Hallmark Movie Roundup: Christmas at the Catnip Café

Title: Christmas at the Catnip Café (2025)

Actor(s) You Know:
My Boyfriend Paul Campbell (many Hallmark movies, Battlestar Galactica)

Plot:
Olivia, who works in marketing in California, inherits half-ownership of a cat café in New York State. The other half is owned by Ben, the local vet. Olivia wants to sell the café so she can have a down payment for a condo. In Oakland.

Trope(s):
    Royalty
    Alternate reality
    Small town ✔
    Fake relationship
    Family business getting sold/going bankrupt
    Enemies-to-lovers ✔
    Best friends-to-lovers
    Second chance
    Stranded

Meet Cute: 
Olivia first notices Ben in his vet clinic as she walks down the street; then he pops up at the cat café, where she's arranged to meet the other owner. Ben immediately susses out that Olivia wants to get rid of the café; Olivia is bewildered that he doesn't want to get rid of what seems like a bustling business. And then is again bewildered when the café employee overhears their discussion and takes away the coffee she had ordered.

Rundown:
    Dead parents
    Montage(s)
    Christmas-related name(s) 
    Animals ✔
    Returns to hometown ✔ (Kind of; Olivia isn't from the town, but her aunt lived there and she spent time         there growing up)
    Is Santa a character? 
        Secretly or overtly?
    Cookie baking 
    Tree decorating ✔
    Somebody hates Christmas
    Christmas festival in a small town ✔
    A literal competition
    Child plays matchmaker
    All work, no romance/life
    Kiss before the end of the movie ✔
    Interrupted kiss ✔
    Flashback to childhood ✔
    The leads literally run into each other
    Gratuitous shirtless scene
    Big Secret
    Wacky misunderstanding
    Just. Talk. To. Each. Other.
    Someone pushing the leads together 
    Real family = chaos / bad families = cold and not chaotic
    Learns the meaning of Christmas
    Stranded by snowstorm
    Hot chocolate 
    Ice skating
    D-list celebrity
    Enemy-to-friend storyline 
    The love interest is an ex
    Career change
    Lying to each other
    Tries to apologize, but keeps getting cut off
    Christmas pageant 
    End with a flash-forward

Did I actually like/root for the heroine? How do the lead(s) annoy me?
Olivia is THE WORST. She comes into town, looking to force Ben to sell the cat café, and doesn't seem to understand why he and the café employees aren't happy about this. She's all, "There's a developer who wants to buy this, isn't it great?!" She seemingly wasn't in touch with her aunt at all because everything about the café seems to be a surprise to her. She just...doesn't seem bright. Paul Campbell is too nice to her. You can do better, Paul Campbell.

Is it in any way not completely generic? 
There were many many adorable cats. 

Is the BFF actually the best? Do they need their own movie?
Olivia's friend seemed fine. Ben's sister also seemed cool. I don't know that I need to spend more time with either.

How is the romantic alternative wrong for the heroine? 
There is no romantic alternative, sadly. Otherwise I'd be rooting for her to get together with him.

Thoughts/Other Notes:
In addition to Olivia being the worst, the timeline in the movie makes no sense. Olivia is trying to buy a condo and wants the money from the café sale for a down payment, but we're supposed to believe that the condo is still available after the 3+ weeks she's in New York. At one point, we see an event is "December 21," but multiple days seem to pass and it's still not Christmas. I just don't know. This movie was frustrating. But I still love you, Paul Campbell.

Rating:
🧀🧀(mostly for the cats and Paul Campbell, who is very likable in this)