I know. I know.
Hallmark movies are so predictable. Ten minutes into one, I'm saying, "She's going to marry him." I know they are sappy love stories and we should not believe that our love relationships will be so romantic. But predictable can mean "safe" and I AM sappy and romantic. I'd much rather sip my tea to a beautiful love story than a football game or intense thriller. Discovering a clean movie is rare these days so I am thankful for Hallmark and the family programming they produce.
PC: Evy Beach
We should always be on guard as to what we allow ourselves to hear and see. Philosophies can slip in without detection if we are not careful. Hallmark has movies that promote mostly good ideals, although I've noticed a recurring theme of "follow your heart" which is prevalent today. Your heart is deceitful and so is mine (Jeremiah 17:9). God gives us direction through the desires of our hearts, but let's be sure that we are following God-honoring desires and not the desires of our natural man.
Every once in a while, I come across a Hallmark movie with a swear word in it. From a marketing perspective, that is puzzling to me. Surely they know that a large part of their audience does not appreciate that. The worst ones for language are usually the non-Hallmark movies they show, but those are rare.
When choosing a Hallmark movie, I have found myself wondering, "Have I seen this one?" and get half way through it before I realize that I HAVE seen it, so I compiled this list of movies shown on a recurring basis over the last several years. I thought it might come in handy for those like me who wanted to keep track of the movies they have seen. [This tells some of you that we are very much alike, and others of you are really starting to wonder about me.]
I look up the schedule at hallmarkchannel.com and hallmarkmoviesandmysteries.com and set my DVR to record the ones I haven't seen. That way I always have a movie to watch when I get some relax time (which guards me from the temptation of watching something less reliable) and then I check it off my list.
These movies are shown January through October on Saturday and Sunday afternoons and evenings. Hallmark also has some movies available on their website. Only Christmas movies are shown November and December and are shown all day every day, with a new premiere each Saturday and Sunday night.
I do not include the murder mystery movies from the "Hallmark: Movies and Mysteries Channel" because I do not watch them. I am pro-life and do not consider murder to be entertainment. They have a movie called Murder She Baked: A Plum Pudding Mystery and one called Murder She Baked: A Peach Cobbler Mystery. The titles sound as though Strawberry Shortcake and friends have gone on a killing spree. If you have been in a fog about being entertained with murder before, these titles should jar you enough to reconsider that choice. I am also not a fan of their series The Good Witch. It toys with the idea of the star being a witch. I don't toy with the subject of witchcraft.
Hallmark will occasionally have a series of prime time shows. One that I enjoy is When Calls the Heart. It is about a woman who moves to a small mining town to be a school teacher. Season 3 begins February 21. We have also enjoyed the series Signed, Sealed, Delivered which is about a team of post office employees who deliver letters that never made it to their recipients. They are shown only on the Movie and Mysteries Channel. Cedar Cove has beautiful scenes of Washington state and is like a cleaned up soap opera. Janette Oke's Love Comes Softly movie and all it's sequels are included in the list.
Just in time for Valentine's Day, these 5 premieres will be on Saturday and Sunday nights at 9pm: Dater's Handbook (1/30), All Things Valentine (1/31), Appetite for Love (2/6), Valentine Ever After (2/13), and Anything for Love (2/14).
Of course, I cannot recommend everything in these movies but this is a fairly reliable source for clean entertainment. I simply provide this as a help to those who enjoy them and I use it as an opportunity to encourage careful viewing habits.
I hope you get some relax time soon with a hot cup of tea and a good Hallmark movie!
PC: Evy Beach
👑=Hallmark Hall of Fame (their better movies)
👍=I especially liked it (though I like many and may not have marked them all).
👎=I did not like it (too cheesy or had bad language, philosophy, etc.).
✖️=It was so bad that I didn't make it all the way through.
❓=I haven't seen it yet so I cannot advise.
Accidentally in Love👎
All of My Heart👍
Along Came A Nanny❓
Always and Forever
Audrey's Rain👎✖️
Autumn Dreams❓
Away & Back 👑
Back to You and Me👎
Backyard Wedding👎✖️
Banner 4th of July❓
Before You Say I Do❓
Be My Valentine
Bridal Wave
Cast Away❓
Chance at Romance
Chasing Leprechauns❓
Chateau Meroux, The👎✖️
Cloudy with a Chance of Love
Color of Rain, The
Come Dance at my Wedding
Country Wedding, A👍
Crush on You, A
Cupid❓
Dad's Home❓
Elevator Girl👍
Ever After: A Cinderella Story❓
Fairfield Road
Falling in Love with the Girl Next Door❓
Family Plan❓
First Daughter (not Hallmark)
Flower Girl
Fools Rush In👎
For Better or for Worse
Growing the Big One
Harvest Moon❓
Honeymoon for One
How to Fall in Love
I Do, I Do, I Do
I Married Who?👎
In My Dreams👑
It Could Happen to You❓
I Want to Marry Ryan Banks👎
June in January
Just Desserts
Just the Way You Are👍
Kiss at Pine Lake
Lead with Your Heart
Lesson in Romance, A
Looking for Mr. Right
Lost Valentine, The👑👍
Love, Again👍
Love Begins👍
Love By the Book👍
Love Comes Softly👍
Love Finds A Home👍
Love in Paradise❓
Love On the Air
Love on the Sidelines❓
Love's Abiding Joy👍
Love's Complicated❓
Love's Enduring Promise👍
Love's Everlasting Courage👍
Love's Long Journey👍
Love's Unending Legacy👍
Love's Unfolding Dream❓
Love Takes Wing👍
Loving Leah👑
Lucky in Love
Magic of Ordinary Days, The👑👍
Makeover, The👑
Meet My Mom ❓
Midnight Masquerade
Mom's Day Away
My Boyfriends' Dogs
My Gal Sunday❓
Nanny Express, The❓
Nearlyweds👎✖️
New in Town❓
Novel Romance, A
October Kiss❓
Operation Cupcake❓
Perfect Match❓
Perfect on Paper
Personally Yours❓
Portrait of Love
Puppy Love
Reading, Writing, and Romance
Recipe for Love
Remember Sunday👑❓
Ring by Spring, A ❓
Second Chances
Second Honeymoon❓
See Jane Date👎
Seven Year Hitch, The
Smooch
So You Said Yes
Straight From The Heart
Stranded in Paradise
Strawberry Summer❓
Surprised by Love👍
Sweeter Side of Life, The👎
Taste of Romance, A
Uncorked
Undercover Bridesmaid❓
Unleashing Mr. Darcy❓
Way Back Home, A
Wedding Daze
Wedding Dress, The❓
Welcome to Paradise❓
When Calls the Heart👍
When Love Begins❓
When Sparks Fly
Wish Come True, A
Wish List, The
Wishing Well, The❓
You Lucky Dog❓