Starring Tamera Mowry-Housley and Carlo Marks
***SPOILER ALERT***
Angela (Mowry-Housley) is divorced and has a ten-year-old daughter, Brooklyn (Audrey Wise Alvarez), who’s a Sunny Scout. They rush to a scouts meeting led by the den mother, Elizabeth (Jaycie Dotin), about planning the holiday ball. Brooklyn is missing her dad, Dakota (James Paladino), but also hopes her mom will start dating and has someone in mind for her—William, the owner of Sir Bakes a Bunch, a local bakery they frequent. Brooklyn asks William to bake goods for the ball and he agrees, but he and Angela must obtain Elizabeth’s approval first. As they collaborate on a presentation for Elizabeth, their attraction grows, but roadblocks to romance stand in their way.
PROS
Mowry-Housley and Marks as Angela and William. Angela was independent and a successful real estate agent, an accomplishment she was proud of, but she was also riddled with guilt and worry. She felt guilty, thinking she hadn’t provided Brooklyn with a proper family and worried about failing her. William was a gentle soul who was content to bake and run his shop. He wasn’t tempted by his investor’s efforts to make him expand his business, as he had no desire to oversee a bigger operation. Though he and Angela enjoyed each other’s company—baking in preparation for their presentation and attending a village fair for inspiration—she backed away from a romance with him, envisioning a worst-case scenario. She was certain their relationship would fail and affect Brooklyn negatively. When Dakota reappeared unexpectedly, William immediately stepped away from Angela.
Mowry-Housley and Marks had genuine chemistry that showed in subtle ways. As he usually does, Marks exhibited charm (though it was a bit muted here) and the looks that passed between him and his co-star conveyed Angela and William’s connectedness. I’m thinking especially of how they looked at one another when he took down the star from her Christmas tree. The acting also captured moments of tension and awkwardness between the couple—for instance, when William used the word “insecurity” about Angela as a single mom, offending her, and later when he told her he thought she and Dakota were getting back together and seemed much too willing to accept this. The faces of both leads expressed crushing disappointment.
Audrey Wise Alvarez. As Brooklyn, this actress was enjoyable to watch. Brooklyn’s demeanor, which was usually restrained, made her seem wiser than her years. Yet her true age showed when she blurted out at the scouts meeting that she was looking for a date for her mom for the holiday ball. Brooklyn’s yearning to get Angela and William together, as expressed in her Christmas wish drawing and various conversations, was a sweet aspect of this movie. I also liked Brooklyn’s directness in confronting Angela about her refusal to ask for help and tendency to push others away.
Comic relief. Though Scouting for Christmas was a drama, it was enlivened by an oddball character, Elizabeth, played with comic flair by Dotin. The actress chewed up the scenery. With her emphasis on the scouts learning deportment, posture, and ballroom dancing, Elizabeth was a prissy throwback to the 1950s. She arranged the plates holding William’s cupcakes so that everything looked just so. The fussbudget character lived in a white-picket-fence world and pitied Angela for her stressful life and lack of a husband, provoking Angela’s ire. Elizabeth was hilarious when she made goo-goo eyes at Dakota, and even funnier when she melted down upon learning that her caterer wasn’t available because of a burst appendix. Though she’d dismissed William’s pitch to provide sweet treats for the party, she became desperate to hire him.
Good supporting players. As William’s mom, Netta, Jacqueline Ann Steuart had the fiery nature he lacked. Netta knew without being told that he loved Angela and urged him to tell her how he felt, especially after she glimpsed Dakota kissing Angela. Also good in her role was Marci T. House as Sarah, Angela’s forthright sister who tried to talk sense into her when she hesitated about William. Finally, Paladino as Dakota, Angela’s globe-trotting archaeologist ex-husband, gets a nod. He seemed like a clueless doofus at first, as he didn’t get why Angela was upset that he’d dropped in without notice. He wanted Angela back, yet once he recognized how happy William made her and Brooklyn, he was gracious toward William and stopped pursuing his ex-wife.
CONS
This wasn’t the flashiest Hallmark movie and likely didn’t wow many viewers, but I was entertained by it and found little to criticize.
Two steps forward, one step back. The one thing that started to wear at me somewhat was how reluctant both Angela and William were to enter into a relationship, even though they loved being together. And they were both so obviously frustrated with their inability to become a couple. Just when they were getting close, one or the other would back off. I was greatly relieved when William said he’d provide baked goods for the ball if Angela would be his date, and simultaneously refused to sign the contract his investor was forcing on him. Until then this sensitive character was quite passive, and I’d forgive you if you found him a bit too passive.
My grade for Scouting for Christmas: B
Caroline Kaiser is a professional book editor who specializes in fiction and memoirs, and she’s been guiding writers toward publication since 2007. Caroline is also the author of two ghostly mystery novels, Virginia’s Ghost and The Spirits of South Drive. Before she embarked on an editing and writing career, she spent many years working in a Toronto auction house as an antiques appraiser. Apart from curling up on the couch and drinking tea as she watches Hallmark movies, Caroline enjoys baking and exploring London, Ontario, the picturesque city she now calls home. Her website is www.carolinekaisereditor.com.
