[Warning: General spoilers ahead.]
Sunday night, Hallmark Movies & Mysteries pairs up The Art of Us co-stars Taylor Cole and Steve Lund in a really lovely, very sweet Christmas mystery. Kate (Cole) is an orthopedist newly arrived in Cedar Park for a fellowship and Kevin is an Air Force veteran newly returned home from completing his service.
Kevin’s mom, Maggie (Kathryn Greenwood), rents Kate the house next door, and she and Kevin run into each other a few times before they start receiving anonymous Christmas-themed riddles. Soon, their meet cutes become a scavenger hunt that has to be worked in tandem.
Initially getting off on the wrong foot–she refuses his help in a coffee shop and he refuses her help for a residual injury–they warm to each other as the assignments repeatedly ask them to pay the holidays forward in a series of philanthropic efforts (a recurring theme across many, if not all, of the Hallmark films this year). Kate also spends more time with Kevin’s parents, co-worker Liz (Elena Juatco), and Mr. McCalister (Roger Dunn), a patient who runs the local museum.
When the inevitable wires get crossed about long-term plans, Kate and Kevin turn back to the point of their Christmas letters and remember that it’s the season of giving. Cole and Lund were really terrific together in their first pairing, and they don’t miss a beat picking up that same wonderful chemistry here. I’m so glad somebody thought to put them together again. Let’s hope the team-up happens again, but without another almost-four-year wait.
Don McBrearty directs a script by Joey Elkins and Blake Silver based on the novella “Christmas Homecoming” by Fern Michaels. The cast is rounded out with Ron Lea as Kevin’s dad, Arnold, and Darryl Hinds and Jennifer De Lucia as Kevin’s BFFs Jackson and Carolyn.
Unlocking Christmas premieres Sunday at 10 pm/9c on Hallmark Movies & Mysteries. Here’s a sneak peek.
Photos and Video Courtesy of Crown Media.
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