The Most Colorful Time of the Year

source: The Most Colorful Time of the Year

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If you're into Hallmark movies, you know how hard it is to find a Christmas movie with a new, fresh concept. With Ryan's colorblind character experiencing the world beyond black & white for the first time, it's really a fresh take that makes you feel grateful to be able to see color, and appreciate Christmas all the more. The scenes where he sees color for the first time are sweet and memorable. The leads have acted well and the storyline is kind of endearing. I just wish they had zoomed in a bit more on the two lead characters Ryan and Michelle falling for each other, which they obviously were. Their chemistry could have been given more room to develop. Also, the other (unnecessary) supporting characters were given screen space they didn't deserve, like Michelle's ex-boyfriend Mark, who is a bit of a scary stalker overstepping boundaries, which is not in sync with her otherwise strong and successful optometrist character to allow him to do in the first place, but we're lost on the (probably meaningless) history there. Also, a small continuity issue - when she goes to pick Michelle from school but ends up having a gift-wrapping fun time at the church with Ryan after school when he tries on his glasses for the first time - kind of leaves the viewer confused if she forgot about her daughter Bailey (later clarified as Bailey being at the play rehearsal - when did that happen?) The movie has some memorable lines. Such as outside the grocery store, Ryan says, "I'm going into hibernation for the holidays. Unless I randomly bump into my soulmate, I'm perfectly fine being alone for a while." Bumps into Michelle one second later. :-D One thing that could have saved the movie from any so-called "bad" reviews is background music. There are times when the right music could have enhanced the scenes and made them even more heartwarming than they were. I think music scores really take away the boring and slow aspect of any movie, especially a nice one like this, which just goes a bit silent on some pivotal moments. I rarely cry at the end of Hallmark movies, but this one was something, especially when the girl watches Ryan put a coat around her mother's shoulder on Christmas morning. The movie could have ended there with sweet music and it would have been perfect too. Overall, a nice movie totally worth watching, even again, for some holiday cheer.

Somehow we're expected to believe that a man can get through learning a PhD and becoming a science teacher, yet is suddenly discovered to be colorblind by a woman who, of course, has all the perfect qualifications to fall in love with him. Of all the 2022 Hallmark movies thus far, I like this one the best because it isn't trying to push some sort of woke agenda, although I realize others would disagree. It's a traditional Hallmark formula with a bit of a medical twist that's a pleasant diversion for a couple of hours, and that's all I was looking for. Hopefully Hallmark will still be capable and encouraged to make such simple little stories that don't require much thought and don't exist primarily to make statements that are shoehorned, sometimes awkwardly.