BETHLEHEM, Pa. — For those watching the premiere of the Hallmark Movies & Mysteries channel film "Miracle in Bethlehem, PA," Thursday night was an exercise in catching all those familiar details.
No, not Hotel Bethlehem, nor Main Street, nor The Star of Bethlehem nor Moravian or Lehigh universities. None of those appeared, or were even referred to, in the movie.
Instead, the familiarities watchers could catch were in the plot — essentially the same plot as every Hallmark Christmas movie: A man and a woman are thrust together by circumstances, and, despite them seemingly being horribly incompatible, a romance blooms in the Christmas atmosphere.
There's a single, divine moment late in the film.Hallmark movie "Miracle in Bethlehem, PA"
Except for a single, divine moment late in the film. More about that later.
Here's what was unfamiliar in "Miracle in Bethlehem, PA": Most of the references to the titular town — probably mostly because, according to Hallmark, it was filmed primarily in Winnipeg, Canada, in late September.
In a turn on the Biblical story of Christmas, the film follows main character Mary Ann (like the biblical Mary, get it?), played by actress Laura Vandervoort.
Right before Christmas, Mary Ann adopts a baby girl to raise alone.
She has to pick up the baby, named Natalie, which means "Christmas," four hours away at an unnamed hospital in Bethlehem, PA.
The movie doesn't mention St. Luke's or Lehigh Valley Hospital, and the exterior shown looks like neither. And there are no scenes of her driving on Interstate 78, Route 22 or Route 378 — though the one road shown looked most like Route 378.
A real reference
Because of a blizzard (bad weather's a staple of Hallmark movies), Mary Ann gets stuck in Bethlehem, where there's no room at the Inn (like in the biblical Christmas story, get it?).
The film's Bethlehem Star Inn is nothing like Hotel Bethlehem, nor any other hotel in the real city.
In one of the film's few real references, she is told there may be "a room in Allentown — it's only 20 minutes away" and a truck driver offers to lead her "to Hanover (Avenue?)"Hallmark movie "Christmas in Bethlehem, PA"
In one of the film's few real references, she is told there may be "a room in Allentown — it's only 20 minutes away" and a truck driver offers to lead her "to Hanover (Avenue?)."
Her only choice when the inn is full is to stay with Joe (like the biblical Joseph, get it?), the ex-rock star brother of the innkeeper played by actor Benjamin Ayres.
The sister describes his house as "kind of a barn" (get it). And he has a dog named Donkey (get it?) and a friend named Shepherd (all right, by now I think you get it).
There's a gift event at a huge church (no name, and it doesn't look like Central Moravian, though there is a much smaller choir) that helps Mary and Joe better understand each other and get closer.
Because of the characters being snowed in, there are no exterior shots of the city — Northside or Southside — so there's no Main Street or SteelStacks.
Joe does show Mary Ann his family barn (Really? In Bethlehem, Pa.?) which he uses as a Christmas showroom.
When Mary Ann leaves, he tells her to be careful "on the mountain pass" — so apparently she's headed over South Mountain to I-78? But it shows a bridge that's clearly not the Fahy or Hill to Hill or Minsi Trail.
Another real reference — and the miracle mention
One other attempt at accurate information comes late in the movie, when Mary Ann is searching the internet for "tax regulations in Northampton County, Pennsylvania" — so Joe's house apparently is in the eastern part of the city.
The picture on the webpage doesn't include any immediately recognizable landmarks, but at least looks closer to the real Bethlehem, Pa.
If you pause the film and look really closely — it also makes reference to "the Bethlehem Steel plant" and it's "conversion into the SteelStacks arts and cultural campus" and the "historic district of downtown Bethlehem."A scene from "Miracle in Bethlehem, PA"
The page — if you pause the film and look really closely — also makes reference to "the Bethlehem Steel plant" and it's "conversion into the SteelStacks arts and cultural campus" and the "historic district of downtown Bethlehem."
Neither Count Zinzendorf nor Mayor Reynolds is mentioned.
Of course, there's more to the movie than catching local references.
Like most any Hallmark movie, "Miracle in Bethlehem, PA" is uplifting, feel-good fare that you'd really have to be a grinch (get it?) to entirely not like.
The movie's spirituality is overt — and frequently touching.
The acting, or the plot, isn't very deep, but the film is breezy and enjoyable.
But the makers brought the scrutiny on themselves by choosing a real town — and such an identifiable one — as the movie's setting, and for its title.
The movie's one divine moment comes very late, when there is an exterior shot that looks very much like the dome of Central Moravian Church, the path from the Colonial Industrial Quarter and the Hill to Hill Bridge ramp that leads to the downtown.
That single two-second shot may be the only image of the real Bethlehem in the entire movie.
That's the real miracle.
"Miracle in Bethlehem, PA" is the final original holiday movie airing before Christmas between Hallmark Channel and Hallmark Movies & Mysteries.
It's now available On Demand or on Philo, Sling TV, Frndly TV, Hulu with Live TV, YouTube TV and Fubo.
