Christmas season has finally arrived, and along with the cold weather, thick blankets, and hot cocoa comes good old Christmas movies, the type of cheesy seasonal movies one can watch and laugh at while getting a good message out of it. Every Christmas, it gets harder to find good Hallmark/Christmas movies to watch. Get ready for a few suggestions to add to your Netflix queue.
First up to fill up the queue, the film Operation Christmas Drop. This movie tells the story of a congressional aide named Erica Miller who dreams of getting a big promotion. For this, she skips her family’s Christmas to travel across the Pacific at her boss’s orders. When landing at a beachside Air Force base, she butts heads with her new guide, Captain Andrew Jantz, who secretly knows that her assignment has her finding reasons to defund the facility. The pilot’s annual project, Operation Christmas Drop, involves parachuting gifts to residents of remote neighboring islands and communities. Unfortunately, this has the lawmakers questioning whether his unit wastes too much energy and money. Despite their initial opposing goals, Erica opens her eyes to the spirit of Christmas cheer after what she experiences with Andrew.
Next in the running, Dash & Lily, a series about a holiday romance between two pen pals who trade their thoughts and dreams in the notebook. That notebook gets passed back and forth at different locations all across New York City. They later find they may have more in common than they initially thought. This show should be watched if seeing a growing connection between two people who think they are drastically different at first peaks one's interest. Cecilia Dahl, a freshman at Apex Friendship High School, also suggests watching Dash & Lily due to its unique format. “I love that this is a series. There are so many Christmas movies but never a series. The characters are so genuine and the concept is cute.” The series allows viewers to become more attached since it surpasses the typical two hour limit.
Next up, Holidate, a movie about two people who absolutely hate the holidays. Sloane and Jackson constantly find themselves single, sitting alone at dinner tables or stuck with awkward dates during the holidays. But when these two meet one lonely Christmas, they decide to make an agreement to be each other’s “holidate” for every festivity throughout the upcoming year. As they continue assuring themselves that they have no romantic feelings towards the other, everything goes according to plan. However, when the year filled with a lack of lonely celebrations comes to an end, Sloane and Jackson find that when they do everything they hate together, they no longer hate it. If watching two people deeply connect through a series of crazy scenarios seems enjoyable, try this movie.
Die hard fans of cheesy Hallmark-style movies have been anxiously awaiting the much anticipated sequel of the 2018 Netflix romantic comedy, The Princess Switch. The sequel, The Princess Switch: Switched Again, starts off with Duchess Margaret unexpectedly inheriting the throne to Montenaro before getting upset with her boyfriend Kevin. Her look-alike, Princess Stacy of Belgravia, has to get them back together. The entire plan gets set off course with the appearance of a royal who’s set on stealing Margaret’s throne. As if things couldn’t get more mixed up, cue the unexpected arrival of Margaret’s party girl cousin Fiona, another Margaret look-alike with a plan all her own. This movie appeals to those who look for a plot with all sorts of twists and turns leading into new conflicts and resolutions while still embodying the spirit of Christmas.
The one quality these films have in common includes a feeling viewers lack this holiday season: a real, physical connection with others. So if travel plans can’t be made this holiday season, check out these movies to get into the Christmas spirit without leaving home.
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