I'm a big fan of bad Christmas movies that run on Lifetime, ABC Family and the Hallmark Channel. No really, I can't get enough of 'em.
Check out the links for the full December schedule and below are some highlights. 24 days of B-list movie stars, recycled plot lines and low budget sets. Set your DVR's!
(Lifetime's got some really good ones this year!)
Christmas in Boston (ABC Family)
A repeat from last year. The acting is...well, you should watch for yourself.
Pen pals since the age of 15, Gina and Shawn have created a friendship based on letters and snapshots. Now, as adults, they finally get the chance to meet in person -- but Gina and Shawn sent pictures of their best friends instead of pictures of themselves.
Picking up and Dropping Off (ABC Family)
Didn't they make this movie with Michelle Pfiefer and George Clooney?
What happens when a single father who is picking up his son and a single mother dropping off her daughter continue to run into each other at the airport? Jane and Will are about to find out. Scott Wolf and Amanda Detmer star.
Chasing Christmas (ABC Family)
I love modern takes on the Christmas Carol!
Ever since his wife left him for her dentist on Christmas Eve, Jack has boycotted the holidays. Now his relationship with his 16-year-old daughter is at risk, and the spirits step in to rescue Jack from his terminal bah-humbugs.
Holiday Switch (Lifetime)
Another fave of mine from last year. It's Jamie from Charles in Charge! Except with a boob job
A struggling housewife finds herself wondering what her life would've been like if she'd married the one who got away. A fluke accident gives her the chance to find out. Nicole Eggert stars.
Ebbie (Lifetime)
A classic!
The classic story of "A Christmas Carol" is given a major makeover as Ebbie must face the demons of her past, confront the reality of the present, and fight the phantoms of her future, in order to reconnect with the goodness inside herself. Susan Lucci stars.
The Christmas Wish (Lifetime)
NPH and Whoopi re-unite for this Christmas tale.
Based on the novel by Richard Siddoway. When Will (Neil Patrick Harris) returns home, his grandmother (Debbie Reynolds) asks him to locate a woman that is mentioned in her late husband's diary. Finding out the truth about this mystery woman makes Will's grandmother's wish come true.
A Diva's Christmas Carol (Lifetime)
I haven't seen this one yet, but I love me some Vanessa Williams!
Based on "A Christmas Carol" by Charles Dickens. Ebony Scrooge (Vanessa L. Williams) is one of the world's most successful pop singers, but she is personally miserable and makes those around her equally unhappy. During Christmas, Ebony is visited by the Ghost of Christmas Past (Kathy Griffin), the Ghost of Christmas Present (John Taylor) and the Ghost of Christmas Future.
On the Second Day of Christmas (Lifetime)
Mark Ruffalo, before he hit it big.
Bert (Mark Ruffalo), a determined security guard, ends up with his life forever transformed when he nabs a pickpocket team of a young woman (Mary Stuart Masterson) and her six-year-old niece, Patsy (Lauren Pratt).
The Most Wonderful Time of the Year (Hallmark)
Henry Winkler. Nuff said.
Jennifer Cullen (Brooke Burns) is a single, working mom who has become somewhat of a Scrooge when it comes to the Holiday season. Even her six-year-old son Brian is having trouble believing in Santa Claus. When Jen’s Uncle Ralph (Henry Winkler), a retired police officer, comes to visit for Christmas, he brings along a new friend, a nomad and Jack-of-all-trades named Morgan Derby (Warren Christie). The two met on a flight, and Morgan’s plans to continue on to Denver are cancelled when he finds out the city is completely snowed in. Jen is wary of the stranger, but at Ralph’s request, agrees to let him stay the night. She warms up to Morgan, especially when she sees how he interacts with Brian. Uncle Ralph approves of Morgan, too, but Jen’s boyfriend Richard isn’t nearly as receptive. Meanwhile, Morgan has started to really like Jen, but if she can’t manage to make Christmas about anything more than business, Morgan will be on his way to Denver, and she’ll have missed the opportunity that was right in front of her. Uncle Ralph has done what he can to keep Morgan around, but it’s going to take something more than that to get him penciled into Jen’s long-term plans. Jen just needs to learn “how to do Christmas,” and it turns out Morgan is the perfect one to teach her.
The Christmas Choir (Hallmark)
An age old story of transformation.
Peter Brockman (Jason Gedrick) is a successful-but-spiritually lost accountant whose life is turned on its head when he begins volunteering at a homeless shelter run by the caring-yet-cantankerous Sister Agatha (Rhea Perlman). Amazed at the musical prowess of some of the shelter’s occupants, Peter sets out to organize them into a choir, singing holiday tunes in a local subway station. Though the singers and Peter each go through their own difficult personal trials, they slowly begin to learn to trust in each other and the power their music holds. “The Christmas Choir” is inspired by the true story of a man volunteering at a homeless shelter who saw a way to help the men living there by creating a choir from their surprising musical talents. The group, which went on to record several albums and tour the world, experienced such success that the singers where able to gain the financial security and personal confidence to leave the streets forever.
