Sepia Films Directed by  Tibor Takács Story and Screenplay by Valerie Alexander Teleplay by Jamie Pachino and John Wierick Memories of Christmas is a beautiful made for TV movie, and I must admit, it took a while before I wrote this blog entry. These IG exchanges even happened first(before writing this blog, just to reiterate): jaimecallica @nixca316  You enjoy it?! nixca316 @jaimecallica  Very much...I enjoyed it very much. I just haven't blogged about it yet

Love by Chance (2016)

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Directed by Gary Harvey Story by Brian L. Ross who also wrote the teleplay alongside Karen Berger It's BEAU GARRETT'S 36th birthday today, and I'm glad that I chanced upon this movie on her special day. There would probably be spoilers, but not too much, I hope. My favourite couple is actually the tandem of Sam(GARWIN SANFORD) and Helen(BRENDA STRONG), the parents of Claire(Ms. Garrett), the female protagonist.  I like that Sam trusted Helen more than anything, but he didn't appreciate her meddling with their daughter's love life very much. Unlike in the movie Flower Girl, where the grandma was not being a good judge of character, the mother here is well-meaning, but she tends to scare people away, and it almost included the male protagonist(BENJAMIN AYRES). One even called her crazy. Well, I don't wanna give away the major scenes in this movies, but I like this movie very, very much. There are scenes that could have been written in another way

Hometown Holiday (2018) Another one of the "Maverick" stories, but this time by Caro Carson

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Screenplay by Amanda McNeice  LOOSELY based on Caro Carson's "The Maverick's Hometown Masquerade" Directed by  Justin G. Dyck This is a sweet story.  It may not be so original, but like how I describe other stories that have tried and tested themes, it still has something new to offer. I particular enjoyed Darryl(STEPHEN HUSZAR) and Maggie(JENNIFER MOTE)'s partnership as a husband and wife.  Darryl is very funny, and Maggie is so in love with him, vice-versa.  I just had an issue with Maggie's hair reaching the face of the newborn baby, but since the parents allowed it, then maybe they thought it was just natural. I like chemistry between KEVIN MCGARRY(Wes) and SAMANTHA GRACIE(Ashley), and Wes' cute son played by GAVIN SCOTT IRVINE. Of course, there was also some magic between BRADLEY HAMILTON and SARAH TROYER, but the aforementioned were more believable.  Anyways, my favourite moment between them was when they took that beautiful photograph of

Best Christmas Party Ever! (2014)

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Directed by  John Bradshaw Original Story by Lewis Chesler  & Fariba Cain Teleplay by Robert Vaughn  and Kevin Commins There are many Christmas movie blogs pending, but I think I'll write about this first.   I didn't think I'll enjoy this.  If you are sort of undergoing something(like probable---pardon me---menopause precursors) for several weeks now, among other things, I couldn't work unless I watch or read something uplifting.  Of course, needless to say, that is, I pray, but when others need a quiet surrounding, there are times when I need some noise, so I either listen to music, or watch something positive.   From my standpoint, vantage point or whatever, I wasn't that impressed with the party, but I love what it stands for.  You just have to watch the movie to see what I mean.     This movie came at a right time.  I haven't "met" the female protagonist, but I do "know" the male protagonist

Rainbow's Sunset (2018)

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source (Added later) From Random Republika Written and Directed by Joel Lamangan Screenplay by Eric Ramos Cowritten by Ferdinand Dizon Lopez Starring: Eddie Garcia (Ramon) Tony Mabesa  (Fredo) Gloria Romero (Sylvia) Tirso Cruz III (Emman) Aiko Melendez (Georgina) Sunshine Dizon (Marife) With Max Collins (Young Sylvia) , Jim Pebanco (Ben) , Tanya Gomez (Merly, Emman's wife) , Sue Prado (Ben's Wife) , Marcus Madrigal (The Mayor's husband, Mr. Collantes) , Noel Comia (Rufus, Georgina's son) , Ross Pesigan (Young Fredo) , Ali Forbes (Cathy, Emman's intern at the Assessor's office) , Adrian Cabido (Jairus, Emman's son) , Hero Bautista (Atty. Castillo, Emman's lawyer) , Vince Rillon (Ben's son) , Zeke Sarmenta (Lara, Emman's daughter) , Nella Marie Dizon (Georgina's daughter) , Ace Merfel Cafe, Benz Sangalang , Tabs Sumulong and Celine Juan (Marife's daughter). Special participation: Albie Casiño (Marif

Christmas on Holly Lane (2018) and Shoelaces for Christmas (2018)

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Written and Directed by CRAIG CLYDE Cowritten by BRYCE W. FILLMORE Stars AIDEN BEAGLEY , AUSTIN R. GRANT , BAILEY CHASE, JESSICA MORRIS , YOLANDA STRANGER , PAUL KIERMAN , IVEY LLOYD , SCOUT SMITH , SUMMER MITCHELL , and MIA TOPALIAN Written by DIANE MESINA STANLEY and JAMES STANLEY Directed by MICHAEL SCOTT Stars  KAREN HOLNESS, SARAH LANCASTER, GINA HOLDEN, JAIME M. CALLICA, GILES PANTON, TAYLOR DIANE ROBINSON, AVA TELEK, SERGE HOUDE, and SHARON CRANDALL Although the two movies are different as night and day, they both are very touching.  If you would ask me,  I like both movies very much, but SHOELACES FOR CHRISTMAS for me is the better movie, only because of how a simple thing like a pair of shoelaces could make someone happy.  It's the practicality of those shoe laces, and the deeper meaning it represents that pulled a lot of heartstrings. I watched CHRISTMAS ON HOLLY LANE FIRST, then CHRISTMAS MADE TO ORDER , then Shoelaces for Christmas.  Each of the thr

Christmas Made to Order (2018)

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Director:   Sam Irvin Writers:   Matt Marx  and  Anna White "When architect and Christmas amateur Steven (Jonathan Bennett) finds himself hosting his family for Christmas, he recruits holiday coordinator Gretchen (Alexa PenaVega) to bring holiday joy to his home. Gretchen's expert Christmas spirit brings Steven's family together, but neither expected it to bring them closer to each other. After a great opportunity presents itself to Gretchen, she and Steven must decide what's really important in life". — Hallmark This may be one of my favourite Hallmark Christmas stories ever. I'm exaggerating, of course, but I did enjoy watching this made for TV movie. True, the story is quite out of this world, and probably won't happen in real life, but who knows? Sometimes truth is stranger than fiction, and life may imitate art. I had fun watching ALEXA PENAVEGA and JONATHAN BENNETT together. If CARLOS PENAVEGA didn't have a quote un

Christmas Bells Are Ringing (2018)

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Samantha "Emilie Ullerup" is a free lance photographer. She is on her way to Cape Cod to celebrate her father's Christmas Eve wedding. She enlists the help of an old childhood friend Mike to meet a deadline for a big Christmas spread that could very well ignite her career. Along the way she falls in love and realizes that Christmas is wherever your family is. - imdb Written by Nicole Baxter Directed by Pat Williams There's just a magical feeling watching a Christmas movie on Christmas day.  True, this is not a Nativity Story, and Christmas is not about magic and all that, but this movie surely does bring out the spirit of Christmas. This movie is a lot of things rolled into one, but it didn't feel rushed or cramped.  It kind of reminded me of a series I love, but don't blog about called SEALED, SIGNED, DELIVERED... Eric Mabius' character, Oliver, would always say, "Trust the timing!"  The two lead characters had something going before

Christmas Catch (2018)

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Google Images Detective Mackenzie Bennett is hot on the trail of Carson, a suspected diamond thief, and goes undercover to catch him in the act. While undercover, Mack not only falls for Carson, but begins to suspect that he's been framed. Are feelings clouding Mack's judgment or are they focusing on the wrong suspect? - imdb You could easily see where this is going, but had lots of fun watching this.  I have no right to judge the acting, because I was laughing at the inanity of certain situations in this movie. Except for LAUREN HOLLY, I think the only other familiar  face here is YANIC TRUESDALE(Ken).  I thought I've seen EMILY ALATALO and ANDREW BUSHELL before, but I'm just not certain.   It doesn't matter.  So what if  this is formulaic?   What's important is that the laughter and the craziness made it enjoyable.     :-) Thanks for your time.  

Like Cats and Dogs (2017)

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Written and Directed by Ron Oliver based on Aaron Mendelsohn's original story Mr. Oliver collaborated with Aaron Mendelsohn in writing the teleplay With six other blog entries pending, I chose to write this first while it's still fresh in my head.  I surely love the canine and the feline actors who played Frank and Mozart respectively.  They could really act.  Whoever trained them should be honoured because he or she taught them well.  If you watch the movie, I'm sure you're going to enjoy this. The first time I watched this via youtube, I was so disappointed.  It was not because of the story, acting, scenery or anything, because all aforementioned were all done well, at the very least.  It was because the uploader, besides misleading everyone about the title of movie, made everyone miss out on the the ending.    Yes, it was anticlimactic, but still, we did not want to be deprived of the ending. CASSIDY GIFFORD looks very young, but she could act well, and

Small Town Christmas (2018)

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source Nell’s last stop on a nationwide book tour takes her to the town of Springdale, the hometown of Emmett Turner, a young man she met over five years ago while both were junior copy editors at a New York publishing company. Nell was hurt when Emmett stood her up for a dinner date and then disappeared from New York without any explanation. Back then, Emmett’s colorful, nostalgic anecdotes about Springdale inspired her to write the book that is shaping her life and especially her holiday season. Starring  Kristoffer Polaha  and  Ashley Newbrough .- The Hallmark Channel   Written by Samantha Herman Directed by Maclain Nelson This made for TV movie is one movie that I would love to know what happens next.  The story could survive on its own, but I would love to see how it progresses. By writing the things above you would probably guess that the inevitable  happened...that story is somewhat predictable. Well, maybe so, but there are so many factors that we have to cons

Date With Love (2016)

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In my opinion there are two female(Shenae and Bailee) leads and two male leads(Andrew and Quinn).  It is very much the story between Heidi and David, as much as it is between Vincent and Alex. Written by BROOK DURHAM Directed by RON OLIVER 🎬 There were many things that made me shrug my shoulders, but I'll just focus on the things that made me smile: 1. ANDREW W. WALKER stars in this film; 2. I like how BAILEE MADISON blossomed into a pretty young lady.  Some child stars look awkward once they turn into teenagers, but not Bailee; 3. SHENAE GRIMES-BEECH looks good with Andrew; 4. ANDREA BROOKS was awesome as the best friend/publicist named Paige; 5.  MILLI WILKINSON, one of my favourite little girls, plays the little sister of one of the male protagonists(QUINN LORD) and 6. This movie is paying homage to JOHN HUGHES Oh, maybe I should add that it's great DREW RAY TANNER plays a heartthrob here...someone who breaks the heart of a big star.  I don't know wh