Christmas at Castle Hart
Reviewed by Lisa Sue
What drew me to this movie was Stuart Townsend making his Hallmark Movie debut! I mean, I can’t exactly verify this fact but this year I have noticed many more actors saying yes to the joys of tree lightings, caroling, and hot cocoa drinking. Although this takes place in Ireland and was filmed on location, I think there were many more pints drunk than hot chocolate sipped. The movie starts out with 2 sisters who get fired/quit from their catering gig at Christmas and rather than wallowing in the abyss of failed relationships, no jobs, and dead parents they take some rainy day funds to trace their family roots in Ireland! Upon arrival in this small town, they meet the Earl of this town and sparks do not fly. But with nothing else planned, they stumble upon the Earl’s home (the Hart castle) only to leave after a few minutes because they found the regular tour boring and underwhelming. Upon which they run again into the Earl who promises a private tour. Which while I’m rambling the meet cute sets up the comedy of errors that is about to unfold. Would their money have gone further in a larger city like Dublin? Serious travel question being asked.
Back to the movie- the premise is as follows: the Earl and his sister Siobhan need an event planner to plan the annual Christmas gala at the castle. But where to find a skilled event planner with just 2 weeks until Christmas? The Harts really need this gala to go well, cause they need more monied people coming to the castle. They are desperate…but not nearly as desperate as the sisters who somehow agree to plan the event. What references can Siobhan follow up on for two sisters who have never planned any event of any size? Well, following in the long tradition of desperate people doing desperate things (aka as lying) the younger sister Margot says the older sister (Lacey Chabert as Brooke) is Paige Monaghan, the very caterer who fired the girls in NYC! Being an actual event planner with a web site, references, and contacts Siobhan hires Brooke, thinking she’s hired Paige.
Perhaps being a little down on the event planning industry (surely it can’t be as easy as Brooke and Margot make it out to be?) the sisters are out to prove that with grit, determination, and what they’ve learned through osmosis that they totally have got this gala in the bag. Brooke is the “creative” one behind the sister duo, asking the Duchess in charge of the gala (but she isn’t having the gala at her…duchy?) What kind of party does the Duchess envision? You know, asking your customer what they want, what a very novel idea! Well, the answer comes back vague and something about being better than a Royal Christmas. Having not been to a royal anything, I can’t say whether their galas are grand, festive, or even fun. But as a long time royal watcher, I do know that many people, including Irish Duchesses shouldn’t bother trying to compete. Just have the party you want, that your guests will enjoy! And let the Royal Family worry about their own party and gala.
Next step after meeting the customer (the Duchess) is to get decorations for this event, and where to get decorations this close to Christmas? They seek the wise council of the town elder Liam O’Connor played by Sean McGinley whom we adore from the tv series Republic of Doyle. Now Liam and the Earl have a history, with Liam not forgiving the Earl for shutting down the town’s beloved pub crawl at Christmas. We’re surprised the Earl wasn’t tarred and feathered for doing something as despicable as stopping people from drinking! But for Brooke, the wise elder will share his beloved Christmas decoration (it really is just the one item) that will be dramatically unveiled and put on display for all to enjoy at the gala. Next step? Getting the caterer. But what caterer who’s worth anything will still be available? Well, no one nearby is available. But the “business” sister Margot knows a chef in Dublin that Paige used. So…why not just tell the chef that this is a Paige Monaghan event, and that Brooke is Paige’s representative. To which the chef agrees, and Brooke who admittedly wasn’t comfortable with the initial lie was like “in for a penny, in for a pound!” Phrases like the road to hell is paved with good intentions come to mind, and Brooke jokingly thinks they will end up in jail, but forges ahead planning the party anyways. Is pretending to be an event planner a criminal offense? I mean, sure it’s not great ethics but they don’t jail you for just that do they? I guess pretending to be a specific party planner though is identity theft which is totally a criminal offense.
So while the sisters seem to have pulled off a miracle pulling this gala together, things start to unravel as one suspects they would. First bump is there is a nosy lifestyle reporter hanging about the castle, covering THE village event of the year. Being a society journo, she knows of Paige Monaghan and wants to get some face time to get the inside scoop. But in order to interview Paige/Brooke one must contact her, and thanks to sister duo stealthy-ness Brooke avoids the journo. To the point that the journo reaches out to the caterer, who like any up and coming chef needs the good press of the journo and they all run into one another at the castle. BUT wait! The journo thinks Brooke is Paige, the caterer knows she isn’t Paige… it looks like things are hitting the fan for the sisters! However, the caterer is convinced to not tell the Earl and Siobhan, but because the chef wants to work for the real Paige Monaghan in the future, she can’t cater the gala and be a part of Brooke and Margot’s shenanigans. So what to do? What is a gala without food? Well, bring in the local pub owner Clara who doesn’t really make gala food but is told her specialty, which is meat pie with green beans, is perfectly acceptable to serve…just give the pie a French name like tourtiere and call the green beans haricots verts and who will know it is pub fare?
We make it to the climax of the movie, which is the gala. The Christmas tree the wise elder crafted (welded?) takes center stage and celebrates the village and its people. The champagne is flowing, the food is a hit, and the party is going well, if a little boring. Time to mix it up with some Irish Dancing! The whole room’s spirit is lifted, people being themselves, enjoying each other’s friendship and sharing the joys of the season. Well, it all comes crashing down because THE Paige Monaghan swoops into the event to expose the sisters, I mean she could have called! Well, the Duchess comes to the rescue of the sisters, saying that while they may have misrepresented themselves, they did plan a wonderful gala and she won’t hear anything else against them. The Earl, devastated by this news storms away, despite all the hard work the sisters put into the event at HIS castle. The sisters pack their bags, it’s time to leave the crime scene. But wait. Brooke realizes that in between the food tasting, decorating for the gala, and other town Christmas events she has fallen for the Earl! But he won’t take her call. Until his sister convinces him, hey who among us hasn’t made mistakes? Had they known the sisters were novices, Siobhan wouldn’t haven’t hired them, and they really did a phenomenal job with the gala. And isn’t Christmas the season of forgiveness? Siobhan forgives her brother for leaving and forcing her to run the family estate by herself. Brooke forgives her sister for getting them into this mess. And ultimately the Earl forgives Brooke, because she reminded him what Christmas really was about- and following in the theme of this year’s movies…say it with me… it’s all about FAMILY. And while all the siblings lived happily ever after the duchess has one more surprise. She has found the sister’s family! Their dad’s brother lives nearby…and his wife was none other than Clara the pub owner and savior of the gala! So to quote the poem “ Happy Christmas to all, and to all a good night!”
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