User reviews

A sweet story to watch while sitting in the glow of a Christmas tree, and sipping some hot chocolate.

The cast are wonderful. Ernest Borgnine plays a senior named Bert who learns his long-estranged daughter was involved in a car accident, and he is the only relative of a granddaughter he didn't even know existed. Now the lonely old guy, used to playing chess in the park with his friend, or hanging out and reminiscing with his group of former movie folks at a local cafe, is asked to take the child in while his daughter recovers from her severe injuries.

Juliette Goglia, as Becca, Bert's granddaughter, is a gem. She and Borgnine play off each other very well, trading playful barbs right and left, and their growing affection is showcased sweetly. Goglia's portrayal of an awkward tween, who brightens with the encouragement of Bert, is really well done. There are themes throughout the story of bonding, forgiveness, understanding, healing, and other issues families deal with. Look for Kris Nelson, Jamie Farr, and some other familiar faces in the cast; an appealing group who all do well in their roles, and looked to be enjoying working together and having fun making the film. Nice Christmas traditions are incorporated into the film in wonderful ways, even things as simple as tree-trimming and a Christmas Eve pageant. Goglia has a wonderful singing voice, by the way.

This was a pleasant Christmas treat, with a very touching and uplifting sentimentality.

I didn't know exactly what to expect when I sat down to watch this, and I was pleasantly surprised. While this does not hold an awful lot of surprises, it not only has its heart in the right place, but it respects that delicate balance, and remains sweet, never growing sappy. This is one of the precious few films that are entirely inoffensive without going too far in the other direction and becoming irritating. The plot is interesting enough, and it doesn't lose your interest. This is well-paced. The characters are nicely developed, and there aren't any that only have negative sides(with one possible exception). Production isn't half bad. Without being a tragic tale, this does stay close to reality, and really comes across largely genuine(albeit one or two occurrences strain credulity somewhat). The acting is decent enough. Borgnine is great, and the kid is fine. This should get laughs out of most viewers, with its solid mix of silly jokes and a dry wit. The singing is quite enjoyable. This promotes wholesome morals without seeming preachy. I recommend it to everyone who watches Christmas movies. 7/10

BEWARE OF FALSE REVIEWS & REVIEWERS. SOME REVIEWERS HAVE ONLY ONE REVIEW TO THEIR NAME. NOW WHEN ITS A POSITIVE REVIEW THAT TELLS ME THEY WERE INVOLVED WITH THE FILM. IF ITS A NEGATIVE REVIEW THEN THEY MIGHT HAVE A GRUDGE AGAINST THE FILM . NOW I HAVE REVIEWED OVER 200 HOLIDAY FILMS. I HAVE NO AGENDA. I AM HONEST!

Bert (Ernest Borgnine) is a retired Hollywood actor who has been estranged from his only daughter Marie (Tracy Nelson) for many years. When she ends up in the hospital following a car accident, Social Services places her 10-year-old daughter, Becca (Juliette Goglia), with the grandfather she has never met. The generation gap is apparent as Bert and Becca try to adjust to their new lives together.

The film feel very authentic. I love how Ernest house looks on the inside and out. It looks like a home you would see in the San Fernando Valley. The cast of supporting players is 1st rate.

Now this film is ABOVE THE AVERAGE HALLMARK FILM. When this comes on watch it. You won't be disappointed. Ernest Borgnine is terrific. He plays against his persona. He plays someone very vulnerable who you just can't help loving.

I have always been an Ernest Borgnine fan going back to my childhood and the Mchale's Navy days. I have seen the comments on this being a sappy movie. This may be true but for those of us that enjoy clean old fashion movies this one gets an A+. The actors are outstanding and the theme is applicable to today's world. If you are looking for sex, violence, and vulgar language this movie is not for you. This would make especially good viewing if your family has experienced any estranged relationships. The movie is appropriate for any age and will be especially appreciated by older adults. It definitely deserved the Golden Globe nomination.

Saccharine TV movie has a bristly old coot (Borgnine) taking in his young granddaughter whom he never knew existed. Her mother -- his estranged daughter -- has had a car accident and been hospitalized. Tracy Nelsomn has the thankless role of the daughter, who spends most of the movie laid up in a hospital bed. The granddaughter quickly grows on the old man. There's more to the plot, which centers on the granddaughter singing in her school's holiday pageant, but it's not the plot that counts here. It's Borgnine's bravura performance, ably aided by a supporting cast of veterans including Jamie Farr, Richard Libertini and Katherine Helmond. Juliette Goglia is the winsome granddaughter who belts out several tunes like she's doing a road show tour of ANNIE. A little of this goes a long way, if you get my drift.

At the age of 90, Ernest Borgnine turns in a wonderful performance as a grandfather discovering that he has a granddaughter. Problem is that he has been estranged from his daughter for many years. The daughter sided with her mother in a messy breakup between her parents. It is only after the daughter becomes injured in an accident that the grandfather takes temporary custody of his grandchild.

Even the granddaughter has been brainwashed into thinking that grandpa is an ogre. That all changes when Borgnine shows tender loving care and takes charge in her life.

It's a wonderful story again emphasizing strong family traditions. It is most appropriate for the holiday season.

This was charming and sweet. I felt some parts could have been acted a little bit better, just because the backstory was SO emotional but it was still fair. I'm not sure if someone else's voice was used for Becca, but whoever's singing voice that was, it was beautiful!

I was very impressed with the overall quality of the acting and plot lines. I found Ernest Borgnine to be quite a lovable character. I believe that Juliette has a tremendous future in not only acting but especially as a singer. I look forward to her debut album. I had a fun time recognizing many of the players in this drams without looking at their names first. The plot line is very well done and believable. I look forward to seeing this show as a holiday tradition. It leaves room for a sequel as well to show how things progress. I am 58 years old but this movie had me crying and teary eyed at the ending. I also enjoyed Katherine Helmond in her role of Roxie. She played it as if it was her own persona. Thanks for a great production. The plot revolves around a retired thespian who has lost touch with his daughter until an untimely accident causes him to find out he has a granddaughter he never knew about. He ends up having to take care of this granddaughter since he is the only living relative. The changing of this relationship from a have to situation to a very loving one makes for a great story. Ron Tuell Sr

Becca, the granddaughter of Bert enters suddenly in the life of Bert: her mother had a car accident and is in the hospital: the social worker asks then Bert to take care for Becca. The first moments of the living together are difficult, but one night Bert sings a lullaby for her and she feels well. On the next appears Roxy Famosa and Becca sings "Jingle Bells" , Roxy encourages her to participate in the Christmas spectable. Besides Bert is astonished by so many questions of Becca about his personal life (why there is not Christmas tree in the house for exmple).

A pleasant comedy about the father-daughter relationship, about the importance of the friendship (Roxy, Carl and Adam, Christine the new friend in the school) and about the joy of singing and dancing.

I enjoyed the performances of Ernest Borgnine, Katherine Helmond , Juliette Goglia-the cute Becca-, Richard Libertiny, Tracy Nelson and Jamie Farr.

I avoided giving this a '1 only because I did want to watch it to the end. This is one of those film where the viewer easily anticipates each part of the plot. It's a nice film for nice people, there are no nasty shocks, a complete absence of sex which is unusual these days. It's a good film only in the sense it majors on relationships unfortunately the direct has been watching too many old movies and he seems new to directing.

The acting was bad, after saying that it was good to see Ernest Bourgine again, his timing was off but he must be in his 90's now, I hope I am as good when I am 90. It wasn't so much he fluffed his lines, the lines were so simple they were hackneyed, I mean abysmally hackneyed, the little girl was also a very bad actor, but hey could she sing, like a canary, she also danced well, very well. Apart from the fact she looked anorexic she said her lines but they were clichés in the main. The director did not use fade in's and on a number of occasion you had the distinct impression the whole cast were starting off from the queboard very unnerving.

The story line was predicable and the most scenes were too pat.

I liked the reality of the oldies on the film even though they were almost decrepit. The was a distinct lack of emotion and too many actors had that 'I've just had a face job' look. The 3rd world or ethnic minority doctor also was a poor actor/actress. It was the director's fault I guess or the casting editor, but then I've seen a number of these act before but there was an amateur feel to the whole film.

I guess at the end of the day it was a low/low budget film, but the poor acting, across the whole cast, and the clichéd chess games were a bane.The story line was good, with a little inventiveness it could have been great. The nose on the little girl was disconcerting. I notice the director went out of his way to show appropriate behaviour throughout the film. The knocking on doors and the shoulder to shoulder hugs became unbearable at the end, and yet I watched and watched hoping it would get better, and then at the end it did bring forth a tear. But a different director could have made this a classic. Pity...never mind.

Would I watch this laboured attempt at a film, no! definitely no.

This is one of the best Christmas movies I have ever seen. Of course, Earnest Borgnine and Jamie Farr are two of my very favorite actors. I can hardly wait until this comes out on DVD for home purchase!!! The story line of this movie is excellent. A man who "lost" his daughter to very difficult circumstances and was made to look as a "bad" person by his x-wife who actually ran away from him but who took care of his daughter without any credit all her life. Thankfully a friend told her and they were able to make up their differences and become a family. Borgnine may be 90 years old but it doesn't show one bit. He is excellent in every scene and carries a wonderful story to an excellent conclusion.

You know what you are getting when you purchase a Hallmark card. A sappy, trite verse and that will be $3.99, thank you very much. You get the same with a Hallmark movie. Here we get a ninety year old Ernie Borgnine coming out of retirement to let us know that as a matter of fact, he is not dead like we thought. Poor Ernie, he is the poor soul that married Ethel Merman several years ago and the marriage lasted a few weeks. In this flick, Ernie jumps in feet first and portrays the Grandpa that bonds with his long lost grandkid. We have seen it before. You might enjoy this movie but please don't say that you were not warned.

This Christmas time movie is one of the BEST! Out of the over 80 holiday movies I've seen, this is in my top 4. I am so glad to see other viewer's comments on this 2007 released movie. Kudos to this entire cast. I've now seen it twice and each time I like it even more and shed a few more tears. Ernest Borgnine, I didn't know how old he was. It doesn't matter. You are just in love with his character and the beauty and warmth of such an individual. What a beautiful spirit and a life lesson. Even though he didn't have his daughter or granddaughter in his life, he was still a joyous, positive, loving person. He did the best he could with his life and his friends speak volumes for his character. And in the end it pays off. But I love the theme of "no regrets". He lives beyond the hurt, beyond the loss. This is probably my favorite Christmas time movie. And, again, the casting was PERFECT!!!

Hey! I would like to say, this movie is about a retired movie star (Ernest) and he has a close relationship with his 9-year-old granddaughter, Becca (Juliette Goglia). I'm in this movie because I live in L.A. California. I go to a school named St. John Edues. I'm in the choir. I performed in Noah's Flood (aka Noye's Fludde) with the La Opera and I'm in this. We're just a choir in the background I think. My real name is Isabel Murashko, I didn't out my real name or anything. We start filming Monday, Feb. 5 (maybe) but definitely Tuesday, Feb. 6. It's to premiere on The Hallmark Channel as a Christmas movie. Hope it helped!

It is the film of Ernest Borgnine . It is an obvious fact . Because he gives, to an old and almost dusty story, sparkles and nuances and bit. Crumbs from old succes and music and humor and nostalgic slices of happy life. And the granddaughter, changing the life of the not most pleasant old man.But the good point is the help from Richard Libertini , Jamie Farr and and Katherine Helmond. Short, entertainment in fair and good manner. And admirable effort of Juliette Goglia.

I come to expect at least a little romance in Hallmark movies, but this one is all about family. That's actually nice change of pace.

The story was a sweet one, but there really weren't any surprises. Like most Hallmark movies, some things in the plot beg reality.

Juliette Goglia could sure perform, especially her singing. She got several chances and it was a pleasure to hear her do a non-traditional Christmas song. The school pageant as a whole was excellent in quality, not what you'd expect from your local public school pageant. And there were many other instances of songs and dance throughout the movie.

I revised this after seeing it again. Much of what I said earlier was true but overly harsh. I was guilty of what I often hate to see in other reviews and that is not viewing these type of movies for what they are - decent family entertainment with no expectations of Oscar or Tony winning stories, acting or production, just good clean fun.

I only found this movie a few years ago. It makes me cry every time. As much as I enjoy all the new Hallmark Christmas movies with their romance storylines (I always watch as many as I can), I just love this one. I'm glad they keep it in the lineup with the newer movies. Ernest Borgnine plays the sweetest old man. He always makes me miss my own Grandpa, and I just want to hug him every time I watch it. I think that's what makes me so choked up and teary when I watch this movie. Given how much of a big part of my life my own Grandpa was and how much I loved him, it breaks my heart to think about a little girl missing out on that part of her life. Seeing this story unfold and watching the little girl come to love her Grandpa that she never knew makes me smile and makes me a little teary along the way. It's a really sweet story. I don't want to give anything away, so I'll just tell you to have a couple tissues for the happy ending (it is a Hallmark movie) and enjoy it.

This Hallmark film has a plot with a different twist. The usual fare of modern movies about Christmas and the holidays is either mostly comedy or is heavily romance laden. Nothing's wrong with either of those, if the films are good (maybe half are, but there have been some very bad films made as well for the holiday season). "A Grandpa for Christmas" stands out for its different plot. Much of the enjoyment of the film is in the unraveling of the title, so I won't spoil that for viewers who have not seen but may want to watch this movie.

All the production values are very good. The cast is wonderful. Ernest Borgnine as Bert O'Riley shows some of the talent that earned him an Oscar, other awards and many nominations over the years. The supporting cast includes some well-known names from movies and TV - Katherine Helmond, Richard Libertini, and Jamie Farr. It's also a look at a young actress in her first major role. Juliette Goglia plays Becca O'Riley, granddaughter of Borgnine. She shows some of her natural talent as a singer and songwriter. She has a beautiful singing voice.

This is a warm, endearing movie about family, hardships on children, mistrust, sacrifice, dishonesty and truth. With many broken homes these days, this film might bring a ray of sunshine into the lives of some. Otherwise, it's a good movie for families and people of all ages - young and old.

Here's a favorite line from the film. Bert is cooking and reading a cookbook. "Blanch the carrots. What the heck does that mean?"

This movie so hit it out of the park. We have legendary actor Ernest Borgnine. Katherine Helmond from soap singing. A great 12 year old girl who was the little God girl on Joan of Arcadia (she probably plays a 9 or 10 yr old in this movie). She does some great singing (not sure if it is her voice or dubbed). These are precious scenes. A great version of Go Tell it on the Mountain that Jesus Christ is Born at the end.

With all this fun there is a story to be told with the happy long suffering grandpa as the hero. The movie is well done and memorable. This one is a treasure to be watched and enjoyed over and over again. I enjoyed the actress playing the mom in this movie as well- she is very familiar.

I really do enjoy this movie and I've watched it many time, even when it's not the holidays. However, I will say (and I'm sure I will make enemies), that although Juliette is obviously a good singer, I cannot take the tone of her voice for very long and I do end up muting it when she's singing. Otherwise, I enjoy it immensely, especially the old timers.