Christmas By Starlight was, by far, my favorite film of all the Thanksgiving Hallmark Christmas movies. Starring Kimberley Sustad and Paul Campbell, this movie follows Annie (Sustad) as she agrees to “work” for William (Campbell), the man behind demolishing her family’s cafe, for one week, under the premise that he will try to help her stop The Starlight Cafe from being destroyed. Of course, Annie makes it her mission to get William out of his grinch-hole and enjoy the spirit of the season before the week is up. It isn’t long before the two start to fall for one another and everything that The Starlight Cafe stands for.
I think what sold me on this movie was Annie. Whether it’s her love for her dog or her love for her family, I really resonated with her character. As soon as I saw her dancing with her dog to a Christmas song I was hooked, but it wasn’t until she started fawning over the dog costumes with one of the executives that I fell in love with her! I do the exact same thing and I’m not even sorry about it. Add that in with how she “handles” William and gets him to love Christmas just like her and you’ve got me sold.
Both Sustad and Campbell are no strangers to Hallmark. In fact, during the film, Hallmark showed some behind-the-scenes footage of this film where it was revealed that both Sustad and Campbell wrote this film together. How cool is that? Having worked together before, they knew it would be fun to work on this project together, and I have to say that they were right. Everything was so fun and festive that it kept me engaged the whole time. I vote that they keep doing these films together!
While both Annie and William were adorable in the movie, the one character that stood out to me was Lyle. The amount of shade he would give William on a daily basis made me laugh countless times. At the same time, he would put William in his place when it was needed and I absolutely LOVED him. Suffice to say, he definitely deserved the promotion he receives by the end of the film. Between Lyle and Annie’s adorable dog, this film really gave us some fun characters to interact with!
Christmas By Starlight is certainly one of my favorite Christmas movies Hallmark has put out. It’s got everything PLUS a dog, so how can you lose? With Christmas around every corner in this film and the adorable romance between Annie and William, you’re really going to enjoy this one. I, especially, will be watching this again before we hit Christmas! What about you?
What did you think of this film? Let me know your thoughts in the comments below!
***I do not own this photo.