The Christmas Ring is not rated because it has not undergone the official rating process by the Motion Picture Rating (MPA)
The Christmas Ring” Review
There’s a school of thought that calls movies like The Christmas Ring “comfort viewing.” You know the type: stories so predictably mapped out that they practically hand you a spoiler list in the opening credits. The beats are soft, the stakes nonexistent, and the surprises well, they don’t exist. The point, apparently, is to watch without thinking. Entire cable networks have made that their business model, churning out cinematic versions of hot cocoa and a blanket.
And yes, that logic holds if the movie has at least one pulse. But Tyler Russell’s new adaptation of the Karen Kingsbury novel flatlines almost immediately.
Our protagonist, Vanessa Mayfield (Jana Kramer), is a widow quietly adrift. Her daughter Sadie (Megan Ashley Brown) is off at college, leaving Mom alone with her melancholy and a mission: track down a long-lost ring with deep sentimental value. It’s during one of her antique shop hunts that she meets Ben Miller (Benjamin Hollingsworth), another lonely widower who co-runs a store with his father, Howard (Kelsey Grammer).
From there, the movie dutifully unfolds exactly as you’d expect two damaged hearts cautiously connecting while fate (and a suspiciously shiny piece of jewelry) nudges them closer. The closest thing to “conflict” arrives when Howard discovers a ring worth $25,000 and decides to sell it. Cue moral dilemma. Cue resolution you can predict before it even starts.
The obvious comparison is Someone Like You another 2024 Kingsbury adaptation, also directed by Russell. That film, too, was a model of predictability, but at least it had something resembling chemistry. Sarah Fisher and Jake Allyn made their scenes pulse with genuine affection, even when the script screamed “Hallmark template.”
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The Christmas Ring has no such luck. Kramer and Hollingsworth are as flavorless as unsalted crackers two attractive people trapped in a romance that never once feels real. Their scenes together constantly remind you that a writer somewhere was desperately stacking obstacles and sentimental dialogue to make it all click. It never does.
You can spot every story beat from a mile away. Honestly, the movie telegraphs its entire arc within the first ten minutes; the rest is just waiting for the characters to catch up. In between, we get a long, syrupy military appreciation scene that feels more like a checklist item than a heartfelt tribute, and two musical montages scored with chipper Christmas pop.
Then come the faith-based flourishes mandatory for the Kingsbury brand, but here they’re delivered with the sincerity of a product placement. One scene has Sadie gushing about her mom’s morning Bible readings before abruptly pivoting to another topic, like someone remembered halfway through the take, “Oh right, this is a Christian movie.”
For a film that wants to be both patriotic and spiritual, The Christmas Ring mostly offers hollow gestures. You can almost hear the script whisper, “There, we mentioned God moving on.”
Kelsey Grammer, to his credit, does what he always does: grounds the movie in a bit of warmth and credibility. He’s the kind of actor who can make exposition sound Shakespearean if he wants to. Unfortunately, even his presence can’t disguise how mechanical the rest of the film feels.
To be fair, The Christmas Ring is harmless. There’s nothing here that will offend, challenge, or even mildly irritate anyone. It’s a 103-minute sedative a film you can half-watch while wrapping gifts or checking your phone. And maybe that’s enough for some.
But if you’re going to go through the effort of making a movie, shouldn’t it try to do something anything beyond existing as background noise? Plenty of holiday films manage to deliver genuine warmth, even within this exact formula. Let one of those offer you the comfort this one so thoroughly mistakes for complacency.
Content Breakdown for Parents
Violence & Intensity: Virtually none. The most dramatic moments involve emotional conversations about loss and grief, but they’re handled with softness and warmth. There are no fights, no peril, and no on-screen harm.
Language: Completely clean. No profanity, no name-calling, no suggestive humor. Dialogue is polite and earnest throughout.
Sexual Content / Nudity: None. Vanessa and Ben share a few chaste moments—a hug here, a tender glance there and one gentle kiss near the end. It’s sweet, not sensual.
Drugs, Alcohol & Smoking: None depicted. A few coffee mugs and cocoa cups are as far as it goes.
Scary or Disturbing Scenes: Not at all. There are emotional references to death and mourning, but they’re brief and never graphic. Sensitive kids might feel a touch of sadness over the widowed characters, but it’s framed with hope rather than pain.
Positive Messages / Role Models: The movie’s heart lies in its themes of healing, faith, and second chances. Vanessa and Ben are portrayed as kind, patient adults who learn to open themselves to love again. There’s a clear emphasis on trust, emotional honesty, and finding comfort through community.Kelsey Grammer’s character adds a subtle moral thread about integrity doing the right thing even when money’s on the line which gives younger viewers something admirable to latch onto.
Diversity or Inclusion Themes: Minimal, but well-intentioned. The cast is predominantly white, consistent with most small-town Christmas settings, though there’s no exclusionary messaging. The story’s focus on empathy and understanding is universal.
Positive Takeaways: If The Christmas Ring succeeds anywhere, it’s in the values department. Kids and parents alike can take away lessons about resilience, gratitude, and keeping faith through loss. It gently reinforces the idea that love doesn’t replace what’s lost it grows around it.
The film also champions kindness and connection over materialism, reminding audiences that the real “gift” of Christmas isn’t under the tree.
Parental Concerns: There’s little for parents to worry about here. The movie may feel overly slow or emotionally heavy for younger children, and the explicitly Christian undertones—like brief Bible mentions and faith conversations might not resonate with all audiences. Still, it’s all handled with a light touch.
The only mild drawback is pacing: the story drifts at times, which could test the patience of teens used to faster storytelling.