everything you have heard about this movie is true.

Dreadfully Boring

It is a whirlwind of delight --- attractive actors, stunning couture, spectacular sets and outrageous parties.

Close shines in drama with strong language, adult themes.

Review Date 2/18/2018PLEASE BEWARE OF SOME REVIEWERS THAT ONLY HAVE ONLY ONE REVIEW. I HAVE OVER 400 REVIEWS OF "CHRISTMAS RELATED FILMS & SPECIALS" WHEN ITS A POSITIVE THERE IS A GOOD CHANCE THEY WERE INVOLVED WITH THE PRODUCTION. NOW I HAVE NO AGENDA! I REVIEW MOVIES & SPECIALS AS A WAY TO KEEP TRACK OF WHAT I HAVE SEEN! I HAVE DISCOVERED MANY GEMS IN MY QUEST TO SEE AS MANY " C H R I S T M A S " MOVIES AS I CAN.Now Someone keeps reporting my reviews. I guess they are jealous because I do tell the truth. I want to point out that I never make snide remarks about actors weight or real life sexual orientation. If there acting is terrible or limited "I talk about that". If a story is bad "I will mention that" So why am I being "picked on"? IMDB? When one of my reviews gets deleted IMDB will not even tell me what someone found offensive. Well on to this review.In this film is a third in a series of films (I did not know this at the time of viewing) This time around Mandie is thrust into Miss Heathwood's School for Girls, she struggles to grasp the school's new rules. As Mandie tries to stay out of hot water with Miss Heathwood and discover what the headmistress seems to have against Christmas, she stumbles upon a mystery in the school's forbidden attic. Uncovering the truth may lead to unlocking the memories of a long-forgotten Christmas.This film is not meant for the "Home Alone" crowd. It is slowly paced and the acting is "laughable at times". What does work is the fact the film does convey a message of "what seems right is wrong". It also shows that we are all here in the world to help one another and we can't do it alone! The target audience is women but men should give it a chance. However keep bratty boys away from the television.

This is more of a play than a movie. Would probably be great for young kids who are not sophisticated enough to notice the many inconsistencies.For one, there is a lot of plastic and man-made materials. I'm pretty sure they didn't have artificial Christmas trees back then. Some lanterns are obviously battery operated. The boarding school itself doesn't hold up well. Girls just basically wander around and no classes are taught. We do get to see some new (reprint) McGuffey's readers. The kids obviously don't know how to use a sad iron or any of the other things they pretend to be using, though young kids won't notice. Other inconsistencies: Someone making a pot of stew in the kitchen that might feed a family of four, but not a whole school. I guess it's the biggest cast iron pot they could find. Also, the referral to the "Civil War" so close after the event. It would have been called The War Of The Rebellion or The war Between The States. But then kids viewing wouldn't have known what they were talking about. There are more of these little things but I'll leave it at that.On the other hand, there are horses, miniature ponies pulling a sleigh, a really cool old house they found to film in, and the really terrific Uncle Ned, a Native American man.The storyline doesn't hold up so great, and you'll wonder about certain things, like why you'd need to know "the right kind of people" to write an acceptable ending to a play. Yet, on the other hand, I'm sure I would have liked it when I was a kid. It has a sense of pretend that young kids like. Just be prepared to resist pointing out obvious mistakes to your kids when you watch it.

I enjoyed watching this film very much. What a joy to watch a film which can be shown to any age group. There is lovely scenery with gorgeous horses, including a sled pulled in the snow by four miniature horses. The costumes looked very authentic. There is a religious theme to the story's moral. It also has the human interest plot. And the film deals with prejudice at the turn of the century. The director used old homes in Georgia and some of the filming was done locally. It was fun to recognize the locales. One of the actors plays an Indian extremely realistically. One of the actresses sings exquisitely to the wonderful original score. This film is suitable for young people but might appeal mostly to girls.