12 Men of Christmas (2009)

A high-powered New York City publicist finds herself in Montana promoting a charity calendar after being betrayed by her boss and fiancé. Unfortunately, matters of the heart are just as complicated in the wilds as they are in the big city.

Director:

Arlene Sanford

Writers:

Jon Maas (teleplay), Phillipa Ashley (novel)

Stars:

Kristin Chenoweth, Josh Hopkins, Anna Chlumsky

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Kristin Chenoweth	...	E.J. Baxter
Josh Hopkins	...	Will Albrecht
Anna Chlumsky	...	Jan Lucas
Erin Dilly	...	Roz Baxter
Stephen Huszar	...	Jason Farrar
Heather Hanson	...	Lillah Sherwood
Jefferson Brown	...	Eric
Craig Eldridge	...	Mayor Bob Baker
Chantal Perron	...	Dr. Marci Hempel
Paul Constable	...	Dave Hempel
Aaron Abrams	...	Les Pizula
Frank Chiesurin	...	Scott Lewis
Peter Mooney	...	Noah
Joe Norman Shaw	...	Eddie
Jessie Pavelka	...	Henry Diepeveen

Storyline

E.J. Baxter has what she considers the trifecta of New York perfection: the perfect job as a PR executive with Lillah Sherwood's firm where she is the miracle maker; the perfect apartment; and the perfect man in her fiancé and coworker, Noah. E.J.'s life comes crashing down just before Christmas when she is fired from her job, and finds out that Noah is cheating on her, which not only leads to her calling off their engagement but changing what were to be their romantic holiday plans. After a few months of not being able to find a job with a reputable rival PR firm because of no one willing to cross Lillah, E.J. is forced to accept one of the two less than perfect jobs offered to her. The job that she accepts from Mayor Bob Baker is to work in Kalispell, Montana - population 19,000 and located hours from a large city - on a one year contract for its tourist board to encourage corporate retreats to the town. E.J. is a fish out of water in Kalispell, but finds that there are some ...

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Plot Keywords:

reference to jane austen | publicist | unfaithful fiance | fired from job | returning engagement ring | 

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Taglines:

Calendar Girls meets The Full Monty

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Genres:

Comedy | Romance

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Certificate:

TV-PG

Did You Know?

Trivia

Kristin Chenoweth's character talks to her sister about The Wizard of Oz (1939); Chenoweth starred in the Broadway musical production "Wicked" which parallels the story depicted in the classic film.

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Goofs

During the abseiling party (which almost no one in America would call it), they are rapelling on ATCs which require one hand below the device to brake the rapeller. Yet E.J. is shown holding onto the ropes above the device with both hands when she panics yet she is staying in place (and there is no bottom belay as shown when she does get down).

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Quotes

Jan Lucas: Hey, Eric.
Eric: Hey, Jan. Hey, E.J...
E.J. Baxter: Hey.
Eric: Uh, we had some extra Kalispell calendars down at the bank, and I though before we trash them, maybe you could use them here at the tourist board.
Jan Lucas: Sure.
Eric: Great. So, E.J., uh, how are you settling in? If there's anything you need... moving stuff, or, whatnot...
E.J. Baxter: Thank you. You're all so friendly here. Do you all know each other, or are you just members of the same cult?
Eric: No, we - we just try to be nice.
E.J. Baxter: Weird.
Jan Lucas: I'm taking E.J. out for drinks later on, maybe you'd like to...
[...]

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Connections

References Pride and Prejudice: Episode #1.4 (1995)

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Soundtracks

Auld Lang Syne
(uncredited)
Traditional
Words by Robert Burns
[New Year's Eve with the dog]

User Reviews

Forgettable holiday fluff with a couple of highly watchable scenes

This movie is predictable and forgettable, a Christmas rom-com that ends happily ever after before barely grazing the surface of the leads' potential character arcs. Not that I am convinced either of the lead actors was capable of greater depth, but the script didn't give them any room to try. The secondaries were reasonably attractive and warm and human, but didn't get much in the way of lines or focus.

The reasons to watch:

1. Breathtaking mountain scenery 2. The photo shoot montage is excellent eye candy with humour attached 3. The mid-plot mutual-loathing confession of attraction that's a blatant ripoff from Pride & Prejudice but done in language far less polite.

4. The nod to the very real issue of cash-strapped Search and Rescue services, staffed by volunteers and relying often on borrowed or out-dated equipment, who manage at tremendous risk to life, limb, and family/romance to bring most people home most of the time from the wildernesses they've wandered into.

It's a 6 for those 4 reasons. Otherwise, it might be a 3.

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

5 December 2009 (USA)

Also Known As:

Twelve Men of Christmas

Filming Locations:

Big Bear, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Lisa Demberg Productions, Fox Television Studios, Lifetime Television

Technical Specs

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.78 : 1