Finally! A Terrific Hallmark Hanukkah Movie!

Hallmark has justifiably been criticized for its all-white, all-Christmas winter holiday movies, and then it was justifiably criticized for its first attempts at a Hanukkah movies, with problems that ranged from insensitivity and ignorance to outright failures (captioning describing a Hebrew prayer as Yiddish, for example).

But “Round and Round,” written by Tamar Laddy of “Pretty Little Lies” is one of the best Hallmark movies ever, smart, funny, and romantic, with terrific chemistry between stars Vic Michaelis and Bryan Greenberg. The “Groundhog Day” story of a woman who gets stuck repeating the seventh night of Hanukkah is delightfully self-aware, with clever references to other time loop films and cultural touchstones. And the details of Hanukkah celebrations are grounded in experience and appreciation.

Highly recommended!