Christmas Homecoming (TV Movie 2017)

Christmas Homecoming: Directed by Paul A. Kaufman. With Julie Benz, Michael Shanks, Lauren K. Robek, Toby Levins. A widow of a war hero takes in an injured soldier who has just returned from Afghanistan. Together they help each other heal and find true love.

“Have seen some mixed reviews for u0026#39;Christmas Homecomingu0026#39;, on both sides of positive and negative strongly opinioned. With quite a number liking/loving the film, for its emotion and handling of heavy themes, so admiring that they had the themes in the first place and how they were handled. Yet also with quite a number disliking/hating it for in their cases unrealistic ages (meaning considering the leads too old for their characters), being pro-war and one-sidedness.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eCount me in as somebody that mostly really liked u0026#39;Christmas Homecomingu0026#39;, while finding some issues with it. Issues that others have had with it. This is coming from somebody who loves Christmas and Christmas films, have got some surprising pleasure out of a good deal of the film seen as part of my recent festive film quest but have been critical of quite a handful without ever being nasty or with any intent to upset anybody.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eDo think that u0026#39;Christmas Homecomingu0026#39; is not perfect. The coda did feel too sentimental and tacked on, one that easily could have been left out and it would not have affected the filmu0026#39;s quality at all. Some motivations could have been a lot clearer and more consistent and Jim is by far the better developed character of the two leads.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eSome of the dialogue can be very cheesy and predictability as always is very high.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eThere is a lot in u0026#39;Christmas Homecomingu0026#39; that is done right. Both Michael Shanks and Julie Benz do a great job in the lead roles, giving their difficult roles a lot of charm and tenderness. Particularly Shanks. Their chemistry is also understated and never forced, and am not as bothered as other people of whether they were age appropriate for their characters. What mattered to me more were the quality of the performances and the film is a winner on that front. The supporting cast donu0026#39;t stand out as much but are always a good match for the leads and donu0026#39;t overshadow them while having presence.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eIt is a pleasant looking film with the scenery standing out in particular, while the soundtrack matches the spirit of the holiday and the filmu0026#39;s themes very well. Unlike some of the recently seen festive films, the characters were relatable and worth caring about even when there could have been more development to them. Story-wise, u0026#39;Christmas Homecomingu0026#39; does have more depth than most of the films watched as part of the quest too, with contrivance and lack of realism being nowhere near as big problems as they can be with Hallmark/Lifetime (and similar) festive films. It was very brave exploring the themes that it did and so maturely and with such tenderness, making it a genuinely moving film without being too dark or too dreary. With these themes, it could easily have been over-serious, but thanks to the leads and their chemistry particularly the film still managed to be immensely charming, heart-warming and light-hearted.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eOn the whole, nicely done and one of those liked but not loved it films. 7/10”