An Alpine Holiday 2025 Movie Review
Hallmark’s An Alpine Holiday is a real tearjerker. A gorgeous—albeit dramatized—adventure that sticks the landing for its accurate depiction of two siblings and their inability to properly communicate with one another while on a trip honoring their late grandmother.
In truth, because both characters are frustrating (and they’re supposed to be), it’s not an easy movie to watch. We’re meant to get annoyed. We’re meant to be uneasy. They push and pull on each other’s strings with choices that make you want to shake them, yet everyone who has a sibling who’s the opposite of them knows exactly how accurate the depiction is. You fight—a lot. And at times, you’re both wrong. Still, the Hallmark movie does a great job of ensuring that it feels believable, and Ashley Williams and Laci J. Mailey are the main reasons why.
I’ve missed Mailey on my screen so much since Chesapeake Shores, and her ability to instantly make me cry with a single look—especially where siblings are concerned—is no small feat. There’s something so authentic about how she delivers moments of vulnerability where her character clearly feels small and defeated, and this is also the case for An Alpine Holiday. How she and Williams play off one another is exactly what makes the dynamic so rich and honest. Real.
A large part of the reason I watch Hallmark Christmas movies is because of the romance, yet here it’s secondary, and that’s okay. Because An Alpine Holiday is about all types of love stories—romantic and platonic. It’s about taking leaps of faith even when we’re terrified, and it’s about understanding that the people closest to us do sometimes know us best. It’s about listening to each other and stepping back when we need to. And it’s about realizing where we’ve gone wrong because no human being is perfect, especially where sibling fights are concerned.
It’s also always easy to appreciate stories that center around grief and how our loved ones stay with us for one last adventure. It’s easy to appreciate stories that involve letters and stepping into their shoes because it gives us one last way to say goodbye and process. And it’s not a chance people get often, so anytime it’s included in fiction, it feels lovely. Like it’s something those of us watching also need to in order to process our own heartaches vicariously.
Because there isn’t a ton of romance in this one, it might not be the type of movie people will revisit often. Grief can also be triggering. Still, it’s a stunning inclusion in this year’s lineup that feels important. It feels right. And again, the performances are what ensure it shines, delivering something that’s worthy of recognition. I, for one, would love another adventure of sorts. But if we don’t get that, then it’s safe to say An Apline Holiday is a solid, heartwarming story about healing and reconnecting. It’s a story about coming home, and there’s so much magic in that detail around the holiday season.
