The Stars Align for Romance in ONE STARRY CHRISTMAS

A note to writers: if you make your heroine an astronomer, you’ve already won me over.

The Hallmark Channel begins their Countdown to Christmas with One Starry Christmas, a charming romance anchored by Sarah Carter and Damon Runyan who are terrific together.

Carter plays Holly, a PhD candidate/aspiring astronomy professor who lives in Chicago. A few days before Christmas, Holly’s boyfriend, Adam (Paul Popowich), surprises her with a pre-decorated, all-white tree and the news that he’s going to New York City for an important meeting with a potential client. Now if you’re a connoisseur of Christmas movies, you already know that Holly and Adam are either 1. doomed or 2. about to learn a Very Important Lesson. I mean really, an all-white Christmas tree? Total faux pas, dude.

Now Holly already planned to stay in Chicago over the holidays, assuming Adam would be with her. He invites her to come along on his business trip since her parents live in NYC, but she’s afraid to fly and has some professional commitments of her own, so resigns herself to spending the holiday alone. But it doesn’t take long before Holly is booking a discount ticket on a bus and packing her bags for a trip home for Christmas.

On the bus trip halfway across the country, Holly meets Luke (Runyan), a cowboy on his way to compete in a rodeo in New Jersey. Naturally they strike up a friendship, connecting over a shared love of constellations and Christmas. (Head’s up, Adam!) In the spirit of the season, Holly invites Luke and his brother Bull (George Canyon) to join her family and Adam for Christmas, which instantly creates a competition between Luke and Adam for Holly’s attention. As sparks fly between Holly and Luke, Holly is faced with a choice between the known and the unknown. I’m pretty sure you know which one she chooses.

Predictable as these movies are, One Starry Christmas rises above with lyrical writing, sharp directing and an enchanting cast. You all know how I appreciate good dialogue, and writer Rickie Castaneda has the magic touch. The cast as a whole is terrific together, to the point where it’s difficult to pick out a specific performance to highlight. Even country singer George Canyon turns in a pretty strong performance as Bull, made even better by his haunting performance of “The Ballad of Wild Bill“. I’ll be watching this one again.

One Starry Christmas premieres Saturday, November 1, at 8/7c on the Hallmark Channel.

Photo gallery