Nerds That Geek Movie Review: ‘Scouting for Christmas’

Written by John Edward Betancourt

Audrey Wise Alvarez, Carlo Marks, and Tamera Mowry-Housley as Brooklyn, William and Angela in SCOUTING FOR CHRISTMAS. (Photo Courtesy of David Strongman/Hallmark.) ©2024 Hallmark

​Caution: This article contains spoilers for the motion picture, ‘Scouting for Christmas’.
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It is definitely safe to say, that the Hallmark Channel has taken a fair bit of heat for its holiday-themed stories, courtesy of some consistent, echoed complaints. Where folks have called these stories, one-dimensional in nature, courtesy of plots that revolve around similar characters, all women, who only find value in life through finding the love of their life. After of course, they return to their small-town home from their ultra-stressful job in the city. Which are complaints that have some merit, because all of us have seen some of these elements in these stories before. But what’s fascinating… is that Hallmark has read those complaints and has been working to address them in just about every way imaginable.

Which is why are seeing the network and their stories evolve before our eyes. Since they are now putting out content that features romantic struggles for men, and they are home to stories that explore more than just love, but grief, and trauma and reconciliation. And it just so happens that over the past couple of years, they’ve been working to shake up the structure of their movies to take them to new places, storytelling wise, and it would seem… they are finally eager to change up their holiday-themed romance stories as well. For they are starting to have real depth and offer up some beautiful messages, and for proof… look no further than the story that debuted last night on the network, Scouting for Christmas.

For this particular tale introduces us to a busy single mother named Angela, who is definitely going through it. For she’s two years removed from a nasty divorce and trying her best to keep her daughter’s life going and of course, put food on the table, and little Brooklyn sees what her mother is doing for her, and sees much more. For it is obvious that Angela is indeed missing something from her life, that support and that fulfillment that real love provides. So, she works hard to try and fix her mom up with the nicest man she knows, William. Who owns the local bakery and is kind and someone Brooklyn would love to have around as a father figure, and so she asks the two of them to work together on a special holiday baking project for the Girl Scouts, to hopefully bring them together. But her holiday dream for a family won’t be easy to fulfill… for what she doesn’t know is that William and her mom harbor some deep-rooted issues that will make this gift difficult to get.

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Tamera Mowry-Housley and Carlo Marks, as Angela and William in SCOUTING FOR CHRISTMAS. (Photo Courtesy of David Strongman/Hallmark.) ©2024 Hallmark

Which is at first glance, seemingly more of the same. After all, Angela isn’t happy, she’s missing something in her life, which is love. And yes, there’s a smart man who is good and kind that could in fact, offer her that. But thankfully, that is where the tropes end in this tale. Because once we dig into this story and really look at the characters and their motivations, do we come to learn that Angela and William are suffering from severely broken hearts. In fact, they’re hurting so bad that they’ve essentially closed off their emotions to others and are unwilling to love because they no longer feel worthy of it. Because of how their last relationships ended, and that… is quite the twist to inject into this story. Because that’s a very real thing that people do when hurt and they miss out on opportunities to love when they do so, and it is refreshing to find in a Hallmark story, as is what follows this root cause discovery of conflict for William and Angela.
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Because this story, explores how we overcome such matters, how we learn to love again and that’s valuable and wonderful to find in this story as well. Because we don’t think we are worthy of love when something we thought would last forever, falls apart in front of us. So, we have to make peace with the past, know our worth and embrace ourselves, which the characters do here in a subtle manner and in doing so, they are able to move onto the next step. Which is love someone again and be open to the possibilities that can bring us. Giving rise to a very modern Hallmark movie that goes beyond the basics that people sometimes lament… to give us… a moving and uplifting journey that informs us, we can come back from heartbreak, and we can love again when we realize… we deserve to be loved.

All of which brings forth, a wonderful kickoff film to this year’s Countdown to Christmas. Because it lets the audience know that this year’s stories will be vastly different, and they will harbor new ideas, and new struggles for their characters. Without ever losing the charm and wonder of these stories. Because deep thought aside, there’s a lot of what we love here. That holiday vibe, the cheer we come to expect from it, and the sense of fun these films provide. Because they are about the season, and the joy it brings and the wonder it injects into our hearts. It just so happens that going forward, these stories will be free of their old haunts, courtesy of the delightful decision to inject some real humanity in them, and real goals for the characters to strive for. Which will only add to the majesty of films we so love, and it will be interesting to see what other depth is present in these types of stories, as Hallmark enters a bold new chapter for its flagship stories.

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