A CHRISTMAS MOVIE DISCUSSION: HAS THE FUN GENRE GROWN TOO MUCH?

When it comes to Christmas movies, there once was a time when I would say there are never too many. In 2022, and even years prior to this, new Christmas movies are new on Friday, Saturday and Sunday nights, with 24/7 encore showings of past and current movies. This is something that got me thinking and wondering, is the market saturated with too many Christmas movies?

LIST | RANKING HALLMARK CHRISTMAS MOVIES OF 2022: WHAT I LIKE VS DON’T SO FAR

Years ago, this wouldn’t be a question I’d ask. The idea that there were ever “too many” Hallmark Christmas movies was a ridiculous notion that was impossible. How can there ever be too many? But like anything else, there can in fact be too many. This I say as someone who has watched Hallmark movies since the early 2000s. The network went from five or six titles to over forty between two networks. For most this is awesome and in fact, anytime I write something like this, there’s disagreement. All fine. Honestly though as someone who covers what’s going to air, reads and writes about them all, one notices just how much the number has changed.

Part of this is of course due to competition which always creates this kind of “one up” mentality and a race to own the market.

This still doesn’t always mean more is the answer.

This brings me back to 2004 when the network debuted the comedy A Boyfriend for Christmas. It was a film I was excited to see because it looked really cute. But at the time I didn’t have cable or an app with Hallmark Channel. However during one of its encore showings, I was at my aunt’s house for Christmas and my parents made the time to stay at their house for the whole evening so I could watch the movie. This despite the hour long drive we had to get home after the festivities and Christmas meal was consumed.

It’s this kind of nostalgic sort of memory that I think of when I think of Christmas movies. These early days of Hallmark’s Countdown to Christmas are actually something I miss. Now there’s politics and societal pressures. Some of which I’d argue isn’t inspiring.

Saying I didn’t wish for more in the early days wouldn’t be honest but the anticipation of those few movies is, in part, what made them fun. It’s the anticipation that endears them. With a new premiere each weekend and on multiple days, it’s hard to inspire that same anticipation. Back in the autumn of 2021, I even made a passing remark that there were “too many.” All this to say, this isn’t a new thing I’ve recently considered.

This isn’t to say that I don’t enjoy Christmas movies. Just saying that the too much of a good thing is true. There is something to be said for the knowledge that less really can be more. Of course Christmas movies still bring a sense of joy, it’s just not quite the same sense of anticipation or nostalgia as it used to be. There’s something, oddly, lacking despite their being triple the number of titles.

What are your thoughts on this topic? Do you agree? Disagree? Don’t care? How do you feel about the drastic influx of Christmas debuts across multiple places with Hallmark leading the way? Comment all the comments. Let’s converse.

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