REVIEW: The Hallmark Sequel "Haul Out the Holly: Lit Up" Is as Silly as the First One

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Emily and Jared are looking forward to celebrating the holidays together as a couple, and they prepare to work with their neighbors on Evergreen Lane to make this year's Christmas celebrations the best yet.  When a house on the block goes up for sale, the soon-to-be-neighbors are holiday royalty, but they are so competitive that they nearly ruin Christmas for everyone. Starring:   Lacey Chabert, Wes Brown, Stephen Tobolowsky, Ellen Travolta, Melissa Peterman, Seth Morris, and Jennifer Aspen Image:  Hallmark Media Haul Out the Holly:  Lit Up Has a Moral When the residents of Evergreen Lane learn that their new neighbors are the Jolly Johnsons--famous holiday reality stars--they are thrilled to welcome them to the block.  Everyone assumes the Johnsons will fit right in since they share their same affinity for elf culture. Emily, Jared, and the rest of the holiday crew quickly realize that the Johnsons aren't interested in joining in on the fun--they plan to take over. Image:  Tw
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The Seven Types of Cozy Christmas Romances

We know you love those cozy, slightly cheesy, made-for-TV Christmas movies and so do we! They might seem like they’re all the same - but we’ve identified the seven main subgenres, that is, the different kinds of Christmas movies that play on Hallmark, Lifetime, UPtv and other networks. Let’s take a look!  

Find out at the end of the post how you can order this book!


1. HOMETOWN CHRISTMAS

This is the most consistent subgenre in the Christmas Movie world. A successful city girl must go to, or return to, a small town to accomplish some Christmas-related task.

In the small town, she meets the Guy who will show her what life is all about. The obstacle, or thing that’s keeping them apart, is usually that they live in different towns and have different priorities. Eventually, though, she will realize that she has been missing something, that he is her other half, and that they are better together than apart.

Example movies: Jingle Bell Bride, Christmas She Wrote, Heart of the Holidays, North Poll, Christmas Under Wraps, Moonlight & Mistletoe, Fir Crazy, Christmas
Land, Christmas Everlasting 



2. THE CHRISTMAS SWITCHEROO

In a perpetual homage to Mark Twain’s classic novel, The Prince and the Pauper, two people—who are we kidding, almost always two women—decide to switch places to see how the other half lives.

While living another person’s life, they each meet the guys that they would not have met in their ordinary life. Here, the switcheroo is the thing that keeps the couples apart. The girls can’t really confess their love to the guys until they are honest about who they are. Each will eventually realize that this guy is her other half, and that they are better together than apart.

Example movies: Switched for Christmas, Finding Christmas, The Christmas Switch

 

3. THE CHRISTMAS FAKE OUT (or RENT-A-BOYFRIEND)

These stories involve a fake Christmas romance that transforms into something meaningful and real. Our Girl agrees to pretend to be the fiancée or girlfriend of a guy she wouldn’t normally date. Or she may find a fake boyfriend or fiancé to make her family happy for the holidays—as we all know, families love fake boyfriends!

Like the switcheroo, the fake relationship prevents them from being together. Through these shenanigans, the fake relationship turns real. But both fear that the other doesn’t really reciprocate their feelings which leads to misunderstanding. At the end, they realize that that they are better together than apart.

Example movies: Cranberry Christmas, Mistletoe Promise, The Convenient Groom, A Boyfriend for Christmas 

 

4. MAGIC CHRISTMAS

Many Hallmark movies take place in the real world, with real rules about science, weather and time. But others involve some literal Christmas magic— whether it’s time travel, angels, magic wishes, or— everyone’s Christmas favorite—Santa!

Here, our hero needs an extra push to find love. Time travel or Santa himself intervenes to force our couple together. There may be an additional reason why the couple can’t be together, or perhaps the magic has an expiration date and wears off on Christmas Eve. But through a little magic, these two different people realize that they are better together than apart.

Example movies: A Timeless Christmas, Journey Back to Christmas, A Heavenly Christmas, Meet the Santas, Open for Christmas, A Wish for Christmas

 

5. CHRISTMAS ROYALTY

This is a classic Cinderella story. A young woman, usually from the middle class, meets a prince or minor royalty. Differences in social standing or a stern royal tradition threatens to keep them apart. But they fall in love despite their differences. They eventually realize that they are better together than apart.

Example movies: A Christmas Carousel, One Royal Holiday, A Royal Christmas, Crown for Christmas, A Christmas Prince

 

6. SNOWSTORMS AHEAD

Wintry weather provides a perfect stage for cozy conflict. In these stories, a young woman and an unlikely guy are confined together due to winter weather. Here it’s usually personality differences that keep them apart. These tend to be more fun if the two people are very different and have a lot to bicker about. Eventually, their close proximity causes her to realize that he is her other half ... and that they are better together than apart.

Here, the weather—like the magic—is basically benevolent. The snow causes disruptions but is not life threatening or catastrophic. They keep the snow light and breezy. This is not A Donner Party Christmas. Although you might see it on Lifetime.

Example movies: Cross Country Christmas, A Christmas Detour, A Very Merry Mix Up, Christmas Getaway, Snowed-Inn Christmas

 

7. THE CHRISTMAS CYNIC

A woman who dislikes Christmas must learn to love it, or at least convince someone (e.g., a boss, a TV audience) that she does. Or a Christmas cynic must shut down some beloved Christmas-related business. You know how we always need to shut down businesses at Christmas?! This is often combined with a Hometown Christmas story (see #1).

Here, our Christmas cynic meets a guy who usually loves Christmas or works for the Christmas-related business. Their different opinions about Christmas are the main reason they can’t fall in love. But she falls in love with him despite their different positions on the holiday, and eventually realizes that he is her other half ... and that they are better together than apart.

Example Movies:  If I Only Had Christmas, Every Christmas Has a Story, Most Wonderful Time of the Year, Let It Snow

 

CAN YOU THINK OF ANY OTHER SUBGENRES?

So there you have it! The seven main types of Hallmark Christmas movies. As you watch your fill of these delightful, happy concoctions this season keep them in mind and try to figure out which subgenre they belong to. And if you think of any new ones please let us know at our Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/weheartromcoms/ or at our website https://writingtherom.com/blog.

 

GUEST AUTHOR BIO

Heather Hughes and Kate Wharton have been writing together for over twelve years. Their book, It’s Beginning to Look a Lot Like Hallmark, The Unofficial Guide to Writing a Made-for-TV Christmas Movie was just released and can be found here:

Comments

  1. HeathDecember 2, 2020 at 1:43 PM

    Fun to see our post here! You can find the book at https://amzn.to/2VuXoxq





    ReplyDelete

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