Trading Up Christmas (2024)
One red paperclip One homemade stocking and an unnecessary romance
Heavily inspired by the One Red Paperclip project from 2005, we find Michelle. Instead of a paperclip she starts with a homemade Christmas stocking (somewhat more valuable than a paperclip, IMHO), and instead of taking a year to trade up to a house she has about a week. Impossible? Never! This is Hallmark - parking reality at the door since 1951. Truthfully though, this was a decent holiday movie concept, but would have benefited from a longer timeline to play with to help with the overall believability. Like did this little endeavour really become an overnight (literally!) viral sensation in a small town to the point where this was even possible?
Beyond that thought, this had some decent highlights, like:
Ugly christmas sweaters at work - HOW can I make this a thing?!?
A child actor who reminded me of when Star Wars: The Phantom Menace was released… yes, in the way you think
Overly familiar characters after knowing each other a matter of hours
And if you’re wondering what she traded to get to a whole house in a matter of days, it went like this:
Stocking
Ugly Christmas sweater
Egg nog tasting certificate
Fancy wreath
Creepy animatronic Santa decor
Snowmobile
Christmas vacation certificate
RV (plus a gifted sailboat to sweeten the deal)
House
The downside was really the romance plotline that felt shoehorned into the story overall. It would have stood perfectly fine without that part.
Michelle (Ricci) is the dreamer of her family, always brimming with imaginative ideas to make the world a better place. This Christmas, her sister Keri desperately needs a new home, and Michelle hatches a creative plan to help. Starting with just a Christmas stocking, she sets out to trade her way up to something far greater—a house for Keri. While Keri dismisses it as a far-fetched idea, local reporter Dan (Xavier) is intrigued. Assigned to cover Michelle's story, Dan follows her closely, and as her plan gains attention, he starts to see the world through her hopeful eyes. As Michelle and Dan grow closer, so do their feelings for each other. But when it seems her plan has failed and she fears ruined her relationship with Keri, Michelle is ready to give up. It's Dan’s love and belief in her that reignites hope just when she needs it most. Starring Italia Ricci and Michael Xavier.
You’ll like this if…
You appreciate when there’s a more original plot than the bulk of the Countdown seems to follow.
