A burnt out corporate worker leaves the city to return to her rural hometown to celebrate the holidays and is overwhelmed with nostalgia. Along comes the local boy, born and raised in the same hometown. He wears a flannel in every scene, works a part-time volunteer gig at the town’s Christmas tree farm and finds it hard to get into the Christmas spirit. The two run into each other, reluctant to have any interaction past a greeting, but we all know they will rekindle their relationship from the past, and won’t resist falling in love again. Sound familiar? This is the storyline of most Christmas Hallmark movies that will appear on your TV at some time during the holiday season. The repetitive nature of these films is widely criticized, but viewers fail to realize that the light hearted, simple feel of these movies truly captures the essence of the holiday season. 

The holidays are typically a time for gratitude, reflection and donation as people flock to stores in search for gifts. So, it makes perfect sense that most Hallmark movies encapsulate these feelings. Despite interests leaning towards the heavier more tragic side of romantic films, such themes are not reflective of the holiday season. Hallmark movies such as Haul out the Holly and Christmas Waltz express stories of love and generosity, feelings that everyone wants to be surrounded by during the ultimate season of joy and love. Settling down after a long frigid day in December to watch a horror film simply doesn’t feel right. 

“I love them, there’s definitely a formulaic nature to them, but I think that’s what is so comforting about them,” junior Hailey Levenberg said. “You know that the ending is always going to turn out the way you want it to.”

Without even realizing it, these movies create a sense of stability in the viewer’s life as they follow a comforting plot that always ends on a high note. These lighthearted movies allow people to forget about their troubles and provide a distraction into a more simpler fictional scenario.  

The next time you nestle into your couch with a mug of hot chocolate hiding from the swirling December weather to watch a movie, consider the simplistic, cheerful Hallmark films to get into the holiday spirit.