The Christmas Quest marks the first Hallmark project to pair Lacey Chabert and Kristoffer Polaha--two A-listers in romantic comedy. Chabert shares that the two have talked about filming a movie together, but scheduling conflicts have made it impossible until now.
If you can only picture Polaha with Bethany Joy Lenz after their blockbuster movie, A Biltmore Christmas and can't imagine Chabert with anyone other than Brennan Elliott or Will Kemp, you're in for a holiday treat! The two are magical together and take us on an adventure that is loaded with mystique, romance, and the gorgeous backdrop of Iceland.
What Is The Christmas Quest About?
An archeologist and her ex-husband, an expert in ancient Norse languages, are sent to Iceland at Christmastime to search for the legendary treasure of the Yule Lads. When others join in the hunt, the pair find themselves swept into a thrilling adventure as they race to keep it from falling into the wrong hands.
Review of Hallmark's The Christmas Quest
If you are weary of Hallmark's worn plots, you'll appreciate the creativity of the story. In 1994, Stefanie Baxter's mother discovers an old journal that tells the story of the Yule Lads--mischievous Icelandic trolls who come down from their mountain on Christmas to bring treats for good children and rotten potatoes for the naughty ones. Lore has it that the scrolls, once decoded, will lead to the Lads' hidden treasure.
Victor Grimes presents Stefanie with the key to deciphering the scrolls and underwrites her expedition to Iceland for a treasure hunt. Stefanie assumes with his high esteem for preserving history that Grimes will donate the findings to a museum, but it turns out that he has other motives.
The first clue leads them to an ancient horn that is a cypher likened to the Rosetta Stone--it will help them decode the remaining 13 clues that will ultimately lead them to the treasure. The only problem is that Stefanie can't translate Norse runes, but her ex-husband can.
Stefanie convinces Chase to accompany her on the treasure hunt, and as the two spend time together, they reconnect. Chase had grown to resent how she had prioritized her adventures over him, but he comes to realize he should have found a way to include himself on her expeditions while Stefanie discovers that the most valuable treasure has been right in front of her all along.
There is a healthy dose of humor in the movie that works. Chabert attempts comedy in both Haul Out the Holly movies, but it is forced, silly, and doesn't land. In The Christmas Quest, the wit is integrated naturally, and both co-stars exact a flawless delivery. One amusing scene happens when the two are rooting around the basement storage area at a black-tie event they lie their way into and nearly get caught for being in a restricted area. To provide cover, Chase dips and passionately kisses Stefanie so that the uncomfortable woman who spies them hurries along rather than busting them. The look on Stefanie's face after that kiss is priceless--it clearly curled her toes! She even fakes an Icelandic accent in one scene that sounds authentic. It's nice to see Chabert play a role where her many talents are highlighted.
The scenery is stunning. Besides the icy landscape, the movie is also shot in a lava cave, on a glacier, and near a waterfall.
The movie is suspenseful, but to the degree that it's exciting rather than scary. There are chasing scenes, being trapped in a cave, and competing with someone they think is a rival treasure hunter.
The Christmas Quest is tinged with a few flaws, but they don't detract from the overall enjoyment of the movie. The first is that treasure hunters have been searching for the Yule Lads' treasure for decades, yet Stefanie and Chase quickly solve all the clues, and their search leads them to obvious spots that aren't remotely hidden and could have been stumbled upon by passersby a gazillion times. When they enter the Yule Lads' treasure chamber, neither Stefanie nor Chase question how this age-old hovel could be decorated with Christmas garland and completely illuminated by burning candles if it has been abandoned for centuries. Yeah, I know it's staged for a movie, but this part is laughably far-fetched. Even if you hypothesize that the troll-like lads still exist in some mystical way, you would expect Stefanie and Chase to marvel that the chamber still looks lived in rather than in deep decay.
There are also references to Icelandic names and places that are hard to understand, but you don't have to be able to pronounce them to follow the story. Incorporating them, however, makes the movie more credible and authentic.
It's interesting that the network chooses to air The Christmas Quest on Hallmark Channel rather than Hallmark Mystery. When Hallmark Movies & Mysteries rebranded to Hallmark Mystery, the network stated that Miracles of Christmas would include more holiday mystery movies, and The Christmas Quest certainly fits that genre.
The Christmas Quest Is Definitely Worth Watching
Chabert and Polaha project star power in The Christmas Quest--a movie filled with a perfect combination of adventure, mystery, suspense, holiday magic, history, humor, reconnection, and romance. Viewers will also appreciate some unexpected twists throughout.
Let's hope Chabert and Polaha will team up again for another hit as enjoyable as The Christmas Quest!
Review of The Christmas Quest
Comments