A SNOW GLOBE CHRISTMAS (2013)

Meg (Alicia Witt) is a writer and director of Christmas TV movies who is in the middle of a meltdown while filming a scene with Santa and some kids. Her assistant Penny and her handsome blond—but somewhat distant—boyfriend Eric try to placate her, but nothing helps. One of the elf extras (Christina Milian) starts chatting with her, but Meg has had it with Christmas. She picks up a snow globe, one with a perfect winter town scene in it, and tries to smash it on the floor. Instead, it bounces up and hits her in the head, knocking her out. When she wakes up, she is in that snow globe town, and she has a husband named Ted (Donald Faison), two kids, and a gorgeous home nestled at the edge of a beautiful forest. She remembers Ted as an old college boyfriend, but otherwise knows nothing about her life in this town. People from her previous life crop up—her secretary, her TV-movie Santa, and even Eric who is the mayor (married, with no interest in Meg). So does the elf, who seems to be the catalyst behind her surreal experience. Ted and the townsfolk think Meg has temporary amnesia and treat her with kid gloves for a while, but when she inadvertently gives the cold-hearted mayor an idea to develop the woodlands, leading to eviction notices for everyone on Christmas Eve, she seems to have used up any goodwill the townsfolk had for her. Can she save the town? And, more importantly, can she get her old life back—and does she even want to?

There’s not a lot of love for this movie out on the Internet, and while it certainly has its faults—the biggest ones being weak writing and big plot loopholes, problems endemic to the Christmas TV-movie—I found it to be rather refreshing. One reason is the twist to the "Wonderful Life" plotline; here, the protagonist is shown a different life course that, rather than being dark and depressing and making her want to go back to real life, is cozy and cheerful and eventually makes her long to stay in her dream world. This film originally aired on Lifetime, not Hallmark, and I think I know why: there are a lot of people of color in this movie, and the central romantic relationship is interracial. I'm not saying Hallmark is racist, but a hallmark, if you will, of their holiday films is the predictably vanilla cast, usually with one minority woman (African-American or Asian typically) playing the white heroine's best friend and/or assistant. So the very casting of Witt and Faison here is a point of interest. Those Internet critics don’t think Faison works up much heat with Witt, but again, this is an element of holiday TV-movies; usually, the main couple doesn't even get to kiss until the fade-out, let alone spend the night together. Here, in the snow globe world, Witt and Faison already have two kids. Their chemistry, as in most of these movies, is more a cozy, comfortable one rather than one full of exciting sparks, and the two actors are fine as two confused people, with Faison not knowing why his wife has changed so dramatically, and Witt not sure if Faison really is the one for her, with their relationship slowly growing over time. The conclusion, if far-fetched, is sweet and satisfying. Trevor Donovan, the blond boyfriend, made a strong impression in the TV series Sun Records playing country singer Eddy Arnold. The snow globe town setting is nicely detailed, though the whole thing felt more wintry than Christmassy. Despite its flaws, an enjoyable example of the genre that I would watch again. [Streaming]