The
Making of Christmas, is a gentle, warm, witty, and poignant documentary, sensitively
exploring the Christmas story, reflecting on all aspects of the Greatest Story
Ever Told, the birth of Jesus in a humble stable, nestling in a manger and the hearts
of humanity.
Created
and Directed by Jim Hanon, produced by Jim Hanon and Michael Giardina, and
featuring Hazel Saint Ilme, Jacob Amber, Father Bernard Baris and Nataly
Benavidez.
This
is a story of Trevor (Trae Ireland) and Mia (Drew Sidora) meet at a karaoke bar
but although they connect it turned out he had a girlfriend.
The
next time they met he tried to pick her up again, but they drift into a
friendship and then try to defy the odds and prove to everyone that men and
women can be just friends.
The
result is a complicated journey for the pair, through ups and downs and failed
relationships, until they reach the ultimate conclusion, they were wrong.
Monica
(Maryam Basir) is a hopeless romantic, but she seems cursed with relationship
problems.
It
turns out she actually is cursed because womanizing father 30 years earlier, Young
Mike (Rob Gordon) mistreated the wrong woman Summer (B. Simone) on her 30th
birthday.
Thirty
years later the penny drops for her dad Mike McCoy (Michael Colyar) when he
realises he is responsible for his daughter’s heartbreak.
The
only way to break the curse him must apologise to all the women he let down
including Summer St. John (LisaRaye McCoy), but will he succeed before her
budding relationship with Eric Chambers (Kenneth Wayne) goes the way of all the
others.
Successful
Chicago real estate executive Janeen Davis (Lakiesha
Kingdom) has lived for her
work for the past three years, married to her career to be honest, and has no
time for love.
But
when her boss suddenly closes the office for Christmas, she decides to travel
home to Houston, Texas for the holidays with her
parents Mary and James (Shelly Rose and Curtis von Burrell).
She
basks in the warmth of her loving and funny family, meets up with old friends
and her old high school boyfriend Warren Thomas (Christopher
St. Mary) so will love blossom between them or will her friend from Chicago, Jason
(Devin Wilburn) turn up and ruin things.
Holly Day (Robinne Lee) is the Ebenezer
Scrooge character in this modern retelling of Charles Dickens' “A
Christmas Carol”.
Holly is a difficult and demanding Event Planner
who treats her assistant Melanie (Ashley A. Williams) terribly, and she is
visited before Christmas by the ghost of her old mentor Maddie Devereaux
(Margaret Avery), who scares her with tales of doom and warns her she will have
further visitations.
The first visitor is the ghost of Christmas Past,
her Teen self (Lindsay Diann), the second visitor is the ghost of Christmas
Present her assistant Melanie’s nanna Minnie (Ashley A. Williams) and the Ghost
of Christmas Yet To Come Joe (Ted Lange), who teach her the true meaning of
Christmas by revealing to her the truth about her own miserable existence, what
opportunities she wasted in her youth, and the dire fate that awaits her if he
does not change her ways.
Clarissa (Mary Fae Smith) left
home for college to pursue her art on the other side of the country.
When she returns home years
later, she is accompanied by fiancé Charles (Robert Walters). But when she is
home, she meets her first love, Thomas (Jeff Whitlatch), who she left behind.
So, she is faced with conflict
between her love for Thomas, Charles, and her life's passion, painting.
So, what will she choose?
Alice
Gloomgardy (Annie Abrams) and her two siblings Tommy and Charlotte (Jake McKenzie and Lindsey Payne) wait until
Christmas Eve morning to tell their father Hank (Bill
Kates) that
she won't be home for Christmas.
He
thought all his kids were coming home this year; now he must spend Christmas
alone so because the Gloomgardy family can't be
together on Christmas their dysfunctional family decides to hold a Gloomgardy
Zoom Party instead, including all of her wacky extended family.
However, her dad doesn't want to go unless she meets his 3 Christmas conditions, so will she be able to pull it off in less than 8 hours and perform a virtual Christmas miracle.
Alice
Gloomgardy (Annie Abrams) and her two siblings Tommy and Charlotte (Jake McKenzie and Lindsey Payne) wait until
Christmas Eve morning to tell their father Hank (Bill
Kates) that
she won't be home for Christmas.
He
thought all his kids were coming home this year; now he must spend Christmas
alone so because the Gloomgardy family can't be
together on Christmas their dysfunctional family decides to hold a Gloomgardy
Zoom Party instead, including all of her wacky extended family.
However,
her dad doesn't want to go unless she meets his 3 Christmas conditions, so will
she be able to pull it off in less than 8 hours and perform a virtual Christmas
miracle.
Alice
Gloomgardy (Annie Abrams) and her two siblings Tommy and Charlotte (Jake McKenzie and Lindsey Payne) wait until
Christmas Eve morning to tell their father Hank (Bill
Kates) that
she won't be home for Christmas.
He
thought all his kids were coming home this year; now he must spend Christmas
alone so because the Gloomgardy family can't be
together on Christmas their dysfunctional family decides to hold a Gloomgardy
Zoom Party instead, including all of her wacky extended family.
However,
her dad doesn't want to go unless she meets his 3 Christmas conditions, so will
she be able to pull it off in less than 8 hours and perform a virtual Christmas
miracle.
This
compendium of eight holiday tales might get you into the Christmas spirit, or
it might push you over the edge with this unconventional collection of naughty
and nice snippets.
We
Three Queens
Starring
Rachel Wilson, Soma Chhaya, Erin Margurite Carter and Emma Hunter.
Ode
to Rita
Starring
Siobhan Murphy, Clara Altimas and Neil Crone
Sled
Serious
Starring
Matt Murray and Sara Waisglass,
Christmas
Green
Starring
Sheila McCarthy and Alan Catlin
Starring
Kristian Bruun, Ryan Kiera Armstrong, Matthew Gouveia, Hilary McCormack, Joe
Alberico, Errol Gilmour, Alex Jade, Jahte Le, Chris O'Bray, Emily Piggford, Judy
Thrush and Dorrett White.
Mistle
Twins
Starring
Alex Jade, Karissa Strain, Katie Strain, Shannon Kook, Pat Mastroianni, Ramona
Milano, Jamie Spilchuk, Dale Samms, Tommy James Murphy and Jessica Pontes.
Christmas
Mubarak
Starring
Alan Catlin, Jessica Pontes, Ezra Sholeh, Sima Sepehri and Olivia Barrett.
Chip
on My Shoulder
Starring
Michelle Argyris, Jason Priestley Romona D'Agostino.
After
getting blamed for spoiling Christmas, hurting his butler Cadbury (Keene Curtis) and depriving the orphans of their Christmas Presents Richie Rich (David Gallagher), the richest kid in the world, wishes he'd
never been born. Unfortunately, the wishing machine invented by Professor
Keenbean (Eugene Levy) transports him to a parallel world
where even his parents (Martin Mull and Lesley Ann Warren) don’t recognize
him.
To make matters worse the real culprit for the
Christmas debacle, Reggie Van Dough (Jake Richardson) now runs the town, so now his only hope
is to find Professor Keenbean and the wishing machine so he can wish things
back to how they were before.
Monet (Chanell Williams) has been pressured by her family to bring
her new “boyfriend” home for Christmas, which seems reasonable, but she panics,
because the family are unaware of the truth about her new love interest.
Because
her new “boyfriend” happens to be her girlfriend, Deane (Milon V. Parker) who is eager to meet her girlfriend’s family, so
she agrees to disguise herself as a man, DJ, hoping to gain the family's
acceptance.
What
could possibly go wrong?
After
Julien (Tom Leeb) is released from
prison he gets a job as a deliveryman and is granted custody of his children Alice and Théo (Romane Libert and Ruben da Silva) on Christmas Eve.
However,
his boss demands he works his shift that night or risk losing his job.
Faced
with the ultimatum he has no choice but promises his children he will return
before midnight.
On
his route he encounters criminal acquaintances from his past and he is
blackmailed into driving him to a series of break-ins.
So
will he manage to outsmart his blackmailer, make his important Christmas
deliveries and get home to the children in time for Christmas.
After
getting blamed for spoiling Christmas, hurting his butler Cadbury (Keene Curtis) and depriving the orphans of their Christmas Presents Richie Rich (David Gallagher), the richest kid in the world, wishes he'd
never been born. Unfortunately, the wishing machine invented by Professor
Keenbean (Eugene Levy) transports him to a parallel world
where even his parents (Martin Mull and Lesley Ann Warren) don’t recognize
him.
To make matters worse the real culprit for the
Christmas debacle, Reggie Van Dough (Jake Richardson) now runs the town, so now his only hope
is to find Professor Keenbean and the wishing machine so he can wish things
back to how they were before.
Jack Baker (Matt Moore) is a self-made executive living an upper-middle-class life, who due to a
wrongful accusation by a colleague, suddenly loses his job.
So, he must reevaluate his life and priorities
during in the run up to Christmas.
Struggling to make ends meet with bills piling up,
he has to take a humiliating job at a burger restaurant.
With his family facing the risk of losing
everything before Christmas Jack has to learn the value of family, faith,
and compassion.
Also starring Crystal Dewitt-Hinkle, Cole
Brandenberger and Gabrielle Phillips.
A young gay man, Patrick (Ford Nelson) is taken by surprise when an action figure from his Christmas past, Courage (Tyler Horn) comes to life in order to help him find the courage he needs to come out to his Mom and Dad (Katryn Schmidt and Timothy McKinney).
The
story centres around the annual fundraising Grumpy Old Santa Bowling Tournament
in Hallsville, Texas, over a number of years, and in particular Nic Monts
(Glenn Morshower).
After finishing second to his arch nemesis Spike (Gary Valentine) his wife of thirty years Penny (Kimberly Gail Williams), suffering empty nest syndrome walks out on him and files for divorce.
Over
the next two years his best friend Kris Walters (Kevin P. Farley) and his wife
Julie (Dodie Brown) and his daughter Maddie (Brooke Lyons) help him navigate
the complexities of life after Penny, especially the dating game.
The
tournament helps him reconnect with loved ones, face up old rivals, and kindle
a new romance with Mikes sister Sandy (Kara Rainer) and he ultimately finds
joy.
After
getting blamed for spoiling Christmas, hurting his butler Cadbury (Keene Curtis) and depriving the orphans of their Christmas Presents Richie Rich (David Gallagher), the richest kid in the world, wishes he'd
never been born. Unfortunately, the wishing machine invented by Professor
Keenbean (Eugene Levy) transports him to a parallel world
where even his parents (Martin Mull and Lesley Ann Warren) don’t recognize
him.
To make matters worse the real culprit for the
Christmas debacle, Reggie Van Dough (Jake Richardson) now runs the town, so now his only hope
is to find Professor Keenbean and the wishing machine so he can wish things
back to how they were before.
Jennifer Hendry (Lacey Chabert) and a group of fellow college students Duncan Douvet, Frank Reynolds, Bert
Heller, Alfred Mukopadhyay and Cassie Jenner (Rick Malambri,
Jermaine Williams, Dov Tiefenbach, Anand Desai-Barochia and Kaylen Davidson)
who are staying on campus over Christmas agree to work at a special exhibit in the college's fine art gallery on
Christmas Eve.
Unbeknown to the students, Dean Erma McBride (Vivica A. Fox) has employed two hapless thieves Buzz and Harley (Preston Lacy and Robert Maschio) to rob the gallery.
However,
Buzz and Harley are conspiring with another crook Jimmy (Paul T. Murray) to
double cross the Dean.
Although the students have
little in common they decide to have an unplanned Christmas Eve dinner at the
gallery, so they are in the building when the thieves turn up and lock them
into one part of the gallery, while Alfred, who went to get the food, and
Jennifer’s best friend Paige Sutherby (Fallon Goodson) are locked outside, but
when they get in they are captured and tied up.
While the students are being
held hostage, they are forced to expose their secrets and bond as they embrace
the spirit of Christmas,
So will they escape and foil the thieves, and will it be a Christmas Eve these new friends will never forget.
Its
Christmas and Charlotte (Madeleine Webb) has a particular plan,
because she has just met the love of her life at university, so she is determined to
come out as a lesbian to her family.
She
has even planned when exactly she intends the moment when she will drop the
bombshell and that’s on Christmas day.
What
could possibly go wrong?
Also starring Kris Taylor as Tim, Heather Walker as Julie, David Heslop as Ben, Kiera Falcus as Melissa, Sienna Pugh as Ellie and Jessica Daley as Sarah.
Captain
of the Valley Ridge high school cheer leading squad Megan (Zoe Giese) is
looking forward to spending Christmas break with her friends, Christmas
shopping at the mall but her parents (Kelly Young Silva and Davey Moore)
volunteer her to work at the local food bank in the run up to Christmas.
At
first she is bitter and angry at having to give up her time but while working
with fellow student Trevor (Coleman Christian) Megan learns all about the
meaning of Christmas and that it’s not about just getting what she wants but
it’s about doing for others, and by opening her heart she finds a special
relationship.
After
getting blamed for spoiling Christmas, hurting his butler Cadbury (Keene Curtis) and depriving the orphans of their Christmas Presents Richie Rich (David Gallagher), the richest kid in the world, wishes he'd
never been born. Unfortunately, the wishing machine invented by Professor
Keenbean (Eugene Levy) transports him to a parallel world
where even his parents (Martin Mull and Lesley Ann Warren) don’t recognize
him.
To make matters worse the real culprit for the
Christmas debacle, Reggie Van Dough (Jake Richardson) now runs the town, so now his only hope
is to find Professor Keenbean and the wishing machine so he can wish things
back to how they were before.
Chris (Lenny Rush) is a 16-year-old boy
who still believes in Santa but his dad, Nick (James
Buckley) tells him that he doesn’t exist, so with the help of his aunt Holly
(Ele McKenzie) Chris goes
on a quest to prove his dad wrong and that actually Father Christmas (Greg Davies)
does exist.
He interviews Stephen Fry, Professor Hannah Fry,
Dame Dr. Maggie Aderin-Pocock and Jason Fox which leads him to Milton Keynes,
pursued by his dad and his science teacher Georgina (Rochenda Sandall).
Two
30-something BFFs, Delia Ross and Porsha Baker (Raven Goodwin and DomiNque
Perry) are very successful in their careers, however despite that everyone is
continually telling them that they both need to find a man before it's too
late.
So,
when Pastor Michael McKnight (Mark Taylor), a handsome pastor arrives at their
church just in time to kick off the Christmas season.
They
both set their caps at him and attempt time and time again to get one up on
each other with hilarious results until their family and friends remind them
what the Christmas is truly about.
Three
sisters, Lawyer Mary Hall (Lauren Butterfield), Homemaker Susan
Hall-Culver (Christie Duffer) and promiscuous barfly Michelle Hall (Heather Fraley) reluctantly head home for Christmas after
they learn from their Uncle Phillip Andrews (Les
McDowell) that
their estranged mother, Donna (TeriEnna Blanco),
is in
the latter stages of Alzheimer's.
The
visit opens up old wounds, concerning loss, grief, guilt and alcohol abuse, but
in the process, they find true meaning of family.
In
this heartwarming animated Christmas tale the young reindeer Niko, hopes that
his father, Prancer, will get back together with his mother, but instead he is
introduced to his future stepfather and his young son Jonni.
Nico
is angry and when he’s told to take Jonni with him when he goes to play with
his friends, so he doesn’t pay any attention to him, and then when he is
kidnapped by the Eagles for an evil Wolf.
So,
on Christmas Eve he must find his little brother, but it’s not just his brother
that is in danger but Christmas itself, so he needs a lot of help from his
friends in order to save the day.
While
on their epic journey Niko learns the importance of friendship and family.
In
this heartwarming animated Christmas tale the young reindeer Niko, hopes that
his father, Prancer, will get back together with his mother, but instead he is
introduced to his future stepfather and his young son Jonni.
Nico
is angry and when he’s told to take Jonni with him when he goes to play with
his friends, so he doesn’t pay any attention to him, and then when he is
kidnapped by the Eagles for an evil Wolf.
So,
on Christmas Eve he must find his little brother, but it’s not just his brother
that is in danger but Christmas itself, so he needs a lot of help from his
friends in order to save the day.
While
on their epic journey Niko learns the importance of friendship and family.
In
this heartwarming animated Christmas tale the young reindeer Niko, hopes that
his father, Prancer, will get back together with his mother, but instead he is
introduced to his future stepfather and his young son Jonni.
Nico
is angry and when he’s told to take Jonni with him when he goes to play with
his friends, so he doesn’t pay any attention to him, and then when he is
kidnapped by the Eagles for an evil Wolf.
So,
on Christmas Eve he must find his little brother, but it’s not just his brother
that is in danger but Christmas itself, so he needs a lot of help from his
friends in order to save the day.
While
on their epic journey Niko learns the importance of friendship and family.
An impressive cast perform this rather preachy antiwar pro United Nations adaptation of the Charles Dickens classic,
A Christmas Carol, in which Sterling Hayden
stars as the Ebenezer Scrooge character.
Daniel
Grudge is a wealthy industrialist and fierce
isolationist, long embittered by the loss of his son Marley (Gordon Spencer) in
World War II.
Steve Lawrence plays the ghost of Christmas past, Pat Hingle is the
ghost of Christmas present, and Robert Shaw plays the ghost of
Christmas yet to come.
Other notable appearances come from
Ben Gazzara as Daniel's nephew Fred, Peter Sellers as a post-apocalyptic leader
Imperial Me.
Eva Marie Saint as Lt. Gibson, Percy Rodrigues and Barbara
Ann Teer as his household staff Charles and Ruby, James Shigeta as the
Hiroshima Doctor and Britt Ekland as the mother.
Overall,
not one I will be in a hurry to watch again.
An impressive cast perform this rather preachy antiwar pro United Nations adaptation of the Charles Dickens classic,
A Christmas Carol, in which Sterling Hayden
stars as the Ebenezer Scrooge character.
Daniel
Grudge is a wealthy industrialist and fierce
isolationist, long embittered by the loss of his son Marley (Gordon Spencer) in
World War II.
Steve Lawrence plays the ghost of Christmas past, Pat Hingle is the
ghost of Christmas present, and Robert Shaw plays the ghost of
Christmas yet to come.
Other notable appearances come from
Ben Gazzara as Daniel's nephew Fred, Peter Sellers as a post-apocalyptic leader
Imperial Me.
Eva Marie Saint as Lt. Gibson, Percy Rodrigues and Barbara
Ann Teer as his household staff Charles and Ruby, James Shigeta as the
Hiroshima Doctor and Britt Ekland as the mother.
Overall,
not one I will be in a hurry to watch again.
Bestselling author Rashad Williams (Donald Ross
Jr.) and
his girlfriend Annie Nichols (Nicole M. Williams) go down to
Douglas, Georgia to spend the Christmas holidays with his cousins, Junior and Aretha
Williams (Ron Way and Charmeka Robinson) but things are far from perfect as
Junior and Aretha are trying to conceive without success and the Doctor, Jabari
Hart (Quincy Kelly) once dated Annie and still carries a torch for her and
makes no secret of the face.
He
turns to his lifelong friend Faye DeVoe (Kiara C. Bennett) and her husband Elijah
(Aaron Wiggins) for support.
As events unfold at Christmas, Faye is set to have a Christmas baby, and Junior discovers he is already a father, but will there be a proposal.
Bestselling author Rashad Williams (Donald Ross
Jr.) and
his girlfriend Annie Nichols (Nicole M. Williams) go down to
Douglas, Georgia to spend the Christmas holidays with his cousins, Junior and Aretha
Williams (Ron Way and Charmeka Robinson) but things are far from perfect as
Junior and Aretha are trying to conceive without success and the Doctor, Jabari
Hart (Quincy Kelly) once dated Annie and still carries a torch for her and
makes no secret of the face.
He
turns to his lifelong friend Faye DeVoe (Kiara C. Bennett) and her husband Elijah
(Aaron Wiggins) for support.
As
events unfold at Christmas, Faye is set to have a Christmas baby, and Junior
discovers he is already a father, but will there be a proposal.
Wannabee
writer and substitute teacher Rashad Williams (Donald
Ross Jr.) is offered a permanent teaching position just before Christmas and
gets a call from his agent Kyle Adams
(Frank FaCheaux) about a three-book publishing
deal, and he is faced with the added pressures from his fiancé Lauryn Collins (Keyonice
Burts) about a Christmas wedding.
His lifelong friend Faye Hathaway (Kiara C.
Bennett) clashes with Lauryn on absolutely everything and Rashad wishes they
could be friends, and she wishes he could see that his bride to Be’s intentions are not
what they appear to be.
Lauryn
wrongly thinks there is more to their relationship than friendship but has Elijah DeVoe (Aaron Wiggins) in her sights.
On the day of the wedding Lauryn is expose as a
cheat much to Faye’s delight and Annie Nichols (Nicole M. Williams) is waiting
in the wings for Rashad.
But those attending expecting to see a wedding
were not disappointed
In
this heartwarming animated Christmas tale the young reindeer Niko, hopes that
his father, Prancer, will get back together with his mother, but instead he is
introduced to his future stepfather and his young son Jonni.
Nico
is angry and when he’s told to take Jonni with him when he goes to play with
his friends, so he doesn’t pay any attention to him, and then when he is
kidnapped by the Eagles for an evil Wolf.
So,
on Christmas Eve he must find his little brother, but it’s not just his brother
that is in danger but Christmas itself, so he needs a lot of help from his
friends in order to save the day.
While
on their epic journey Niko learns the importance of friendship and family.
Krista
Danser (Brittany Bristow) is a rising star TV reporter who inadvertently
botches an investigative piece about a powerful political figure, her boss
punishes her by giving her a seasonal story to investigate, which adds insult
onto injury because she’s not a Christmas fan.
Her
assignment is to uncover the identity of a thief who is stealing Christmas
displays off people’s homes across the city.
But
she is not alone on the case, as Detective Ryan Bridger (Olivier Renaud) who is
a Christmas enthusiast and has made it his mission to identify the culprit and
restore the town's holiday spirit.
As
they spend more time together, in pursuit of clues to the culprit they also
discover that their undeniable chemistry might actually be a true Christmas
love.
A
lovely, animated tale vocalised by Jason Gray-Stanford about Hans, a lonely
shoemaker in a German village, and he hates Christmas because of his
loneliness, and rejects the friendly gestures from villagers.
Then
one night he is visited by an angel who says he will receive a gift from God,
so he goes around the village trying to by a perfect gift for God.
But
he is unsuccessful, so he sits down and makes a special pair of boots from rich
red leather which he gives to a poor child.
Through
his actions he learns the true meaning of Christmas.
Spirited
songwriter Chloe Barlow (Sarah Pribis) entertains patients at the hospital where
her roommate Amy (Stephanie Hong) works, while her day job was working at a Nashville
music publishing office, Mega.
On
one visit she meets a young patient Amberlee James (Miel Levi) and her widowed consultant
father Devin (Brooks Ryan) and there are obvious sparks.
They
next meet when he arrives at the Mega offices with colleague Lydia Roberts (Rachel
Brun) to assess their viability.
As
Christmas nears, the struggling songwriter and the corporate bean counter join
forces to save the failing music publishing company and Chloe’s dreams while putting
their hearts are on the line with their growing affection for each other.
There
was no Christmas magic for Boyd Mitchler (Joel McHale) growing up so he
overcompensates for his own family and goes all out, and everything is on track
at their Boston home until his brother Nelson (Clark
Duke) asks him to be godfather to his son.
Boyd is delighted until he learns that the baptism
is on Christmas Eve and he and his wife Luann (Lauren
Graham) and their children Vera and Douglas (Bebe Wood and Pierce Gagnon) must spend
Christmas with his estranged family of misfits in Wisconsin.
Christmas with his father Virgil (Robin Williams),
Mother Donna (Candice Bergen), his sister Shauna Weinke (Wendi McLendon-Covey)
and her husband Dave (Tim Heidecker), and children Rance and Pam (Ryan Lee and Amara
Miller), and it was every bit as bad as he imagined.
However, it got worse when they discovered on
Christmas Eve that
he left all his son's gifts at home, so he embarks on an 8-hour round trip with
his estranged father and brother, to return before sunrise on Christmas Day.
