Hallmark Channel’s ‘A New Year’s Resolution’ is set in Milwaukee
Christmas may be over, but you didn’t think Hallmark Channel would be done with the cozy romantic movies, did you?
The warm and fuzzy flicks continue this month as part of the cable channel’s “New Year New Movies!” series, including its latest “A New Year’s Resolution” — which is set in Milwaukee.
“Resolution” follows Kelly Leone (Aimee Teegarden), an ambitious TV producer who helped turn the oncestruggling “Wake Up Milwaukee” into the top-rated morning news show in the city. But the success came at the cost of being a bad friend.
So Leone makes a New Year’s resolution to say yes to every social invitation for a month, meeting and falling for marketing executive Tom Malone (Michael Rady) along the way.
It’s the second holiday-themed romantic TV movie in as many months set in Milwaukee, following December’s premiere of Lifetime’s “The Christmas Setup,” the channel’s first holiday movie with a LGBTQ romance as the lead storyline.
“The Christmas Setup” didn’t really resemble Milwaukee or Wisconsin, though. Like that movie, “A New Year’s Resolution” was filmed in Canada, but it does feature some local establishing shots, including the Milwaukee Art Museum adjacent to a frozen Lake Michigan.
And “Resolution” screenwriter Sarah Montana seems to have done a touch of research.
As part of her resolution, Kelly hangs out with the Milwaukee Curling Club and participates in the Milwaukee Polar Bear Plunge on New Year’s Day.
On a speed date, Tom suggests his top dinner guest picks, living or dead, would be his grandmother and Aaron Rodgers.
And when Kelly ponders a move to Chicago, a friend assures her it’s only a two-hour drive, and mentions there’s a Six Flags at the halfway point — not once, but thrice.
But “A New Year’s Resolution” may have one ridiculous Milwaukee-linked exaggeration. At a “Wake Up Milwaukee”
news meeting, one reporter suggests doing a story on “favorite ways to tailgate from this past football season.” The idea is quickly shot down by the show’s anchor.
“We can’t definitively state what toppings make a real Wisconsin brat,” the anchor says. “The fans will riot.”
“A New Year’s Resolution” premiered on the Hallmark Channel Saturday, but it will re-air several times, including at 7 p.m. Tuesday, 4 p.m. Saturday and noon Sunday. It’s available on demand and on the Hallmark Movies Now app.