While the movie is 18 years old as I type, we only discovered it several years ago when we started to watch the Hallmark channel's holiday films, and now we watch it every year, when offered.
This movie uses three romance tropes in a satisfying combination: reunited with long lost friend, the dark secret, and the bad boyfriend.
Throw in some Santa Magic and it becomes a Christmas movie. :-)
Holly thinks Ryan Hughes, whom she's never seen, ditched a courtroom date, causing a mother and children to miss Christmas together. In truth, he was caught in a meeting where he tried talk his law firm and a client out of screwing over the residents of a housing project, then made a special effort to get to the judge and make up for missing the court date.
When Santa shoves them together, she doesn't know he's the same lawyer. Of course, every time he tries to explain, they get interrupted. There are funny scenes between Ryan and Ted (the bad boyfriend), and a lot of bonding scenes between Ryan and Holly and Holly's family to sell the building relationship.
Recommended.
This movie uses three romance tropes in a satisfying combination: reunited with long lost friend, the dark secret, and the bad boyfriend.
Throw in some Santa Magic and it becomes a Christmas movie. :-)
Holly thinks Ryan Hughes, whom she's never seen, ditched a courtroom date, causing a mother and children to miss Christmas together. In truth, he was caught in a meeting where he tried talk his law firm and a client out of screwing over the residents of a housing project, then made a special effort to get to the judge and make up for missing the court date.
When Santa shoves them together, she doesn't know he's the same lawyer. Of course, every time he tries to explain, they get interrupted. There are funny scenes between Ryan and Ted (the bad boyfriend), and a lot of bonding scenes between Ryan and Holly and Holly's family to sell the building relationship.
Recommended.