La casa de Navidad 2

Hallmark set the cat amongst the conservative pigeons back in 2020 when 'The Christmas House' (based in part on star/writer Robert Buckley's childhood Christmas memories) featured an openly gay couple in the main ensemble cast. Insane that people focus and obsess about that - good on Hallmark for (finally) depicting the real world in their Christmas movies.

The Christmas House was fantastic. And the sequel, with a high bar to clear, is just a skosh below the level of the original. That's not to say it's a bad film. Definitely not. The great cast is back, and this time here are TWO Christmas Houses to be decorated, with the Mitchell family in fine form once again.

How good are Sharon Lawrence and Treat Williams as parents Phillys and Bill? Fantastic in every scene.

The relationship between brothers TV star Mike (Buckley) and bakery owner Brandon (Jonathan Bennett) is explored more deeply in the second instalment. And Ana Ayora is back as Mike's childhood sweetheart, Andi Cruz. That relationship has it's speed bumps.

It was always going to be hard to top The Christmas House. As I said above, it doesn't quite match the original, but it's still a really fun film.

Here's hoping for The Christmas House III one of these years.

A fun to watch Christmas movie, it's light and doesn't follow the usual Hallmark formula. The usual formula is centered on a lone female looking for love, this is about three families and competition between two brothers. It's farcical, not full of hot cocoa, holiday sweets and gingerbread. I haven't seen gingerbread in grocery bakery sections for years, it's very dated.

This is better than the original movie, it has better writing and it moves at a fast clip so there aren't boringly slow conversations that bog down many Hallmark movies. And it's not full of nostalgia for the past like some of the Hallmark movies this year.

I hope Hallmark is planning on a 3rd Christmas House.

I was excited to watch 'The Christmas House 2: Deck Those Halls', as I loved the one last year. From the 'Handsome Justice' clips and father jokes to the maniacal sibling rivalry, 'The Christmas House' was one of my favorite Christmas movies in 2020. And it was one of the funniest Hallmark Christmas movies I have ever seen. So, as you can imagine, 'Deck Those Halls' had a lot to live up to, and I am happy to report that it does not disappoint. It is a fun, clever, and cute film with several laughing-out-loud moments and even a couple of touching scenes to boot. The story follows the Mitchell brothers, Mike (played by Robert Buckley) and Brandon (played by Jonathan Bennett), as they compete against each other on a TV competition show for the King of Christmas. Who can create the best Christmas House this year? Hopefully, the two don't end up destroying everything that gets in their way. The script is great. The writers do a wonderful job again with the dialogue, especially between the brothers. The sibling fights are not only fun to watch but also feel real, a sign of some good writing. This time around the writers spend more scenes developing Mike and Brandon's (back)stories. That is, they add depth to these characters. As a result, we get to know them better, allowing the viewer to invest more in and engage more with their stories. The writers again do a wonderful job of developing the dialogue and interaction between the family members more broadly. Indeed, the family dynamics is what makes these two movies so successful, I think. The setup of the movie in this one is also fun to watch, as there is (competition show) interview footage of family members where they discuss the Christmas House, family traditions, and themselves. These are some of the funniest scenes in the movie. By the way, the magic guy makes an appearance in this one too. Speaking of magic, the cast, like in the first, is brilliant. The chemistry between the family is what makes all this work on-screen. Buckley and Bennett again have impressive performances with some great back-and-forth. I also appreciated the worries and vulnerability they brought to their characters, though in different ways. Though less screen time than the first, Treat Williams (as the Dad) and Sharon Lawrence (as the Mom) still have great performances. They were fun to watch, making me laugh or chuckle a few times (especially their interviews). The rest of the cast also does a great job this time around. Finally, there is plenty of Christmas cheer in this one, as you might expect when the story is partly about the Christmas decoration competition. All in all, 'The Christmas House 2' is a lot of fun from start to finish with some brilliant performances and great (on-screen) chemistry between the cast. It's one of Hallmark's best this season. Let's keep our fingers crossed for a third movie.

Handsome Justice is back and so are Mike, Andi, Noah, Bill, Phyllis, Brandon, Jake and the crazy magic guy!

Christmas House 2 could be called Dueling Christmas Houses or brother vs brother because Mike is asked to do a reality tv show that normally pits a contestant against some guy with great abs in a contest call "Deck the Halls". Unfortunately the great ab guy gets hurt and this sets up brother vs brother to save the show.

"The Christmas House isn't a Mike thing, it's a Mitchell thing."-Brandon.

The family gets divided in this ultimate Christmas challenge for the whole Mitchell family.

This movie got rid of all of the sad melancholy parts of the first Christmas House movie and upped the fun with the brotherly competition.

Not as good as the play that is "really pretty good"...that was such a great line.

Just as Mike is picking out a ring to propose to Andi...her ex, who is Noah's dad and a bit of a bragger, shows up. Noah is definitely growing up and he thinks he is too old for magic.

"I have these times when I think how great it would have been if we had just gotten together when we were young....and then, Noah."-Mike.

"No! Not a camera moment!"-Brandon.

'The Christmas House 2: Deck Those Halls' (2021)

Opening thoughts: While it was an inconsistent film, with many ups but also a few downs (from trying to do too much mainly), the first 'The Christmas House' film was very enjoyable. Seeing the cast return in the sequel did promise a good deal, having seen how good they were in the first, and the premise was nice. Expectations were not completely high though, as sequels with some famous exceptions generally do not have a good reputation and Hallmark varied with its sequels (some were good, others were average or less and pointless).

'The Christmas House 2: Deck Those Halls' is one of Hallmark's good sequels, actually one of the better ones in my view. It is also one of the few Hallmark sequels in my personal view that is superior to the first, with all its good things except done even better and with most of the flaws present in the first being corrected on the whole here. It is not perfect by all means, none of Hallmark's films are, but there is a huge amount to like and overall it is one of the best 2021 Hallmark Christmas films in what was a up and down year for that year's Christmas batch.

Bad things: Starting with what didn't quite come off, the ending did feel a little too pat again. A common issue with the 2021 Christmas Hallmark films, and actually true for all of Hallmark's 2021 output (but worse in most of the others).

Also thought that the comedic moments occasionally were on the forced side and that Jonathan Bennett's character could have done with a little more development.

Good things: However, there are a number of things done better here compared to the first 'The Christmas House'. The pacing is vastly improved, with less slower moments and a tighter first quarter. It also doesn't try to cram in as much, with there being not as many characters or subplots, which proved to be a good things when it meant that the main plot had more depth and development without falling into over-sentimentality. Robert Buckley's role is larger and he is a little more comfortable.

When it comes to the acting that was all fine. Buckley appeals, as does Bennett. Treat Williams and Sharon Lawrence are even better, emotive and with a real feel for the lighter touch when needed. Lawrence again has a very difficult character to like, but she doesn't make a control freak sort of character cartoonish and it's not too unrealistic a representation of this kind of person. Actually thought she was more subtle here. The characters aren't too perfect but to me their flaws weren't too heavily exaggerated at the same time. The acting chemistry is sincere and natural. Loved the interviews, which were a great and very entertaining touch.

Visually, the film looks attractive and is another improvement over the first. With the decorations looking a lot less tacky. Especially the scenery, and the music has a pleasant and nostalgic quality that doesn't become overdone, over-emphasised or too syrupy. The direction was sympathetic but still gave the film momentum when necessary. The dialogue is heartfelt, thoughtful and flows well without being self-indulgent or too flowery. Was surprised at how refreshingly funny some of it was and how smile-worthy delivered it was. The storytelling wasn't dull, was warm hearted, had heart and didn't become too contrived or overly sugary sweet in my view. Some of the situations were not too hard to relate to and were generally fun and heartfelt.

Concluding thoughts: Overall, liked it a lot and better than the still enjoyable first film.

8/10.