The Christmas Hope

Back before Countdown to Christmas had thrown countless movies at us recycling the same old (Christmas) cookie-cutter themes, Lifetime gave us this movie with a premise and themes that, at least in 2019 seems refreshing. We have to deal with some deep tragedies before we can get to the good stuff and we even have a scene where the mom of the cute little girl, Emily, gets hit by a car and dies. A social worker with her own tragic backstory is loath to put Emily in a state home and instead stretches the regs and takes the cutie home with her.

This isn't really a romance movie, at least not between adults. Emily certainly romances away the hearts of everyone she meets. The acting in general is good, but Toni Barban is superb for a child actor her age.

The movie actually follow several characters who cross paths, sometimes intentionally, and sometime obliviously. The perceptive viewer knows there is a reason for this and that somehow these things are going to tie together before we're done. Well, surprise, they do, and yes most of you will need tissues. I did.