A Christmas Melody | |
---|---|
Written by | David Diamond David Weissman |
Screenplay by | Jennifer Notas Shapiro |
Directed by | Mariah Carey |
Starring | Mariah Carey Lacey Chabert Brennan Elliott Kathy Najimy |
Music by | Laura Karpman |
Country of origin | United States |
Original language | English |
Production | |
Producer | Karri O'Reilly |
Cinematography | Jeff Barklage |
Editor | Heath Ryan |
Running time | 83 min |
Production companies | MPCA Brad Krevoy Television Sony Pictures Television Magic Carpet Productions Wikked Entertainment Axelrod / Ett Productions |
Original release | |
Network | Hallmark Channel |
Release | December 19, 2015 |
A Christmas Melody, also known under its working title of Mistletoe & Melody, is a 2015 American Christmas television film directed by Mariah Carey, who co-stars with Lacey Chabert. [1] [2] It was filmed in Ohio during October 2015, and premiered on the Hallmark Channel on December 19, 2015. The film was viewed by 3.95 million people upon its debut.
Widowed mother Kristin has recently moved back to her home town of Silver Falls, Ohio with her daughter Emily after her fashion business in Los Angeles folded. The process has been difficult for both of them, especially as the move brings Kristin face to face with Melissa, her former rival from high school and the current president of the local Parent-Teacher Association (PTA). However, things change when Emily finds a mentor in her music teacher Danny, Kristin's former classmate who was secretly attracted to her.
Credits adapted from Hallmark Channel's official website. [3]
In September 2015, the Greater Cincinnati & Northern Kentucky Film Commission stated that Carey would be filming in Cincinnati for an upcoming film, Mistletoe & Melody. [4] Carey was confirmed to be serving as the film's director and as one of the film's stars, and Stella Bulochnikov, Jonathan Axelrod, Alan Ett, Eric Jarboe and Kevin Connor were named as the movie's executive producers. [4] [5] Lacey Chabert and Brennan Elliott were also later confirmed as actors for the film, which had been re-titled A Christmas Melody. [6] [7] Child actress Fina Strazza was brought on to play Chabert's daughter and to sing "Oh Santa!", which Carey re-wrote for the film. [8] Filming began on October 6, 2015 in the Cincinnati area suburbs of Wyoming and Hyde Park it was expected to wrap on October 16, but did not finish until October 26. [7] [9]
On November 17, 2015, the Hallmark Channel released a trailer for A Christmas Melody. [10] Entertainment Tonight poked fun at the trailer, writing "Only time will tell how much holiday cheer can be stuffed into one movie, but if this trailer is any indication, A Christmas Melody will be pushing the boundaries." [11]
A Christmas Melody first aired on the Hallmark Channel on December 19, 2015, as part of the annual "Countdown to Christmas" holiday programming. [12] It was seen by 3.95 million viewers upon release, more than any other show that day. [13] VH1 wrote a mixed review for the film, stating "Sure, the film has an abrupt, saccharine ending, but that doesn't make the journey to it any less fun to watch. In terms of Mariah Carey shade, A Christmas Melody is Oscar-worthy. It's just the so-bad-it's-good trainwreck slosh you need to liven up your It's a Wonderful Life coma." [14] The New York Times was also mixed in their opinion, writing "In telling the story of Kristen (Lacey Chabert), a widowed single mom whose Los Angeles fashion boutique goes bust, the movie is as blandly watchable as everything else in Hallmark's Christmas lineup, which includes titles like I'm Not Ready for Christmas, Merry Matrimony and 'Tis the Season for Love. But Ms. Carey's participation makes the generic badness of A Christmas Melody a touch better than its neighbors. She treats herself like a woman who's come to family entertainment from Venus." [15] NPR praised the film as a "delightfully bonkers addition to the firmament of holiday madness". [16]
Mariah Carey is an American singer, songwriter, record producer, and actress. Referred to as the "Songbird Supreme" by Guinness World Records, she is known for her five-octave vocal range, melismatic singing style and signature use of the whistle register. As an influential figure in music, she was ranked as the fifth greatest singer of all time by Rolling Stone in 2023.
Kathy Ann Najimy is an American actress and activist. She was first nationally known for her feminist play The Kathy and Mo Show, which she wrote and performed with Mo Gaffney. On film, she is best known for her roles in Soapdish (1991), Sister Act (1992) and its sequel (1993), Hocus Pocus (1993) and its sequel (2022), Hope Floats (1998), The Wedding Planner (2001), Rat Race (2001), WALL-E (2008), Step Up 3D (2010), The Guilt Trip (2012), Tyler Perry's A Madea Christmas (2013), A Christmas Melody (2015), Dumplin' (2018), Music (2021), and Single All the Way (2021). On television, she is best known for her portrayal of Olive Massery on the NBC sitcom Veronica's Closet (1997–2000) and for voicing Peggy Hill on the animated television series King of the Hill (1997–2010).
Lacey Nicole Chabert is an American actress. One of her first roles as a child actress was the part of Bianca Montgomery, the daughter of Erica Kane, on All My Children from 1992 to 1993. She gained further prominence for her portrayal of Claudia Salinger in the Fox television drama Party of Five (1994–2000).
Hallmark Channel is an American cable television network owned by Hallmark Media, a subsidiary of Hallmark Cards. The channel broadcasts family-oriented general entertainment programming, including television series and made-for-TV movies.
Christmas themes have long been an inspiration to artists and writers. A prominent aspect of Christian media, the topic first appeared in literature and in music. Filmmakers have picked up on this wealth of material, with both adaptations of Christmas novels, in the forms of Christmas films, Santa Claus films, and Christmas television specials.
"All I Want for Christmas Is You" is a song by American singer-songwriter Mariah Carey from her fourth studio album and first holiday album, Merry Christmas (1994). Written and produced by Carey and Walter Afanasieff, the song was released as the lead single from the album on October 29, 1994, by Columbia Records. The track is an uptempo love song that includes bell chimes, backing vocals, and synthesizers. It has received critical acclaim, with The New Yorker describing it as "one of the few worthy modern additions to the holiday canon". The song has become a Christmas standard, with a significant rise in popularity every December.
Merry Christmas is the fourth studio album by American singer-songwriter Mariah Carey, and her first Christmas album. Released by Columbia Records on October 28, 1994, at the peak of the initial stretch of Carey's career, between Music Box (1993) and Daydream (1995), the album features cover versions of popular Christmas songs in addition to original material. Carey worked with Walter Afanasieff, with whom she wrote all of the original tracks, as well as producing Carey's interpretations of the covered material. Three singles were released from the album, of which "All I Want for Christmas Is You" went on to become one of the best-selling singles of all time and the best-selling Christmas ringtone in the United States.
Merry Christmas II You is the thirteenth studio album and second Christmas album by American singer-songwriter Mariah Carey. It was released by Island Records on November 2, 2010. Recording began in April 2010 and continued while Carey became pregnant. She was the executive producer of Merry Christmas II You and worked with various record producers, including Bryan-Michael Cox, Jermaine Dupri, Randy Jackson, James Poyser, Marc Shaiman, James "Big Jim" Wright and Johnny "Sev" Severin of RedOne. The album features Carey's mother Patricia Carey as a guest vocalist on "O Come All Ye Faithful" / "Hallelujah Chorus". The album serves as a sequel to her fourth studio album Merry Christmas (1994). It is composed of original songs and covers, ballads and uptempo tracks, incorporating R&B, soul, and house music in its composition.
"Oh Santa!" is a song by American singer-songwriter Mariah Carey from her second Christmas album and thirteenth studio album, Merry Christmas II You (2010). Carey wrote and produced the song in collaboration with Jermaine Dupri and Bryan-Michael Cox. It was released as the lead single from the album on October 1, 2010 by Island Def Jam Records. It is an up-tempo R&B song about Carey making a plea for Santa Claus to bring back her partner in time for the Christmas holidays. It received a positive response from music critics, with many praising its composition and style.
Under the Mistletoe is the first Christmas album and second studio album by Canadian singer Justin Bieber, released on November 1, 2011, by RBMG/Island Def Jam Music Group. The album features fifteen tracks, including seven original songs co-written by Bieber, along with cover versions of Christmas carols and standards. Fellow artists Usher, Boyz II Men, Mariah Carey, Busta Rhymes, and the Band Perry all make guest appearances on the album.
A Royal Christmas is a 2014 American holiday romance television film directed by Alex Zamm and starring Lacey Chabert, Stephen Hagan, and Jane Seymour. Written by Janeen Damian, Michael Damian, Neal H. Dobrofsky, and Tippi Dobrofsky, the film is about a young American seamstress from Philadelphia whose boyfriend reveals himself to be a royal prince and heir to the throne of Cordinia. He brings her to his country intending to marry her, to the consternation of the Queen. A Royal Christmas is an original Hallmark Channel movie and first aired on the Hallmark Channel on November 21, 2014.
Christmas at Cartwright's is a 2014 American-Canadian romance television film directed by Graeme Campbell and starring Alicia Witt, Gabriel Hogan and Wallace Shawn.
All I Want For Christmas Is You is a 2017 American animated Christmas film based on the song by Mariah Carey and the book by Carey herself. The film stars the voices of Mariah Carey, Breanna Yde, Lacey Chabert and Henry Winkler.
Mariah Carey's Magical Christmas Special is a Christmas special starring Mariah Carey that premiered on December 4, 2020, on Apple TV+. It was directed by Hamish Hamilton and Roman Coppola and executive-produced by Hamilton, Coppola, Carey, Ian Stewart, Raj Kapoor and Ashley Edens. The special centers around a holiday crisis in which the North Pole has to call Santa Claus's friend, Mariah Carey, to help.
The Nine Lives of Christmas is a 2014 American made-for-television romantic comedy film and Hallmark Channel original movie, written by Nancy Silvers, based on the book by Sheila Roberts. Directed by Mark Jean, it stars Brandon Routh and Kimberley Sustad. The film premiered on November 8, 2014, on the Hallmark Channel.
"Fall in Love at Christmas" is a holiday song by American singers Mariah Carey, Khalid, and Kirk Franklin. It was released on November 5, 2021, and was written by the artists and Daniel Moore II, who produced it with Carey and Franklin. The song was featured on Carey's second Christmas special for Apple TV+, titled Mariah's Christmas: The Magic Continues, which was released worldwide on December 3, 2021.
"Drummer Boy" is a cover of Katherine Davis, Henry Onorati and Harry Simeone's Christmas song "The Little Drummer Boy" by Canadian singer Justin Bieber, featuring American rapper Busta Rhymes, from his second studio album and first Christmas release, Under the Mistletoe (2011). Leaked days before the album's November 1, 2011, date on October 28, "Drummer Boy" is an uptempo hip-hop techno club track where Bieber sings the original song's lyrics and melody while rapping about himself, poverty and charity. Contemporaneously, the track was met with polarization and confusion from professional critics, who perceived it as bizarre and silly and bastardizing the meaning of the original song.
Throughout her career, American singer Mariah Carey has received recognition as a cultural and public figure. Her public image has undergone transformations, subsequently receiving press coverage.