Secret Santa (2003) (TV)

User Rating:

5.8/10   

Director:

Ian Barry

Writers (WGA):

Beth Polson (story)
Robert Tate Miller (teleplay)

Release Date:

14 December 2003 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Family

Tagline:

She set out to uncover Santa...and discovered the best gift to open is your heart.

Plot:

Newspaper reporter Rebecca Chandler, who feels she got no fair chance to prove her worth in her thee years career...

Plot Keywords:

Christmas | Beautiful Woman

Awards:

3 wins

Cast

Jennie Garth	...	Rebecca Chandler
Steven Eckholdt	...	John Martin Carter
Charles Robinson	...	Russell (as Charlie Robinson)
Joel McKinnon Miller	...	Harley
Victor Raider-Wexler	...	Bob
Josh Randall	...	Ryan
Kathryn Joosten	...	Winifred
Sam Anderson	...	Mr. Gibson
Marnette Patterson	...	Callie
Cody Fleetwood	...	Scotty
Barbara Billingsley	...	Miss Ruthie
Marilyn O'Connor	...	Betty
Fiona Hale	...	Beatrice
Nick Pietropaolo	...	The maitre'd
John A. Keim	...	Santa Claus (as John Keim)

Runtime:

USA:120 min (including commercials) | Brazil:100 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Filming Locations:

Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Madison Avenue Productions Inc.

Goofs:

Continuity: John Martin Carter hands Rebecca the same glass of apple cider twice at the mayor's Christmas party.

Quotes:

Russell: Giving is its own reward.

Movie Connections:

References A Christmas Story (1983)

Wonderful feel-good holiday movie

Rebecca is tired of reporting on 'fluff' stories for the Indianapolis Sentinel. When her editor wants her to do a story on the 'Secret Santa' who gives anonymous gifts to people in the small town of Hamden, she doesn't want to do it, until she realizes that she can prove herself by making the story more than a fluff piece. (A last-minute change of plans also helps.)

After some misfortunes, Rebecca starts getting to know the people of the town, and she suspects the 'Secret Santa' is one of the town's richest men, a lawyer named John Martin Carter. There are plenty of clues, but getting to the real answer is not easy. She gets splashed by a careless driver ... in this type of movie, when a young woman despises a young man, you can almost predict what is going to happen.

Jennie Garth was great. Not only adorable and sometimes funny, but also determined, and quite pretty too. There were lots of good performances, including Charlie Robinson as an employee at a rest home, who, despite his image as a comic actor, gave one of his best performances ever later in the movie when he wasn't even being funny. Also good was Barbara Billingsley as one of the rest home's residents who teaches Rebecca a lot.

The movie was sometimes funny, but it was also touching. And it was appropriate for the whole family, with a TV-G rating, a rare thing these days on broadcast TV.