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Holiday Hallmark Movie Review: Christmas on Call (2024) and There's Something in the Barn (2023)
Keywords
Christmas on Call, movie review, Hallmark, holiday films, character analysis, film critique, Nick and Leslie, cozy conversations, holiday recommendations, Christmas movies
Summary
In this episode, Nick and Leslie review the Hallmark movie 'Christmas on Call,' sharing their cozy setting and initial thoughts. They critique the film's plot, character dynamics, and overall execution, expressing disappointment in its lack of excitement and depth. The conversation shifts to recommendations for other holiday films, including a humorous Norwegian Christmas horror comedy, and concludes with a light-hearted wrap-up and holiday wishes.
Nick And Leslie (00:01.94)
It's a cozy day here in Florida as the temperature has dropped down to the 50s. Yes. At night. Yeah. And I have a cold, so I am extra cozy. Yes. And I just woke up from a midday nap. We have have a delicious cup of coffee. We were not super feeling the need to write notes on this movie, so it's not going to be as detailed as the other.
Right. So right, I'm like we can get started. Alright so this was Christmas on Call and it didn't call to me. It did not. Let's roll that footage. And that was the trailer for Christmas on Call. There's a lot of people in this one. There's a lot. I felt like it was kind of
They were trying to do maybe like a little bit of love actually where it's like six degrees and there's, you know, like eight people that between paramedics, firefighters, hospitals, doctors and nurses just meh. Everyone knows each other. Yeah. Meh. I don't know what's happening right now. I forgot to see what quality I'm recording at. It says 1080, but we look blurred.
I feel blurry, so I guess it's appropriate. Maybe it's the lack of lighting in here because we got new blinds. yeah. And so it's like a little dark. Echo, turn on macrame.
Okay, I've created a routine to turn on the math in there. Every day I do
Nick And Leslie (01:48.244)
Echo, turn on grow lights.
Nick And Leslie (01:53.836)
Jesus. Echo turn off gold chain. You guys are getting a little insight into our lives here. It's so bright right now. Echo turn off grow lights. I can't. It's too bright. So Leslie's sick, but she doesn't know yet. I am not sick. I have been chugging that elderberry and vitamin D waiting for the zinc to arrive.
Half the time during this movie, I was just browsing Amazon Black Friday deals. We were. We were. Yeah. Yeah. Maybe you guys can expect some higher production quality on this podcast in the near future. Right. So, well, what were your thoughts? Christmas on Call first thoughts? This movie was unnecessary. Unnecessary. I mean, not that the movie, sorry, not that the movie itself was unnecessary.
but they kept putting a hat on a hat on a hat. They're like, we're going to be cute by having this character have a little backstory, this character have a little backstory, these are going to entwine and then combine to this backstory. That's not why we tune into Hallmark. No, I wrote down one character name, Dr. Hannah Williams. That was it. I've remember Patel because he was a good actor. I've got Dr. Hannah Williams.
Paramedic male and then later on I wrote down West. That's his name. Paramedic female. I don't want to say Sanchez, but that just, you know, we thought so. She did mention her Abuela. And then I wrote down Officer Patel, Officer Daniel. Daniel's maybe, I don't know. Chief Sanchez. The chief was a Sanchez. Reginald, come here. So this movie takes place in Philly. There's a fight over breakfast. There's the most.
Some people really lay on that accent thick. Thick. Like cartoonishly thick. One of them is from Ontario though. Patel is. he was? Yeah I looked him up because he really looked like that actor to me. yeah. Steve Buscemi? Yeah Steve Buscemi. So yeah whoever plays Officer Patel I would have never guessed he was Indian but his name is Sanjay Patel and he talks about his mother's
Nick And Leslie (04:12.558)
Not mimosas, what else? Samosas. Samosas. Which we'll be getting some later. yeah. We're just like, there's no excitement. don't want pupusas. There's no excitement in this movie for us. Was there a lot of decorations? Yes, it was cute, but. I don't think Philly has that many Christmas trees just on the streets during the holidays. Now I've never been there.
But that's a hazard. Like it's blocking the sidewalks. Right. Also, I'll never mind if I say firefighters don't like live trees, but we had a live tree once in a growing up. Well, wouldn't they prefer a live tree over those plastic ones that are fire hazards? No, it's the metal ones that like from the 70s that were the fire hazard. No real ones are the fire hazards because if people don't water them, they become very dry and are the just live in frame.
you remember how we would throw ours in the fire pit and it would just go crazy. Yeah. So keep, keep your, your real Christmas trees watered or else you can go and get a beautiful Balsam Hill tree that you don't have to water. And it just twinkles beautifully and you can control it from your phone. Well, shout out to the locations. They're shooting in hospitals. They're shooting in.
A place that sells Christmas trees like nine times. keep going back to that location. Well, that looked like it was in front of the fire station that they said, or like on the side. There's like two front of an apartment building locations. That was clearly an office that they were setting in like Hallmark executive offices. Yeah. But I mean, but they dressed up the doors. Filming in a hospital. did look expensive. Like they went to different locations than the hospital.
It was a front desk area and exam room one and exam room three. So I really don't think it was a lot of in hospitals at one area, but still now the fire fighting scene of the burning building, burning building, which was called twice basically.
Nick And Leslie (06:25.996)
And we never saw the other fight. Remember they're like structure fire, like five alarm structure fire. And then that was a different, that's what I'm saying. And then it cut to like the next day, like, nothing happened, but everyone had to run out. And then it happened again, but this five alarm construction or structure fire was still, was quite a blaze and well, anyway, I can get into other stuff. Leslie has firefighting experience. And by that, mean her dad's a firefighter and she doesn't stop.
I mean, first of all, he's barely fought any fires, but you know, he likes to talk. likes the camaraderie of going to those conventions every year. The arson conventions. It's interesting. You know what? Every, I don't want to yak anyone's yick. How do you say it again? Yuck anyone's yum. I still don't understand. Anyway. wait, can you tell me what a five alarm fire means? I don't know. Cause I only hear of it like in terms of chili.
Like a five alarm chili. And I know it's a reference to firefighting, like, I'm probably saying, I wonder if they actually do rate the severity based on an alarm system, maybe an alarm system based off of one alarm per station that they have to ring to. have no idea. Either way, they made it sound like it was some big to do, which clearly that station is not meant to handle structure fires. since they only sent to fire people.
for a fire and set of like numerous people that the EMS guy had to hop in to go and save the chief, which you couldn't even go low. I get the man is like six, five, six, two. If you are entering into a smoking building, which do not, do not unless you are equipped. Okay. But this man just walked right in, ran up.
stood up demon bother covering any type of cloth, wet cloth with his mouth or nose airways and stood would he cover a wet cloth with his mouth? cover his mouth with the wet cloth. Get your airways. Gotcha. Anyway, breathe through that so you can try to, you know, live and not screw up your lungs or whatever with that. Anyway, and then he's like standing tall breathing in the smoke and I just, I'm like.
Nick And Leslie (08:47.168)
Anyway, for the movies, but you know, impressive scene for Hallmark when it came to showing the fire. So I don't know what they did, but it, okay, good job. But I am not into movies that have paramedics, firefighter police. that's right. I forgot about the freaking police officers. police officer. was the star. He was the star. He was a little cutie.
And then and doctors like I'm just not into shows like that. So like this did not have me at all. Yeah excited plus like every it seemed like there was some type of contractual obligation to celebrate the Philadelphia Eagles yes once per someone gave money At least once per commercial break. Yes, and it might have been the owner of the Philadelphia Eagles Maybe it was like his wife's or partner's, you know dream project
Wow. The light is all of a sudden just pouring in through the kitchen area. And now do you go close that big window blind? Okay. We just like, anyway, okay. wrote Wes has so many events for Hannah. So we didn't even describe the plot. Hannah is a, an ER doctor new to town. She's homesick. She meets Wes, a sexy EMT.
And he's like, Hey, you're homesick. Let me you to some events. got the cure for So he's like, take me to your clinic for some homesickness. Every fucking day. He's like, Hey, we're going to decorate this firefighter's house. Hey, we're going to go volunteer at this thing. Hey, we're going to go do this thing and hand out these things. And like, she's all in for it, but that's exhausting.
Like if we didn't even get like a Christmas tree stroll, they were just busy, busy, busy. She did say, I don't even have a Christmas tree. And he's like, well, we'll get one. And she's like, well, maybe you'll help me decorate it. But we didn't get to, we did see them decorating them enough. It was kind of, I guess if you want to say cute, but again, I don't recommend you see this movie. It's kind of waste of time. There was like a nosy white neighbor with the thickest accent, who manicotti. Who's supposed to be Italian. So,
Nick And Leslie (11:03.534)
One of the events they had to go to was Chief Sanchez's daughter's recital. Okay, first of all, pause it on that. So in the beginning when we're learning all the fucking 12 characters that are in here, we meet the chief who apparently cannot remember. He's remembering, we need to volunteer for this, do this, schedule that for Christmas with the station. But
Someone's got to remind me to go to my daughter's performance because I miss it year in year synopsis of your childhood is no go away and don't be a father. Okay. My God, you have to have someone remind you even if your wife has to remind you about your own daughter's stuff. Clearly you don't want to be involved. Clearly you don't want to be involved with having your own children. Anyway, so let's just annoys me parents layer like that.
Don't be a parent. Anyway, you should have thought your choices through if you literally took care of other things first before your family. Little things like that to pretend you care about your children. So Chief Sanchez is probably in his early 60s, I would Early 60s. And then, so when we get to this recital, imagine our shock to see us at an elementary school. She's six or seven years old. Seeing...
some old Christmas carol, Silent Night. Some public domain garbage. And I thought we would be seeing like a high schooler from how old he was and he goes, I miss it every year. And I swear he said five years. And which by the way, we need to go back and look at the fabulous jackets anyway. But, and so we're expecting someone much older who has been singing for two.
I'm saying you can be singing when you're two or whatever of some form of a gibberish or lyric. Don't get me wrong about that, but
Nick And Leslie (13:00.878)
sir, you started late in life. No wonder why you're a shitty father. Another weird thing. So, Hannah's dad mails her a, an advent calendar. Hannah Banana. On the 18th of December. So when it arrives in the mail, she opens up a box number 18. Does that mean she's thrown out one through 17?
Which, know, in her own, we didn't need a montage, guess, of her opening up, you know, one through 17. That should have been the first scene in the movie though. But like day 20, December 20th, she just opened up and raw dogged a finger fucked some chocolate bonbon ball, Ferrero Rocher. I don't know, but just pop that motherfucker right in her. Unwrapped. Unwrapped.
Don't make those noises, people aren't gonna listen to us if you always... As a side comment, Leslie loves to accentuate every dramatic moment with a fake gag. it's disgusting. Is it fake? You don't even know. It's real. That one yesterday was real. When you were blowing your nose. What about when the paramedics... So Wes and his assistant, or second paramedic, she's new. She's worried that like...
when she has to come and lead things that she's not gonna be able to do it. So they go on a call and he's like, hey, you're gonna take the lead. The call is just a guy laying on his face in an alley. Again, this was the first, there's a five alarm structure fire. And the next, which is there at night, cause they're at like a different gathering or something. And then the next thing is I'm running during the day into an alley from a man who's just collapsed. Yeah. I don't know why I thought that was funny. Yeah. And then all of a sudden we were back to have him.
we needed a reminder of everyone's jobs. It was just funny that he was like, he was like maybe 30 feet into an alley. So that means the guy probably walked into an alley and then passed out. Someone saw it, called the police, and then they like showed up. I just thought it'd be weird. Like, I don't know, if you're going to pass out, why would you walk into the alley to pass out? Anyways, it was just weird looking. like, is this law and order we're watching? I don't know. Have you always planned out your passing out? Good point.
Nick And Leslie (15:19.15)
So when officer Sanchez gets all the smoke in or chief Sanchez gets all the smoke inhalation he gets rushed to the ER and there are so many gratuitous close-ups of faces with like Like because they're like hanging over him glowy effects to be like, this is Closing up on faces so we don't have to see doctors doing doctor stuff because they didn't really know what doctors would do in that situation I guess no, like we'll just close up and play about 90 % room air Yeah, he needs to be on oxygen
I don't care if he can breathe room air. Probably needs to be in oxygen right now. And then of course, right before the movie ends, someone has to get tickets to a New York's Eve ball. Because they're like, shit, we ran out of time. We got to shove a ball in here. Yeah, shove a ball in there. So I know those are the end of my notes for Christmas on I don't know. Anyway, I have just the shortest of notes.
I know for our non-viewers, usually fill an entire page. usually have to scroll a few times, nothing. Even the last movie which we hated, which was Confessions of a Christmas Letter, I had one line less of notes. This was... I can't remember what the bottom one is, but this is like the bottom.
It wasn't bad, it was just not interesting in the least. Yeah, and there was not good enough humor that was sprinkle enough to continually have my attention. I'm giving it a 4 for writing. Wow, that's high. 4 for acting. Wow. Because like I said, it's not bad. It's just a wet fish. 4 for directing. Chemistry on meter is a 3. It's swimming, but it needs to go back to school. How do you feel about the chemistry? Specifics to which ones? 4.
Dr. Hannah Williams and Paramedic West.
Nick And Leslie (17:06.998)
A two. Okay. Let's talk about a movie we really want to talk about. It met something we watched last night. It came out last year. It's called There's Something in the Barn. I don't know how we get stuck watching these Norwegian Christmas horror comedies. We recommend There's Something in the Barn. There's Something in the Barn. It's so silly. It's so silly. Martin Starr and his family inherit
a beautiful home in the middle of nowhere in Norway. Martin Starr, you're a little good actor. You're quite the variety. Yeah. So they go out to this place and the son discovers that there's something in the barn. An American family inherits a Norwegian barn. Yeah. Land, It's very cute. the barn. The home is very cute. It's in the middle of a very small town in Norway. Norway. And there is a magical little
He's not really magical. He's strong. he's strong. he's magical. Yeah, guess so. He's fast. Little elf and it's like a little person in a costume and With a big old beard and if they piss him off then he's gonna play tricks on them if they're nice to him he'll help them out and Of course the family doesn't believe that the son has found an elf in the barn. Thank goodness though. There's the elf
barn museum that the little boy runs into to learn about elf barns from a local town person. Elf barns. It's like a tiny barn. It is. Well, that's why he gets the end, it? Yeah. And so of course the family ends up pissing them off. And then like the last half of the movie is just- such a cute job bringing him cookies and he made him porridge that he didn't get. And then the whole back half of the movie is just-
a violent fight scene between like 40, 50 elves trying to kill this family. It was very funny. The elves drink and have a party. Yeah. They find a pew pew. Jesus. It was a fun movie. It's on Netflix. called There's Something in the Barn. Yes, it was fun. The little bit of gore that was in there. It's I mean, there's going to be fake blood, but you don't see the
Nick And Leslie (19:28.674)
guts or It guts like, but you see people's reactions as things are happening. You hear the squishiness. Well, it's let's see. And then you should also see, what is it? Unexpected packages. Was that a few years ago? Rare exports. Rare exports. That's a weird one. Don't let your children see. it's like a Norwegian mining company comes across a giant demon. That's been, dormant for like,
Yeah. A few hundred years. And it turns out that's Santa Claus. He's a giant demon and his elves are, guess, what we think of as Santa Claus, like fat, naked white men with beards that run around killing people or kidnapping children or something. I don't remember. That was a weird movie. have to see it though, but don't let your children see it. No, no, don't that one. The ending though. Even better advice. Don't have children. That as well, especially if you just can't even remember.
a little recital. And I know that cannot be the only one that she has each year. Anyway. So that was Christmas on Call. Thank you for tuning in. Don't waste your time with Christmas on Call. But if you loved it, let's not yum your yak. Yak your yum. Yeah. let us know in the comments. And let us know of any weird ass Christmas movies that no one else has heard of that you probably, that you think we might like. Yeah, we might like, you know, we don't even mind reading subtitles. Even if it's an Elvish.
I want to shout out another podcast I listened to. Dear Hallmark podcast did a review of The Five Year Christmas Party. Wonderful review. I only listen to it now so I don't know much about the creator, but it was beautiful. If you're listening to this, check out the Five Year Christmas Party episode from The Dear Hallmark podcast. And if the host of that podcast finds this, I'd love to chat with you about this movie because it was wonderful.
Christmas on Call. No, Fire Your Christmas Party. And then we would like to know your thoughts on the Jingle Bell Run. Yeah, we are thinking about
Nick And Leslie (21:37.016)
So there's like one Christmas movie, two Christmas movies we try to watch every year. That is the animated one from Netflix. Klaus. Klaus. And then also the glittery. Kacey Musgraves. Sorry, I got medicine ahead. can't. I also like to White Christmas each year. I do. And so I would like to maybe add Five Year Christmas Party to our annual repertoire.
We'll see.
Nick And Leslie (22:11.022)
You can watch White Christmas and Wonderland. No, no, no. I'm just thinking, I'm like, are we going to pay for that each year? Can we buy it? I see what Anyway, that's that's for later on logistics. Yeah. All right. Thanks everyone. Bye for now. Happy holidays. you're traveling for Thanksgiving, have fun and be safe. Yes. And you need to buy a home. Hit up Leslie. Yay.
