A Christmas Wish Review: Hilarie Burton’s Lifetime Christmas Movie Proves Wishes Do Come True
One of my Christmas wishes every year is for TV Christmas movies that are entertaining and fun, but light on the cheese. It’s a harder feat than I expect it to be every year, but Hilarie Burton’s A Christmas Wish is yet another offering this year that proves it can come true!
First and foremost, I believe there are more former One Tree Hill cast members in this movie than 2018’s The Christmas Contract. It’s a shame that the promotional effort didn’t seem quite as large for this one because both are delightful for different reasons.
Then again, Burton has stated in interviews that she always makes an effort to work with friends. Maybe her fans just know that.
As for the story, it’s so much fun! But as is the case with most successful TV Christmas movies, there’s a point to this one beyond showing fans that women can fall in love at Christmas time while having successful careers.
Of course, Faith’s career and love life are the main threads. But on a deeper level, this movie is commenting on romantic tropes usually found in movies like this. It’s twisting the tropes around or at least highlighting how silly they are.
It hits close to home as a single woman who has often said, “I’m not going to fall in love with a random guy online for coffee.”
Perhaps the trope commentary is most interesting to storytellers. But it’s an impressive way to add purpose to a movie without needing angst.
Everyone’s mom is alive in A Christmas Wish. There are no deadbeat dads, there’s not a huge story revolving around any life-threatening illness or even a tragic breakup.
Angst done well is wonderful, even in TV Christmas movies we that all know are going to end happily.
Depth without angst is just hard to pull off, that’s all.
If Faith’s battle struggle with suitors after Maddie’s wish doesn’t quite entertain you, there is always just the general theme of wishes to ponder.
Does it matter how they come true? Is a little bit of extra magic sprinkled on them during Christmastime by real-life mystical people like Pam Grier’s character Mary (aka Mrs. Claus, right?) The list of questions could go on and on. But hopefully, people still make wishes regardless of the answers.
Ponchatoula’s tradition of having a committee that grants some of the wishes in the wish box is one of my favorite foundations of a Christmas movie ever. It rivals the Christmas Pen Pals events that bring the town together in Sarah Drew’s 2018 Lifetime Christmas movie. I can’t choose which one is better.
Everyone should make wishes galore during the holidays and help each other fulfill them. It’s an absolutely magical thought.
Even though the movie revolves around Maddie’s wish for Faith to experience a true love’s kiss we all agree that Greta’s wish to participate in a flash mob is the best, right? Flashmobs aren’t my thing but I hope my spirit is that young and fun and pure when I’m Greta’s age.
The celebrity gingerbread making contest the Mason family has is definitely my favorite baking-related scene of the genre, even against all of the TV Christmas movies that are mostly focused on baking. For the record, my vote is for Bea Arthur over everyone else every time.
There is so much to praise about this film, but most importantly we have to commend Lifetime and everyone involved in the story for featuring LGBTQIA representation again thanks to Wyatt’s brother Grant and his husband James.
It doesn’t make quite the same history as Twinkle All The Way because the husbands don’t kiss — but it definitely needs to be recognized.
A Christmas Wish has a similar whimsy as Twinkle, but it rides the edge of becoming too cheesy more often.
The movie is also very, very crowded. Not with people, with stories.
They’re easy to follow and no one story affects the quality of the film negatively. I couldn’t decisively say which one could be cut.
Accepting that Faith and Wyatt’s love story and the whole connection to wishes can’t be cut, nor can the fact that Ponchatoula is cutting the arts programs at school there is Maddie and Ryan’s engagement, Ryan getting to know Maddie’s family, Joyce granting Michael’s wish to see A Christmas Carol with his grandfather, Greta’s wish, and Wyatt’s family visiting.
Plus, Mary is obviously just a magical woman, but other than that almost a complete mystery.
At least two of these elements could at least fade even more into the background so that more attention could be paid to another “B” storyline to make it richer.
The case needs to be made that Andrew is a completely unnecessary character to feature so heavily when someone like John lives right next door to Faith. Of course, she needs lots of potential suitors to show that Maddie’s wish is working its magic.
Andrew is just so boring and it would’ve been fun to see Burton “fight” more directly over two former co-stars. Tyler Hilton and Antwon Tanner would make more entertaining direct adversaries.
Coffee guy Andrew could just come to Faith’s rescue every time other guy spills on her. Andrew is definitely not the guy for Faith from the start. She has more of an initial spark with John.
All of the sparks fly between Hilton and Burton though, as they’ve proven in more than one movie. That leads me to yet another Christmas wish to end with.
Here’s hoping they reunite again next year, with even more Tree Hill residents along for the ride.
Extra Christmas Wishes (Notes):
- The arts are so important in schools, what a great issue to highlight.
- Faith being an art teacher is such a nice (though probably unintentional) subtle callback to Peyton Sawyer and One Tree Hill.
- Hilton doesn’t sing in all of these movies, but I missed it this time.
- It’s a technicality, but Michael doesn’t see A Christmas Carol with his grandpa because he’s put to work as Tiny Tim.
- Hilton’s wife Megan Park plays Maddie. This is a strong, loud wish that Jeffrey Dean Morgan joins Burton in a Christmas movie that I’m around to see.
- The montage of Faith trying to undo the wish is so lovely and fun.
What did you think of A Christmas Wish? Share your thoughts in the comments below!
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A Christmas Wish will air throughout the holiday season on Lifetime.
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Esme Mazzeo
Esme Mazzeo is a lifestyle and entertainment journalist from Long Island. When she's not writing for work, she's writing for fun, or searching for something to satisfy her sweet tooth. She thinks rainy days are the best kind of days. Certified night owl.