Man, I remember my mother watching Dr Quinn, Medicine Woman back in the 90s. Well, Lifetime brought Jane Seymour and Joe Lando back in A Christmas Spark. Let’s see if they still have their spark almost 30 years later.

Molly (Jane Seymour) is stuck in her traditional ways. This year, her daughter’s family can’t come to her house for Christmas due to work commitments, ruining their traditional Christmas celebration. So she goes to Connecticut to spend the holiday at her daughter’s house. During her stay, she gets talked into directing the local Christmas play. She ends up working closely with Hank (Joe Lando), the town playboy. The two end up closer than either intended.

Seymour and Lando have a history of playing romantic partners. In A Christmas Spark, it’s almost like no time has passed between them. They have just as much chemistry in 2022 as they did in 1993. Having that relationship off-camera makes it so much more believable on-camera. The two seem like they are goofing around as actual friends instead of playing two characters falling in love. It makes the falling in love part seem real. You can see the relationship between the characters go from friendship to love, which we don’t see very often in these types of movies.

There isn’t a ton to talk about in A Christmas Spark but I do think it is worth watching. Whether you want to watch it to see your old Dr Quinn ship get back together or you just want a nice Christmas movie to watch, this one fulfills both of those needs. Seymour is a super talented actress and I’m not sure what she’s doing in a Lifetime Christmas movie but I am very glad she is doing it.

Hallmark isn’t known for having tons of movies with people of color in leading roles. PoC are usually delegated to “best friend” or “coworker.” All Saints Christmas not only features an entirely black cast, it also takes place in a New Orleans R&B club. Now we just have to see if it’s actually a good movie…

Lisette (Ledisi) is a popular singer about to return home to New Orleans for Christmas after a two year absence. Before she can head home, she gets photographed at a Christmas market with her ex-boyfriend, Matthew (Roger Cross). It looks like he is proposing to her when he’s really picking up a ring she dropped. With the story of their engagement in the press, the two decide David will come home to New Orleans with Lisette and they will pretend the engagement is real for the publicity.

I’m a little torn on All Saints Christmas. Ledisi is a gorgeous singer. Every scene featuring her vocals is a delight. But her acting is a little wooden. Instead of seeming like a normal person, she acts as if the director has been yelling at her the entire shoot for not knowing her lines or something. Poking through her IMDb page, she has portrayed some very big names. So I’m not sure if she just needs some more training or if it was a directing problem. Either way, I would really love to see her do better. If she could get a role that features her singing and she knocked the role out of the park, it would be chef’s kiss.

Thankfully, some of the other actors do make up for Ledisi’s missteps. Lucia Walters as Lisette’s arch-nemesis, Gia, is pretty perfect. Walters is able to give Gia the shell of a mean girl with the inner core of emotionally hurt high schooler. Also, Miranda Edwards as Lisette’s sister, Taborah, brings a nice emotionally stable presence to the adult children of the family. They were probably my two favorite characters in the movie.

If you like R&B music, you will definitely like All Saints Christmas. There is enough singing that you should be able to look past the acting troubles. However, if you are looking for a great Christmas movie, this probably isn’t it. I would still recommend watching it though. The music really is that good.