Stream It Or Skip It: ‘The Christmas Charade’ on Hallmark, Where A Bookish Librarian Mistakenly Gets Tangled Up In An FBI Plot To Catch A Jewel Thief

Hallmark Channel’s Countdown to Christmas is afloat of feel-good vacation movies that scope from family dramas, clever buddy comedies, and now, crime capers. The Christmas Charade is 1 of nan much action-packed films we’ve seen connected nan network, and somehow, jamming an opposites-attract romance together pinch shine lights and jewel theft is conscionable what Santa ordered.

THE CHRISTMAS CHARADE: STREAM IT OR SKIP IT?

Opening Shot: A blonde female successful sunglasses, caput shrouded successful a scarf, walks down a hallway of a grand, gothic edifice holding a reddish container successful her hand.

The Gist: The Christmas Charade opens pinch a segment consecutive retired of a James Bond movie. The enigma blonde enters a room wherever a man successful a achromatic tuxedo has been waiting for her. She hands him nan container and he opens it to find a Christmas figurine. Hidden wrong nan fig is simply a microchip that he removes, saying, “The naughty list,” to which she responds, “Santa always delivers.” We past trim distant to a female connected her sofa who is watching this segment play retired and we fig retired this is simply a movie wrong a movie, and she’s mouthing each connection to it arsenic if she’s seen it 20 times before. The female connected her sofa is simply a high-strung schoolhouse librarian named Whitney (Rachel Skarsten). She’ your classical risk-averse, nerdy archetype, nan female who has a laundry database of reasons why nan extracurricular world is vulnerable and harsh and that’s why she seldom goes retired and decidedly doesn’t spot astir men and surely doesn’t usage making love apps, which are afloat of liars and murderers. Why is Whitney for illustration this? Blame her parents Cheryl and Jim. They ran a information patient and erstwhile we meet them, they’re barren and humorless and you tin spot wherever Whitney gets her worry from. But erstwhile they unit her to bring a day to her friend Rachel’s upcoming wedding, Whitney does nan unthinkable – she emails a feline whose info she sewage from Rachel and sets up a date.

MEANWHILE, ACROSS TOWN… a grumpy FBI supplier named Josh (Corey Sevier) is moving connected a lawsuit to forestall nan theft of an invaluable necklace known arsenic nan Heart of Christmas. Josh’s supervisor hates that Josh does rogue and goes complete his head, to erstwhile Josh tells his leader that he’s arranged a covert gathering pinch a mates he suspects of readying to bargain nan Heart of Christmas, his leader tells him he’s sending a female supplier successful pinch him, 1 Josh has ne'er met, to airs arsenic his woman and study backmost connected whether Josh is moving wrong his occupation protocols.

When Josh arrives astatine nan edifice to meet nan suspects, Lou and Patty Bateman (a sanction I desperately dream is simply a motion to American Psycho slayer Patrick Bateman), his existent partner is delayed but Whitney, mistakenly reasoning he’s her date, sits down pinch him. And from there, she becomes tangled successful an FBI crippled and, aft gathering nan Batemans, is incapable to extract herself because doing truthful would discuss Josh’s mission. With Josh’s boss’s blessing. Whitney starts to activity alongside Josh, helping Patty scheme a Christmas shot wherever nan Heart of Christmas is supposedly going to beryllium displayed, fundamentally arsenic a mole to find retired much astir nan Batemans’ plans. (Cue nan “regular personification training to beryllium an FBI agent” scene!)

Whitney and Josh activity together to drawback nan thieves successful nan enactment astatine nan ball, while pretending to beryllium fellow and woman arsenic a measurement to support their existent activity a secret. Whitney’s parents yet find retired she’s “dating” personification and make Whitney and Josh subordinate them for family crippled night. By nan clip nan shot rolls around, Whitney and Josh person caught feelings for each different but they person a much important occupation to finish. What happens astatine nan shot though… is an unexpected twist I didn’t spot coming.

What Movies Will It Remind You Of? If Ocean’s Twelve (you know, nan 1 wherever nan existent Julia Roberts plays Tess Ocean playing “movie prima Julia Roberts” has to bargain a Fabergé egg) was a Hallmark movie and it had a babe pinch The Great Muppet Caper and nan Sandra Bullock movie The Heat, it mightiness somewhat lucifer The Christmas Charade.

Our Take: Here I thought that nan clone movie-within-a-movie that kicked nan movie disconnected would beryllium nan astir breathtaking portion of The Christmas Charade but location are really respective moments of action and escapade passim that held my attention. Though I’m a beautiful dedicated Hallmark movie-watcher, it’s uncommon to travel crossed 1 that really has a criminal crippled baked into vacation romance, and by nan clip nan climax of nan movie rolled around, location were genuine crippled twists and reveals I didn’t expect (which I won’t spoil here).

While nan romance successful nan movie is simply a spot underwhelming, Skarsten sparkles arsenic Whitney, and you can’t thief but consciousness for illustration she’s pulling a small much weight arsenic nan prima of nan movie because she’s fixed a batch to do. Beyond moving pinch (and falling successful emotion with) Josh, Whitney has an full crippled involving her parents that adds layers to her character. And she makes nan astir of each of it; Whitney is likeable and vulnerable, while besides really leaning into her caller gig arsenic an FBI accomplice. If you’re looking for an adventurous return connected a vacation movie, The Christmas Charade delivers.

Parting Shot: Josh shows up to Whitney’s flat connected Christmas; her parents are there, too. As they stock a happy family Christmas together, Whitney says, “I was thinking, I should subordinate nan FBI,” to which everyone other responds successful unison, “WHAT??!!“

Performance Worth Watching: I was worried that Rachel Skarsten was going to beryllium trotted retired arsenic nan nerdy librarian who’s secretly basking and yet reveals her hotness to each erstwhile she takes disconnected her glasses, and while that kind of happens, that’s not really her characteristic arc. Instead, she lets Whitney ain her nerdiness and successfully play it up for comic effect throughout. But her existent arc comes when, aft having this awesome escapade and helping to lick a crime, she stands up to her parents, whose obsession pinch information stifled her into adulthood, and she realizes that she’s fresh to break retired nan ammunition she’s been successful this full time.

Memorable Dialogue: “Where are you?” Whitney’s mother asks her erstwhile she calls to chat 1 night, not knowing Whitney’s been moonlighting pinch nan FBI. “Just retired for a drive,” Whitney lies, arsenic she’s really connected a ngo pinch Josh to switch nan existent necklace for a decoy. “At night? In nan winter??” Whitney’s mom asks incredulously. It’s funny because I deliberation I’ve really had this aforesaid speech astir driving astatine nighttime pinch my mom.

Our Call: The Christmas Charade is simply a lighthearted connected an action-comedy caper. While you ne'er get nan consciousness of genuine peril, acknowledgment to a fewer unexpected twists and turns, it’s a clever, tiny riff connected nan genre.

Liz Kocan is simply a popular civilization writer surviving successful Massachusetts. Her biggest declare to fame is nan clip she won connected nan crippled show Chain Reaction.