Movie Review: The Christmas Bow

This felt way longer than two hours. Thank goodness I recorded it to watch the day after it premiered because I don’t think I would’ve stuck around if I had to wait through the commercials. I was even tempted to fast forward through some of the boring jargon throughout the movie, but I held off.

Starring Lucia Micarelli and Michael Rady, The Christmas Bow tells the story of Kate (Micarelli), a professional violinist, who is unable to play due to an unfortunate accident. When her doctor recommends physical therapy, she runs into an old friend, Patrick (Rady), who has made it his mission to get Kate back into shape. As her physical therapist, Patrick not only helps Kate start to heal physically but also helps her to open her heart and possibly find love again.

To be blunt, this story really didn’t do it for me. Although Micarelli and Rady did a great job, I honestly couldn’t wait for the movie to conclude. Right from the beginning, you could guess where this story was headed, which is fine, but the movie had so much nonsense in-between the beginning and the end that I found myself doing other things as I waited for the foreseeable ending. I actually found myself more interested in the story of Kate’s grandfather and why he stopped teaching the violin than if Kate was going to heal in time to play again. In fact, I think Hallmark should do a film centered on Kate's grandfather in a Christmas movie next year — that is something I would definitely watch.

Both Rady and Micarelli play off each other so well that it makes me sad that they were given this lackluster story of a film. Both have such promise that I can only hope both will get a movie next year with a bit more meat to it. Micarelli herself is probably the most talented of all in the cast. Just like Kate, Micarelli is a professional violinist in real life as well, so all the playing you see her do in this film is completely her! How amazing is that? Rady himself was also great in is the role of Patrick. The character was so endearing and I loved watching his affection for Kate grow throughout the movie, whilst at the same time, I could really relate to Kate’s determination to be able to play again, which made her even more lovable. In addition to Kate and Patrick’s sweet romance, it is the love she has for her family, especially her grandfather, that is the saving grace of this film. Had we not gotten those sweet relationships, I would’ve given up on this much sooner.

While The Christmas Bow didn’t check all the boxes for me, the relationships between the characters in the film really do hold their own. If you happen to skip this one, you won’t be missing out on much, except the great performances of all the actors, especially the leads. I never say never to re-watching Hallmark’s Christmas films, but I have a feeling it will be a while before I see this one again.

What did you think of this film? Let me know in the comments below!

***I do not own this photo.

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt13357258/