By JOHN BILLINGER
Tiger Media Network
It’s time for the holidays. A time of year prime for comfort food and holiday movies. Take for example, today’s subject. “A Biltmore Christmas,” which was made by the comfort food movie factory itself, The Hallmark Channel.
The plot of this film is about a writer named Lucy, who has been tasked to write a remake for a 1947 holiday classic. The studio head sends her to the Biltmore Estate in North Carolina (where the original was filmed) for inspiration. While there, she comes across a magical hourglass that sends her back in time to 1947 during the production of the original film. While there, she meets lead actor Jack Huston whom she begins a romantic relationship, while also simultaneously trying to find a way back to the present.
I found out about this film while I was at home for Thanksgiving. My Mom was watching the Hallmark Channel and she told me about this movie but mistakenly told me that the character Jack Huston was actually John Houston (the director of famous 40s and 50s films like “The Maltese Falcon” and “The African Queen”). When I heard this, I thought that this bit of historical fanfiction was something that I had to see. Of course, I found out that she had gotten that bit of plot detail wrong, but most of the film was still pretty much what I had expected.
Before I get into my overall thoughts on the film, I will point out the positives because this really is not a complicated film to talk about. The actors all do a good job. The two leads, Bethany Joy Lenz and Kristoffer Polaha both do a good job, and have decent enough chemistry. It was all shot at the Biltmore Estate which does make for a good filming location. The set design is good. The plot is ridiculous but ‘feel good.’ And the directing is good. This was all around a good production.
But is it a good film? I suppose it depends on who you are.
Well, I must say that when I watched it, I went through several emotions. During the first third, I went from “I hate this” one minute to “I love this” the next minute and continued to go back and forth. Then, I sort of accepted this film for what it is, and got into it, and started to enjoy it. In addition, I also made fun of it as I watched it because, come on, it’s a Hallmark film. They’re corny, cheesy, fluff. But, they do give an audience what they want to see. They want a romance set during the holidays, that’s what they get. Simple as that.
But do I recommend it?
It’s hard to say. I suppose that it does depend on the viewer. If you’re not the kind of person who enjoys Hallmark movies, this isn’t for you. But if you are, then this is for you. However, if you are are in the former category, maybe if you try to keep an open mind, you’ll enjoy it. Personally, most days, I wouldn’t consider watching a Hallmark movie. But the plot intrigued me, and I wanted to see where it went.
And overall, I can say that I had a good time watching what Christmas at Biltmore is like.