For many people, a familiar pastime in the weeks leading up to major winter holidays is gathering with family members and watching holiday movies, be they in a theater or on television. While vaccines are more widely available now than they were last year, for some plans still remain the same this holiday season, unsure about going to movie theaters. However, this shouldn’t stop us from enjoying holiday movies with friends and family.
During the month of December, therefore, the Falls Free Press will reprise “The 12 Films of Christmas,” focusing on new holiday movies for the year 2021—a year that can still do with plenty of spirit. We will review each film, whether naughty or nice, and let you know where to watch it.
It’s a heartwarming story of a person frustrated with life’s daily mishaps, so much that they forget to appreciate the friends and family around them until getting sent back in time by Christopher Lloyd, at which point they must get their parents together or risk destroying the timeline.
Yes, I also believe Back to the Future could make a great Christmas movie with the right plot, but in fact Hallmark took the time travel trope and went full steam ahead with Next Stop, Christmas.
After skipping out on her family to work on call at the hospital, Angie (Lindsy Fonseca) reminisces about her life ten years ago, back when she was dating the soon-to-be headline sports journalist Tyler (Eric Freeman) was still in communication with her childhood sweetheart Ben (Chandler Massey), and her parents were still together. Still wondering what her life would be like had she married Tyler, Angie purchases a train ticket home from work and dozes off, only to awake in the past, where the train conductor (Christopher Lloyd) informs her she must discover what needs fixed in her life in order to return back to the future.
Next Stop drives multiple Hallmark movie tropes into its story, including Angie deciding to accept Tyler’s proposal, realizing that her true love was in fact somebody she had never considered, finding a way to help her sister with pregnancy issues, and and concocting an elaborate party to rekindle her parents’ relationship– all of which resolve themselves completely by the end of the movie… well it is a Christmas movie.
While a majority of the actors are relatively unknown, especially for the Hallmark Channel, the inclusion of Lea Thompson as Angie’s mother and Christopher Lloyd help hammer down the time travel storyline. If this were not a TV movie one might even expect cameos from Crispin Glover or Thomas Wilson. Nevertheless, introducing these two stars improves the film tremendously, waiting for references to their previous films that never happen, while the rest of the cast weave in and out of the bizarre story they’ve been dealt, making viewers forget how bad it is.
If only one Hallmark movie is to be watched this season, Next Stop, Christmas is certainly worth the time to watch.
Next Stop, Christmas is available to watch on the Hallmark Channel and on the Frndly TV service.
