Customer Reviews

A Season For Miracles (Hallmark Hall of Fame)

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This is one of my favourite Christmas movies! It's a wonderful family film and as usual Hallmark has put out an outstanding production. Hallmark stores also sell this dvd. Anyone who loves touching Christmas movies with a romantic story line will find this one hard to pass by. The touching scenes are combined with great humour to create a very enjoyable movie. The acting is superb by all the cast. Patty Duke is the angel and is charming in her role. The movie is based on the novel by Marilyn Pappano.

Emilie Thompson, played by Carla Gugino, is an aunt who wants to keep custody of her niece and nephew. Their mother, her sister, is a drug addict and is in jail. The opening scene shows Emilie and the children going to see her in the hospital because she had a drug overdose. A Children's Aid worker meets them there and tells Emilie she will put them in foster care immediately, because Emilie does not have a way of supporting the children. Emilie leaves with the children and starts on a journey to try to keep them together. They wind up in Bethlehem, USA and I love the line in which Emilie says, "We can't be THAT lost!" With direction from the angel, they wind up staying in an abandoned house in the community and find themselves holding up a facade.

In an amusing turn of events, while trying to escape the law, Emilie falls in love with the town police officer, Nathan Blair. David Conrad is really good in this role, and portrays the perfect man who is VERY handsome, sensitive, good with children, etc. In fact if most women don't "fall in love" with him while watching this movie, I would be very much surprised.

The lies Emilie has told in order to keep the family together, catch up with her on Christmas Eve and create a true test to the love that has developed between her & the children and Nathan.

There are some good messages to learn from the story about the importance of family and the fact that Anything is Possible.

I ABSOLUTELY LOVE THIS MOVIE,FOR CHRISTMAS AND IN BETWEEN,IT LIFTS MY SPIRITS,AND I LOVE THE CAST,OLDER PEOPLE THAT MAY NOT BE IN MANY FILMS ANY MORE,IT IS A SPIRIT BOOSTER,

THIS MOVIE IS THE GREATEST CHRISTMAS STORY WITH PATTY DUKE AS A ANGEL. SHE IS THERE TO HELP LEND A HAND TO GET THIS COUPLE TOGETHER. THE STORY IS ABOUT A MOTHER WITH TWO CHILDREN. THE MOTHER IS A DRUG ADDICT AND IS IN THE HOSPITAL ON HER WAY TO JAIL, SO SHE CALLS HER SISTER TO TAKE THE KIDS. THEY END UP IN A TOWN RUNNING FROM EVERYONE, AND IT SEEMS LIKE ANGELS ARE ON THEIR SIDE. IF YOU WANT A TRUE ROMANTIC CHRISTMAS FILM, THIS WILL QUALIFY. YOU CAN STILL GET IT AT MOST HALLMARK STORES FOR 19.95 FOR DVD.

I am a huge fan of Christmas movies, but not just in December. I'm a member of the 'unofficial' Christmas movies all year long club! And more of us are popping up all the time. They're not just for Christmas anymore! Hallmark movies are known for their exceptional quality and 'A Season For Miracles' is no exception. I just watched it again this morning and every time it is fresh and not in the least a disappointment. The acting is warm and wonderful and the actors are top quality with some of the best. How wonderful for Carla's character to get to headline with these veterans. The story line is somewhat fantasy like, yet believable adding to all the feel good warmth. It has some real life tragedy qualities, and life lessons of sacrifice and forgiveness, making it even more worthy of your viewing time. The cost was well worth it so, 'A Season For Miracles' has become one of my top favorite Christmas movies of all time. Go head- let it give you a boost & some pleasure...after all..."Anything is Possible".

I watch parts of this movie all the time - I love the scene where Patty Duke speaks of forgiveness. She asks: have you never made a mistake? The three words " I forgive you" can change the world; they already have. The theme "anything is possible" runs through the story, uplifting our minds, and the power of true love (shown by the "sisters", by Emilie for the children, by Nathan for Emilie and the kids; by the kids for each other) opens our hearts. Every actor is tremendous and believable, the humorous scenes are a treasure and so well done; the chemistry between Nathan and Emilie is so appealing and they are so attractive and lovable together. I absolutely love Emilie, the "sisters" and Nathan ("kittens in trees...it's full life!"). The judge is hilarious, a welcome comic relief at that point. So is Alexander the young lawyer - adorable too! The car repair man, Mitch, has a twinkle in his eye, so warm, funny, sincere, and loveable. The three police office co-workers are fantastic together - Sadie Miller is incredible!! The social worker is quite believable and intimidating; plays her part well. The seamlessness of the direction, everything working together perfectly, the music, the humor, the love, the Christmas scenes, the warmth of a small town, the way Emilie keeps her integrity as best she can and holds it together in spite of the enormous stress ("no, not everbody lies, and when this is over, we won't either.")...it's absolutely brilliant! Life is not black and white; choices have to be made when things just aren't clear. I don't know why Emilie didn't just say at the end that she never meant to mislead, nor did she really; she only planned to stay that one night without hurting anyone. Everyone else just started making assumptions.I love how all the townspeople just sort of knew the truth, that Emilie just needed love and support. Anyway, it seems to me that the story shows how Grace enters our lives and transforms situations that seem dire into beautiful, loving outcomes - not anything we would have thought of, but joy beyond our wildest dreams. Forgivenness, "Right action", willingness, and Love! ( I also adore "Enchanted April" for many of the same reasons...)

I first started watching this because I was pretty stunned at the cast. Laura Dern; Pattie Duke; Kathy Bates? That caught my eye that this was going to be above most Christmas fare. And it is. Carla Gugino plays a poor woman on the run from the law, for a very minor offense, with her niece and nephew. Through a tremendous set of holiday magic, they end up staying in a tremendous mansion with the entire town believing they are a well-known townie and her kids.

Of course, she immediately meets, attracts, and is attracted to, the single and perfect police officer in the town - David Conrad. The police officer has just moved to this small town from Chicago. But they are kept apart as she knows it is just a matter of time until he finds out who she is. She is stuck in the town because her car is an old clunker and has broken down. Her plan is to get out of there as soon as possible but events, and half the town, conspire for the two to fall for each other.

In the end, well, how do you think it ends? Yup, that is likely it. But the ride is enjoyable and exactly what you want to see on a cold winter day with the tree and hot chocolate. Always leaves a smile on my face.

I never though I would find a better Christmas movie than "It's a Wonderful Life", but then I saw this movie. It is quite simply superb. Since almost every family has one member whose main function seems to be keeping the family unit together and functioning, almost everyone can relate to this movie. It is beautifully acted; everyone, even minor characters and children, is at the top of their game. It is impossible to pick out one standout performance, or one highlight, as being the best of the film. Every time I watch it, something new catches my eye. To me, this is the hallmark of a truly great movie. You can watch it again and again without tiring of it. I'd LOVE to see a sequel, in which the children's mother is released from prison and reenters the family's life. Since the odds of there being a sequel are slim to none, I'll just be content to watch this movie one more time.

A Season for Miracles has been my favorite Christmas movie since I first watched it on the Hallmark Channel about 5 years ago. I watch it so many times each season that I finally decided to purchase my own DVD. The story is simple - an aunt takes her incarcerated sister's two children to keep them from being separated in foster care. They end up in this town called Bethlehem, which is a quaint small town where everyone welcomes them. An angel, played by Patty Duke, leads them to an abandoned house for shelter and the townspeople believe that Emilie is the niece of the deceased owner. Desperate for shelter and money to pay for a very sick car, they stay there. I won't spoil the rest of the plot, but it is a fee-good movie with a happy ending. One of Hallmark's classics!!

This one is a for sure Christmas classic. Debuting in 1999, Hallmark Channel's A SEASON FOR MIRACLES is a heartwarming fable about mistaken identity and acts of unexpected kindness. It's a movie that, despite the hokey title, is consistently on my play rotation during the holidays. Lovely Carla Gugino plays Emilie Thompson, a jobless woman who has to take care of her neglected niece and nephew, as their mom had just about overdosed on drugs and is now incarcerated. With Emilie lacking a means of visible support, a child protective services worker determines it might be best to place the children in foster care. At wits' end, a frantic Emilie piles the kids in her mangy car and drives away. Keeping in mind that this is a Christmas movie, it shouldn't be that much of a surprise when the car then breaks down in a quaint little town called Bethlehem.

To what lengths would you go to keep your family together? Emilie finds herself put in a position where she has to resort to lying and then lying some more (and let's not forget about her fleeing from the law). But, in Bethlehem, her deceit allows her to house and feed Alanna and J.T., her very young and shellshocked charges. It's a momentary respite, Emilie knows, even if the townspeople are warm and welcoming. But as Emilie chances upon romance and the kids at last begin to open up, harsh reality rears up as the police begin to circulate a picture of Emilie, now wanted for child abduction...

It's a good thing, then, that Bethlehem is a place of miracles.

It's not so much the typical hard-luck Christmas premise which gets to you. Above all, what makes A SEASON FOR MIRACLES worth watching is the cast's endearing performances. From Carla Gugino's simply solid turn to David Conrad, who brings warmth and charm to his kindhearted small town police chief, to the well-cast and very winning children. In fact, Conrad's effortless rapport with the kids is a highlight of the movie, capped by the touching scene between the little girl and Conrad, dressed up as Santa. Lynn Redgrave is absolutely hilarious as the no-nonsense judge, as she hands down walks away with the film's best one-liners. Meanwhile, Patty Duke takes on the role of the mysterious benefactor toiling behind the scenes.

A SEASON FOR MIRACLES is a Christmas movie, but don't let that stop you from watching it at any other time of the year. The themes of family and community are universal enough, and it doesn't need to be Christmas for this movie to get you all sentimental and gooey. If you're of a mind to feel positive and optimistic about things, I say, pop in A SEASON FOR MIRACLES.

Would that cinema mirrored real life. The last time my car broke down, it was in Compton at night, during a season for excruciating heat waves. I could've used Patty Duke, then.

I have a collection (40+ and growing) of Christmas movies. When I saw this movie I looked for it that same night... Took me 18 months to find a copy, finally. Heart-warming as are most Hallmark movies. Good to share with family and friends.