The Nine Lives of Christmas (2014) Reviews

• A First-Rate Hallmark Romance

  lenxz12014-11-26

  This is a typical Hallmark Christmas romance movie, but more captivating than most. Of course, you know how everything will turn out, but the process depends upon how attractive and appealing the main characters are. Both leads in this film, Brandon Routh as fireman Zachary Stone and Kimberly Sustad as veterinary student Marilee White, are A-one. They are both instantly likable (in Miss Sustad's case exceedingly lovable) and romance lovers will immediately be rooting for them and intrigued by how they will get together. OK, this may be enough, but then throw in the animal characters, and those who are pet owners or who love animals will find the two cats adorable. And the pets are not there just for their attraction, but they play essential roles in the plot. So what we have is indeed a warm and fuzzy (pun intentional) love story that is just fun to sit back and enjoy without expecting anything more than that--it is enough. My wife and I enjoyed the movie so much that we purchased a copy of the short novel by Sheila Roberts that it is based upon. The plot of the book has some major differences, but the adaptation for the screenplay was very well done and was true to the overall effect of the novel. I would love to see Kimberly Sustad featured in more Hallmark movies. She is such a talented and endearing actress, with a different kind of beauty all her own--a unique look that is far more interesting than that of the cookie-cutter Miss America types.

• Way Above The Average Hallmark Christmas Movie

  Christmas-Reviewer2017-10-28

  BEWARE OF BOGUS REVIEWS & REVIEWERS. SOME REVIEWERS HAVE ONLY ONE REVIEW. WHEN ITS A POSITIVE REVIEW THAT TELLS ME THEY WERE INVOLVED WITH THE PRODUCTION. NOW I HAVE REVIEWED OVER 400 Christmas MOVIES. I HAVE NO AGENDA. I AM FARE Zachary is a handsome bachelor who enjoys the liberties of being single. When a stray cat adopts Zach as his owner, Zach falls in love with the little guy in spite of the fact that he wants to stay away from responsibility. His new pet brings him into contact with Merilee White, a beautiful woman who is Zach's opposite. Through his new pet, Zach begins to see that being accountability-free isn't as fulfilling as he thought and that the wrong woman might just be the perfect match. Now I have been a Brandon Routh fan since "Superman Returns". I think if that film had a better Lois Lane then Brandon would have become a household name. What is great about this film is that the relationships people have with one another "feel real". I love the relationship between Brandon and his boss. Now we all know how these Christmas films will end and this is no different. However it's the journey that takes to wonderful and almost unexpected places!

• A lovely romantic film lifted by good acting.

  jarvis542014-12-22

  Ironically I first saw the leading actress in another Rom com where she played the sister of the main female character. And when I saw Kimberly Sustad I immediately believed she could hold her own in her own movie. So here she is the lead in this movie and I thoroughly enjoyed it. Okay let's be fair, this is not a movie that will end up on the Oscar best film short list. It is a movie that once the main characters are identified you pretty much know what is going to happen and just go along for the ride. So what for me lifted this movie above average? Kimberly Sustad. And why? Well there are not that many actresses that can really do emotions well. Kimberly managed to convey sadness and joy really well with her eyes watering up with tears almost flowing. Believe me this is not easy to pull off, so many actresses cry and there are no tears at all. I'm glad Brandon Routh recovered from superman. All in all this is a light and enjoyable Rom com that is light and fluffy and not a bad way to spend an hour and a half.

• Hallmark Scores Big With This Sweet Holiday Charmer

  francesfarmersrevengeonseattle2016-04-18

  Holiday magic with kitties and a male lead (Superman Brandon Routh) who really seems to love cats! This is one of Hallmark's better Christmas offerings. Its full of sweetness and lovely romance. The only negative is that its supposed to be set in Portland, Oregon during the Christmas season. Winter in Portland is generally cool, cloudy and rainy. All of the outside scenes for this film are filled with brilliant green grass, trees with heavy foliage and bright sunlight. To be sure its late spring or summer somewhere. The filming took place in Canada; seems the scouts could have come up with a more 'Christmas-y' Canadian snow scape than the location chosen. Im still baffled as to why the film would advertise Portland in the first place. Kimberly Sustad as Merilee is just adorable as the kind hearted Vet student who isn't looking for love. She's smart, beautiful and loves animals. Brandon Routh as Zachary is sweet and certainly handsome, but never seems really enamored by Marilee. I appreciate that Hallmark let his character be a normal hard working guy, and not some fancy suit from the manor born. I notice that seems to be a trend in a lot of Hallmark productions, and this was refreshing. Still, the performances are thoughtfully executed, and both of the lead actors are lovely and talented and a real treat to watch. Gregory Harrison's small supporting role as the Fire Chief and Zachary's friend and mentor, is living proof that some men just get better and more handsome with age! Put this one on the must watch list for your Christmas movie lineup. Hallmark should take a tip from its own production and make more Christmas offerings like this. This cute film has Nine Lives and then some!

• Fun romcom with likable stars

  utgard142015-11-16

  Charming and fun Hallmark romcom about a handsome fireman (Brandon Routh) who takes in a stray cat, which leads him to meeting a veterinary student (Kimberly Sustad). Despite some obstacles, such as his witchy model girlfriend, the two become fast friends and eventually roommates. Will they become more? No, actually, they will not...because this is the only Hallmark movie ever made where the guy and the girl don't get together in the end. I'm kidding, obviously. We all know where this will end up but, as they say, "it's the journey not the destination." The two leads are both extremely likable and attractive. Like everyone else, I'm familiar with Brandon Routh from Superman Returns and a few other movies and television shows. So I knew what to expect from him. Kimberly Sustad, however, I wasn't sure about. I could have sworn I'd seen her in something before. She looks vaguely familiar and her style of acting also seemed to ring some bells. However, I looked at her IMDb filmography and drew nothing but blanks. So I guess she just has one of those faces. Anyway, she's a treat to watch and easy to root for. She also has very nice chemistry with Routh. Can I just say how happy I was to see a male character in one of these things who wasn't rich and didn't have an MBA? The guy's ridiculously good-looking, brave, and dates models so, no, he's not Joe Everyman. But Hallmark has this annoying habit of writing the men in their romcoms to either be from a wealthy family or have some kind of business degree that lets us know he could be wealthy if he wanted to be. It's nice to see them stepping away from that irritating trope this time around. Anyway, it's a fun, lighthearted romantic comedy with a little bit of Christmas flavor. If you enjoy Hallmark movies then you'll probably like this one.