Washington: Christmas with Holly
Release Year: 2012
Directed By: Allan Arkush
Starring: Eloise Mumford, Sean Faris, Alex Paxton-Beesley, Josie and Lucy Gallina, Daniel Eric Gold, Dana Watkins
Around the holidays, sometimes it’s necessary to have a good cry with a heartstring-pulling movie and recharge your faith in humanity. In the year 2020, that seems like a tall order, but with a Hallmark Hall of Fame movie, there’s not doubt about it that it can be done. This particular Hallmark Hall of Fame selection takes us to Washington state. Based on the novel Christmas Eve at Friday Harbor by Lisa Kleypas, Christmas with Holly centers on a little girl named Holly Nagle, who has not spoken a single word since a car accident caused the untimely death of her mother.
Mark Nagle (Sean Faris), Holly’s uncle and legal guardian, makes the decision to move out of Seattle and into the small town of Friday Harbor for a fresh start. Holly and Mark move to his brothers’ vineyard and later meet Maggie Conway (Eloise Mumford), a jilted toy store owner who has also relocated to Friday Harbor for a new beginning. As Holly, Mark and Maggie get to know each other, they each open up and realize that they can attain the dream lives they have always wanted. Although Christmas with Holly was filmed in Canada, its a love letter to Washington.