Stream It or Skip It: ‘Heaven Down Here’ on Hallmark Movies & Mysteries, Where a Christmas Eve Snowstorm Changes Four Peoples’ Lives Forever

Hallmark Movies & Mysteries is coming at you with a new film called Heaven Down Here. The title will show audiences that heaven can perhaps be found on Earth in the most unlikely places as four disparate folks are snowed into a diner away from their loved ones during the holidays. Is this family film starring Krystal Joy Brown, Ruan Riedinger, Tina Lifford, and Richard Harmon a slice of Heaven, or is it doomed to earn a spot in holiday movie Hell? Or maybe it’s even caught in between in some kind of Christmas title purgatory? Keep reading to find out more.

HEAVEN DOWN HERE: STREAM IT OR SKIP IT?

The Gist: Imani (Krystal Joy Brown) is a widow living in Philadelphia with two young children and is struggling to pay bills after the loss of her husband. Though she wants to take the day off from her job at Rocko’s Diner to spend Christmas Eve with her kids, her desperation to make some extra cash for her family, as well as her selfish and snide boss Dan (Richard Harmon), forces her to head to the diner. Meanwhile, pastor Felix (Ruan Riedinger) has trouble that leaves him with no choice but to hang out at the diner until it closes. He uses this as an opportunity to ask Dan to donate food for his congregation’s Christmas Day holiday dinner for the homeless, but Dan, like nearly everyone he’s asked so far, refuses to help. Not long before closing time, nurse Clara (Tina Lifford) enters the diner to pick up a cake to enjoy with her daughter Jade (Kelcey Mawema) for their last Christmas before Jade leaves for college.

Outside, the snow has worsened to become a blizzard so bad people are dubbing it “Snowmageddon,” shutting down all the roads and forcing Imani, Clara, and Felix to stay in the diner. There, they find Dan has been hiding out in the back office playing video games after leaving earlier to make Imani stay late and work in his stead, infuriating Imani and causing tension as all four of these very different near-strangers are now snowed into the diner together for Christmas Eve. With no choice but to talk to one another as they wait out the storm, Imani, Clara, Felix, and Dan soon find themselves profoundly affected by this shared experience in ways they could never imagine.

What Movies Will It Remind You Of?: It’s also got an “unlikely strangers being forced together by bad weather and circumstance during Christmastime” story like the recent Hallmark release Holiday Road.

Performance Worth Watching: Krystal Joy Brown is great as Imani. Not only does she imbue Imani with plenty of charm, positivity, and warmth, but she also shows off some talented singing chops. Tina Lifford is lovable as Clara, as well. Both of their characters are very resilient in the face of some serious rudeness, so it’s hard not to like and root for them!

Memorable Dialogue: “Oh I don’t know, pastor, maybe I didn’t want to admit that I was a loser nobody wanted to spend time with on Christmas.” “Well, that’s just sad, isn’t it?”

A Holiday Tradition: There are a few mentioned by our four main characters. Felix used to spend Christmas at his abuela’s to play music, dance, and eat with his family. Clara and her daughter would get festive by baking treats, eating a black forest cake, and getting into the spirit by dressing up and singing seasonal songs. Growing up, Imani would get lunch with her family and friends on Christmas Eve and then be home for caroling to celebrate a Scandinavian Christmas. Dan used to celebrate with video games and snowball fights with his cousin until his parents split up.

Does the Title Make Any Sense?: Sure! Not only is the titular song “Heaven Down Here” heard more than once early in the film, but we also later on hear Felix preach about how “Heaven is other people,” followed immediately by Imani’s church choir rendition of the song “Heaven Down Here.”

Our Take: I want to start off by saying that I really appreciate that Heaven Down Here didn’t try to force a romance. It was a pleasant surprise since romance is a large part of the Christmas movie genre, but it wouldn’t have really fit in the movie that seemed to be more about family, forgiveness, and the kindness of strangers (who can become friends if you just give them a chance). This movie definitely had some nice messages in that same vein, as we saw characters learn from past mistakes and grow as a result. Imani and Clara were both compelling characters, in large point thanks to well-delivered performances by their actresses that gave each role a genuine sense of heart and charm that made you care about them.

Unfortunately, that couldn’t be true for all the characters. While Felix is clearly a good person and everything, I found his character to be a bit harder to feel invested in. And then Dan’s story ended up feeling incomplete compared to the other main characters, much of his own reconciliation and future feels up in the air or unknown compared to the rest. Also, while it was nice to see the four characters bond, it’s partly overshadowed for me by all of the crap that Imani has to deal with throughout this movie.

Seriously, this poor woman is put through the emotional ringer, between big revelations about her past, still working through the trauma of losing her husband last holiday season, trying to make ends meet as a single mom working a job where she’s not treated with respect, and generally having to deal with some real jerks. I just felt so bad for Imani by the end I was happy for her to have any kind of positive resolution. So it makes sense that the movie is called Heaven Down Here, because Imani is truly a saint for putting up with everything she did and finding it in her heart to even easily forgive people who may or may not deserve it (looking at you, Dan).

Our Call: SKIP IT. Heaven Down Here is an overall decent, albeit forgettable movie that doesn’t leave enough of a lasting impression to be a go-to seasonal stream.