Mystery on Mistletoe Lane

7.2 stars. This is a fun little adventure for families as they solve a puzzle. This is an "x" marks the spot, discover the next clue sort of family mystery. There are no scary parts, and the trailer is a bit misleading, because it's not really a "mystery" per se. All that aside, it's still a wonderful story of people who suffered loss and found each other with a little help from a man who once occupied a mistletoe mansion. This is sure to entertain a younger audience, especially children who love solving riddles, doing puzzles, and absolutely enjoy the holidays. So if you are in the mood for a little reindeer riddle during this holiday season, listen carefully to each clue (8 clues for 8 reindeer) and maybe you can solve the mystery before they do. And in the meantime, this mother of two young children may find her secret santa this Christmas.

After viewing several night's worth of Hallmark's offerings, this season, I luckily reviewed the calendar to catch this earlier release. Since I had many films to use, as reference, a 10-star-rating was easy to bestow on this gem. That is because it is multi-faceted - the storyline emphasizes the passage of Christmas traditions - family and community. The acting is top-notch - from Victor Webster👍(David) and Erica Cerra (Heidi), to Wallace (David's dad) and Heidi's two teens. All three generations are pivotal, as the story unfolds. David and Heidi are initially slightly adversarial as she unknowingly took over his position of museum curator. But, the mystery of the manor gives them a common objective, and the writers give ample time (and histories) for our leads to warm up to each other. Their interactions (good chemistry) are relaxed and sensible. You can palpate the emotion of David's dad, Wallace, as he recounts his childhood and you begin to see the mystery solved, with some well-played interaction of Heidi's two teenagers. You never sense that you're being force-fed any Christmas activities or unforeseen romantic moment. These moments flow, seemlessly, here. When the movie draws to its closing, you're left feeling comforted in the human spirit, the joy of community, and the excitement of a much-anticipated budding romance.

This is basically a treasure hunt at Christmas story. It started out looking like a haunted house story, but that vanished once the kids started following the clues. The mystery develops nicely into the treasure hunt. There are some added complexities later in the hunt, but clues to them were in it from early on. I think that kids of one of the leads are just right in a Christmas story and these kids become a big part of the story without overwhelming the romance. I would say that the romance and the treasure hunt are almost equal themes in the plot. The acting is good and the dialogue is good including a few "bad" jokes. Victor Webster and Erica Cerra have nice chemistry. I had no idea just from watching this that Cerra was Deputy Jo on Eureka despite watching that series at least twice. She makes a good lead in this kind of movie. I liked that Heidi was always upbeat.

Victor Webster is always lovely to watch. He's a super cute gentleman. I love how he kisses her hand when they're sitting under the mistletoe at the beginning. He's really good at being romantic. Just so dreamy. The mystery in this one is fun. I enjoyed the scavenger hunt. The kids did a good job with their roles. Of course, the Movies and Mysteries movies are always great. I love the sad history interwoven into it. Gives it good depth. One tiny bit of constructive criticism - the actors could have had better facial expressions/reactions when Wallace explains that the prior owner of the house was his father. Their faces were just kind of bored with that information. It was the big dun dun dun moment, but they're faces didn't express that. Overall, a classy movie. I loved it. Great acting all around. Victor Webster, Erica Cerra, Fred Henderson... Great job!

I love Victor Webster and I have yet to see him put a foot wrong. Mystery on Mistletoe Lane is no exception as he plays David, the former historical society director and restoration specialist. He meets the newly hired director, Heidi Wicks (Erica Cerra) and her two children Annie and Garrett. New to town Heidi moved her kids into a historic property provided by her new job and it is of course a historic building. Doing some research she discovers it used to be known as the Mistletoe Inn. Her kids do a bit of looking around and discover a hidden Christmas scavenger hunt that was left by a previous owner, with rhyming clues and small handmade reindeer at each location. There were a few plot holes...like how Wallace didn't come to inherit from his father and why his son didn't know the story of his biological father, but I am not going to nitpick. I enjoyed the story overall and I was thrilled with the scavenger hunt, the puns, and the interactions between Christmas crazy Heidi and the self proclaimed minamilist-no Christmas tree David. This was wonderful and family friendly. I highly recommend for some holiday magic. Special note about Heidi's coworker Linda, played by Mary-Beth Manning, she was lovely and a great addition to the film. This is a delightful recommendation from me.

Bring your friends. Watch your family. Get the kids in the room with you. Put the gadgets aside and make sure everyone has a cup of cocoa. Can you solve the mystery of mistletoe Lane? This was a very enjoyable, fun, and cute movie. Get into the holiday spirit. Or, get back--or discover for the first time--what the holiday spirit is as you try to figure out the clues. As I watched the movie, with two of the "main characters" being a historical society and an old house, it made me think of the many historic churches that are open on Christmas Eve, though many have never visited them or experienced a Christmas communion or candlelight service. This movie celebrates Christmas memories and customs in today's households. It might suggest some customs for your own annual observance. Watch it. Solve it. Try it.

Magandang pelikula!

Magandang pelikula!

Best mystery movie of the year. Great cast leads are excellent and terrific chemistry. The story is unique and something never covered by traditions of past movies. The movie flowed so effortlessly and very believable The clues were so good and the two kids were very good and really played excellent detectives. The secretary of the organization gave a nice warm touch. She did more with her expressions than most actors do with words. The leads Father did an ok job but probably did not have much dialogue. All in all if they continue with these mystery movies and keep the quality I think we are in store for enjoyable movies.

Mystery on Mistletoe Lane is an enjoyable, 100% family-friendly movie. It stars a newcomer to Hallmark Christmas movies Erica Cerra, and familiar face Victor Webster. Cerra is perhaps a bit older than the standard Hallmark lead, but she's the right age for this role: an attractive single mother of preteens who has uprooted her family from Carolina and shipped up to Boston (sorry). Her new job is manager of a house with historical significance, and she is determined to dust things off and bring some attention to the forgotten old house. In the process, she meets Victor Webster who assists in fixing up the place, but it's what they find in the process that sparks the mystery. Even her snotty daughter wants to join in the sleuthing. Old familiar face Fred Henderson shows up as Webster's dad, and he has some secrets of his own. All in all a fun watch, and a good one to watch with family.