The Mistletoe Inn

By now, Alicia Witt has become the Holy Ghost of the Hallmark Christmas Cheddar holy trinity, with Lacey Chabert the Daughter and Candace Cameron Buré the Mother. Her offering this year features her as an aspiring Christmas romance novelist, not doubt because to the good people at the network this is a lofty aspiration. The male lead is a guy I don't know from anything else but these Christmas movies, but he's done a whole bunch so he's a big fish in this little pond. And good for him, it's really hard to make a career as a working actor, and apparently he's a voice in Call Of Duty WWII, my holiday present to myself, so it all comes full circle. Lucie Guest plays the instant best friend and does a good job, enough that I hope it earns her some work, maybe a lead someday. There's Christmas imagery in almost every frame but the meta plot could really apply to any time of year, and the big twist is so obvious you should catch it literally 10 minutes in. Witt has never looked better so I'll probably watch it next year, but if you’re not crushing on her there’s probably no point in watching this. Not MSG approved.
SECOND LOOK:
I caught the second half of this while I was getting ready today and I’m giving it a second evaluation. The Christmas factor is high enough to overcome the nausea factor and Alicia Witt gives a very welcomed X Factor. I’ll say MSG approved now.