Five Star Christmas (2020 TV Movie)
9/10
Best of the Best
12 December 2020
Bethany Joy Lenz is my favorite female Hallmark lead, hands-down. If the summary said it was her leading a team of Christmas pugs against a team of alien invaders, I'd be in. And that's before I knew how well she could sing!

Five Star Christmas is not only the best movie of the 2020 holiday season, I think it's the best I've ever seen.

'Hilarious' is not a word I associate with Hallmark, but this movie was laugh-out-loud funny. And it sacrificed none of the romance or Christmas we expect along the way. Lenz' Lucy and co-star Victor Webster as Jake had a real snap of chemistry from their first run-in, and her extended family had an easy, loving vibe that never felt schmaltzy or forced. Two points for letting a little squabble in.

Honestly, Five Star Christmas felt like proof Hallmark noted all of our gripes and turned them into one warm, goofy movie. The plot was much fresher. The sets were lovely and well-decorated without being overdone. Family memories and traditions were represented without getting sappy. No smarmy little kids, crazed workaholics, overbearing mothers, exes from hell, or marches through 50 Christmas events.

I'll leave it for other reviewers to name exactly what they enjoyed most, because I don't want to spoil a single surprise, even the little ones.

As Grandma said, "People surprise you. You should follow your heart."
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