Deck the Hallways review (2025)
Deck the Hallways is an enjoyable Christmas movie that skillfully avoids feeling like the (Christmas) cookie cutter holiday romance film.
Zoe (Nakia Toussaint, The Wrong Paris) returns from San Francisco to Chicago to surprise her grandmother, Agnes (Loretta Devine) for Christmas. It’s Zoe who’s in for a surprise as Agnes is busy living her absolute best life partying it up and turning back the hands of time like she’s in her 20s. Zoe is worried Agnes’ carefree demeanor has more to do with the death of her grandfather and Agnes’ husband of 50 years.
Failing to get some answers from Agnes, Zoe starts to reconnect with the other tenants in the apartment complex specifically the fifth-floor crew. Every Christmas, the fifth floor was full of beautiful decorations as the tenants came together for their annual Christmas Eve party to celebrate their various cultures and traditions as a de facto family.
Hoping to rekindle that same spirit and remind Agnes that Christmas is more than holiday theme drinks, bar crawls and activities. Some of the joy left the fifth floor when her grandfather died, but Zoe is eager to rekindle it. She gets some help from her childhood BFF, Jace (Jaime M. Callica), who’s also wrapped up his divorce and similarly single for the holidays.
Screenwriter Gregory Ramon Anderson (Stomp the Yard) avoids the usual pitfalls of a typical Christmas romance by making Deck the Hallways more of an ensemble with a slow burning romance that isn’t the driving storyline. This allows Director Jason James to handle Deck the Hallways with more nuance without having to force multiple scenes of Zoe and Jace realizing all over again that they have feelings for each other beyond just being friends.
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In addition to the Zoe/Jace plot, Deck the Hallways features a number of subplots that Anderson gives space to play out before the happy ending resolution. Best of all, the humor works so the moments that are supposed to be humorous are actually funny.
There’s Agnes’ rivalry with the building supervisor Wade (Tom Pickett), who is in no mood to celebrate the holidays as he spends his days working as a mall Santa Claus. New parents Zane (Matty Finochio, Love Hard) and Vaughn (Matthew Clarke) are trying to navigate their adopted baby when Zane learns that he has a young son, Eli (Sebastian Billingsley-Rodriguez), his former partner never told him about. Already struggling with the new baby, Zane and Vaughn have to now pivot to having two children in their place.
Devine is always an engaging performer, and this role allows her to flex her talents on both a comedic and dramatic front with a little singing for good measure. It’s Devine who’s the MVP of Deck the Hallways. She delivers some emotional moments that aren’t the norm for Hallmark/Lifetime films in Christmas films.
Toussaint is a charming lead who more than holds her own interacting with all of the cast. Even if she’s not going to headline big budget dramas, Toussaint shows she could make a steady, reliable career as the main character in the romantic and romcom genres. She has a good chemistry with Callica, who avoids playing the role of the too good to be true love interest and is able to give Jace some actual depth.
Deck the Hallways is working on a Lifetime movie budget, evidenced by smaller scale sets and an overall more intimate setting than a Netflix or Amazon production, but that hardly affects the quality of the film.
Deck the Hallways offers a nice departure from the variations of a similar theme that are the norm this late in the Christmas season. With its relatable premise and enjoyable cast, this is a film worth setting aside some time to check out.
Rating: 7 out of 10
Photo Credit: Lifetime
Deck the Hallways is playing throughout the month on Lifetime, but you can watch it anytime on the Lifetime Movie Club.