12 Days of Giving (2017 TV Movie) User Reviews (16)

12 Days of Smiles

[Christmas-Reviewer · 7/10 · 21 February 2018]

Review Date 2/20/2018

PLEASE BEWARE OF SOME REVIEWERS THAT ONLY HAVE ONLY ONE REVIEW. I HAVE OVER 400 REVIEWS OF "CHRISTMAS RELATED FILMS & SPECIALS" WHEN ITS A POSITIVE THERE IS A GOOD CHANCE THEY WERE INVOLVED WITH THE PRODUCTION. NOW I HAVE NO AGENDA! I REVIEW MOVIES & SPECIALS AS A WAY TO KEEP TRACK OF WHAT I HAVE SEEN! I HAVE DISCOVERED MANY GEMS IN MY QUEST TO SEE AS MANY " C H R I S T M A S " MOVIES AS I CAN.

Now Someone keeps reporting my reviews. I guess they are jealous because I do tell the truth. I want to point out that I never make snide remarks about actors weight or real life sexual orientation. If there acting is terrible or limited "I talk about that". If a story is bad "I will mention that" So why am I being "picked on"? IMDB? When one of my reviews gets deleted IMDB will not even tell me what someone found offensive. Well on to this review.

This film a man wins a sizeable amount of money. Not Lotto money but sizeable. His finance wants him to save it or spend some of it on their future wedding. She gets mad when she finds out he has been spending the money being a secret Santa.

This whole is built upon the premise that its "Better to give than receive". The film works and its not perfect but it's not a time waster.

This is one of the better Television Christmas movies

A Really Heartwarming Movie but with Some Undeniable Hiccups

[k_l_b_937 · 5/10 · 19 November 2018]

***Spoilers Ahead***

This movie is very sweet, and starts and continues with solid acting by most all involved. Ashley Jones does a really nice job as a struggling but caring mom and the male lead who plays Baxter is really good, but his character is really a pushover.

First, he spends time with this other family, starting to emotionally connect to both the son and the mom, without telling his fiance where he's spending time. You can tell that he's ready for his relationship and engagement to end but time after time, fails to break things off. Even when he is inclined to almost kiss another woman, he's still not the one to break things off when his fiance acts so selfishly about his good deeds. I hesitate to believe he would have ever been the one to stand up for himself.

Secondly, the son Weston is old enough to know right from wrong and know when Baxter is buying things for people and the kid blackmails him in a "cute family movie way" to continue buying for them in different ways or else he'll tell Baxter's secret. I think Weston would be old enough to know that you shouldn't be accepting someone else's money so much.

For an UP channel movie and something supposedly family oriented, I find a few major flaws with the morality of Baxter spending so much time with Pam and Weston and it ends up being something that most adults will know wouldn't go over well in real life.

The message of giving is really very sweet and the innocence of what Baxter is trying to do is something refreshing to watch and to try to apply to your own life. So for that I'm giving it 5 stars.

Loved the premise, but ended up as expected

[taylorjan-63962 · 5/10 · 23 December 2018]

Loved the story of a lottery winner ($50,000) suddenly deciding to help pay off a stranger's store card balance - we'd do the same in similar circumstances. This snowballed into further anonymous charitable acts. Unfortunately it veered off to a predictable love story.

The girlfriend who appeared to be a little nasty, and an older woman whose son he befriends.

Unfortunately the son, I think, has a disability (similar to Jimmy Clitheroe - growth issues). I thought he was little different, especially to have braces on his teeth at such a seemingly young age. But the story does progress with the hullabaloo of the anonymous acts of kindness and this gives the film the warm, feelgood factor

nice. maybe,

[Kirpianuscus · 18 December 2019]

The only significant part - the idea. Each of us, in his good days, dreams to become a Secret Santa. The romance is the necessary ingredient in this genre of film, but in this case it works as a sort of syrup. Sure, David Blue does a decent job but his eyes are more important than the artistic skills. A story becoming, in few scenes, just creepy- too much photos. But, sure, a single mother, her boy and the charming generous stranger are good pieces of a nice Christmas film.

I'll give a 7 for making me forget the world for 1:45 h

[gracieliamb · 7/10 · 28 November 2021]

It's cute and the history makes you like the guy...but giving gifts while you're unemployed and not even worried about to look for a job is non sense.

Many positives, many negatives

[weniwuna · 6/10 · 25 December 2021]

The main message of this movie is about giving selflessly. And it comes about so automatically that I think it's a wonderful thing to remember all year round, not just Christmas. However the script leaves much to be desired. I don't want to use details that would be spoilers, but a little boy blackmails, and he does so repeatedly without this seeming in anyway to be the wrong thing to do. A man takes secret pictures of people without them knowing it which is a bit creepy considering who he is. It never does say whether he's going to suddenly post them or if it's just for his own benefit, but either way it just felt off. And the pace could've been more uplifting in spirit rather than so low-key considering the positive all-around message. So I had definitely mixed feelings. I wish this was remade in a different way because I think it is a great idea, but it just needed to be handled differently.

Surprisingly OK

[Gubby-Allen · 6/10 · 1 January 2019]

Not good not bad but pleasantly better than you would think from the description. The lead guy who looks and speaks like Alistair Cook is very good in the role, very likeable and is given a decent script. The lead females each have a few irritating traits and the young boy, daft name aside is good too

Potentially good story

[Kate1976 · 4/10 · 21 December 2017]

Unfortunately it's ruined by a bad child actor who was given an unlikable character.

Am I supposed to find the disobedient kid who blackmails someone doing something nice, cute? Because no, I hate that kid. Maybe his acting sucks so much because he hates being that kid.

Anyway, there are better movies out there, but this one is okay in a pinch.

Must see reminder at Christmas Time!!

[laddsm · 10/10 · 13 December 2017]

Most of the Christmas movies you see aren't huge blockbuster films, and don't have a big budget to spend on high profile actors etc. so if you understand this going in, you'll do just fine! Don't want to spoil too much, but it's a movie about a guy named Baxter who wins $50,000, and decides to use it to help others during the Christmas season, rather than spend it on himself. I think we could all stand to watch this movie every year right around Black Friday so we can remember what the holiday season is really about, and also what being a good human being is about! The main actors are fantastic, the scenery is perfect, and the story is great!

Little returns

[Prismark10 · 3/10 · 7 December 2017]

12 Days of Giving is a syrupy gulp that could seriously escalate a diabetic attack.

Baxter Billings is a photographer who has recently become engaged and he wins $50,000. Instead of using that money for his wedding and squirrelling it away as a nest egg for the future. Baxter decides to act as a secret Santa and give the money away to those that are unfortunate or do not have enough money.

This includes people who cannot afford to buy presents from the department store so Baxter pays over $4000 so various families can have Christmas presents.

His generosity in his small town leads to other people acting kindly to strangers. Christmas shopping is less of a scrum and maybe people have discovered the true meaning generosity, giving and the festive season.

Baxter's fiancée is not too pleased when she finds about Baxter's spending spree. Do not worry she is presented as shallow and not so nice from the word go. Baxter does come across a nice widow and her young son and Baxter falls for her.

I watched this with my son who found it rather cheesy and creepy. What was the deal of Baxter taking pictures through the window of the widow and her son in their house?

This is really a simple story with a simple message, barely sketched out characters, I got bored by the end. I suspect so did the director who quickly tagged on a hard to buy romantic ending.

Dumped Netflix ... thank God

[ingabente · 10/10 · 14 July 2019]

I keep finding these movies on my Roku- all with messages of kindness, gratitude etc... less slick than Hollywierd but each one with its own beauty.

Thank you to all makers of these films that cause the heart to open up and hope.

Why?

[deliabattie · 2/10 · 19 November 2020]

Why do so many of these supposedly romantic Christmas films feature a person who is engaged falling in love with someone who is not their fiancé? How is that festive? Even if their fiancé is not right for them, it's not a good or romantic thing to do.

Look a little like Christmas

[Rosynani · 5/10 · 31 December 2020]

The vibe and staging of this movie is not that very Christmasy. But the acting is quite good.

The True Meaning of Christmas

[robert23-1 · 10/10 · 9 December 2017]

I just had the pleasure of watching this amazing movie which everyone should see to understand the true meaning of Christmas and making sure happiness comes with unconditional love and caring. Despite the fact that some parts of the movie are predictable, the performance by one of the newest & best child actors, Jax Connolly is superb. He is a rising star and definitely has a tremendous career ahead of him.He brought tears to my eyes and the on-screen chemistry among the three lead characters is wonderful. Every parent would love to have a son like him. The acting, writing and directing makes this movie a must watch one especially at this time of year!!

Robert(Canada)

JUST THAT!!

[velazquezjeiro · 1/10 · 17 December 2019]

I thought this was a good movie. However it was so boring and predictable. I couldn't finished watching it. Just that!!!

Outstanding

[mattfrancis-60254 · 10/10 · 26 November 2023]

An outstanding low budget movie with masses of hidden messages that the majority of self entitled Americans will easily miss and overlook. This is a wonderful wonderful movie, and I liked it that much I wanted the movie to be longer.

The low to average ratings show to me quite clearly how much America and Britain as well meed such a film and many more of its kind. The truth is films like this are rare indeed.

There's no Xmas music, no sort of usual Santa etc but there is kindness, heart, warmth and spirit. This is all much more impressive than the other stuff we get lumbered with year after year today.

Take note Americans, you could really learn something here. You want to see yourselves in the mirror? Look at how his fiancée acts! That's you all over.