‘MERRY MIX-UP’
SYNOPSIS
Antique shop owner Alice Chapman tells her boyfriend, Will Mitchum, the story of the Bernkastel
Christmas Clock. Legend has it a clockmaker fell in love with a peasant girl who was betrothed
to another. He gave her a clock that stopped time for everyone but her, so she could escape
from her wedding and live happily ever after with the clockmaker. Although Alice loves Will,
they are very different. Alice tends to see the sentimental value in items such as the clock,
whereas Will strictly sees monetary value. He even encourages her to sell the antique store
property, which her father left to her before he died.
Just before the holidays, Will asks Alice to marry him and she says yes. Alice is excited when
Will also invites her home to celebrate Christmas with his family for the first time, but he warns
her that his family is not as festive as Alice is this time of year. As the couple leaves on their
trip, Will gets a call about a real estate deal he needs to close before the holidays, so he sends
Alice to meet his family on her own.
Alice is nervous, but leaves on her own. To add to her anxiety, the airline loses her luggage.
At the lost luggage counter, she catches the eye of Matt Mitchum, who is also trying to find his
lost item. Matt and Alice chat while they fill out forms. Matt is enamored and tries to ask her
on a date, but accidentally spills coffee all over the one blouse she has with her, as well as her
cell phone, ruining both.
Without her cell phone, Alice has no idea where she is going. She calls Will from Matt’s phone,
and after referring to herself as “the future Mrs. Mitchum,” Matt pieces together that she is
marrying Will Mitchum—or Billy, as Matt calls him—who is his brother! It’s fate: Matt will take
Alice with him on the drive home. On their way, Alice attempts to show Matt her ring, but it
falls on the floor and Matt crashes the car while trying to pick it up.
Alice and Matt wind up in the hospital, but are not seriously injured. Matt’s parents, Penny and
Joe, come to the hospital to get Matt and are excited to meet Alice, even though Will had not
mentioned anything about her. They still treat her as part of the family and take her home
when she and Matt are released from the hospital.
When they arrive at the Mitchum home, Alice is thrilled to find it decked out with Christmas
decorations. She is excited to trim the tree and bake cookies with the family, as soon as the
doctor-ordered 24-hour observation period is over for her and Matt. The two struggle to stay
awake for those 24 hours and spend the whole time together. Matt tells Alice about the music
box he made for his grandfather that the airline lost, which touches Alice. They make
Christmas cookies before falling asleep nose to nose.
Back in New York, Will talks with his business colleague Jeremy about how Alice’s antique store
property is in high demand and that Alice will sell the property if he tells her to. Just as Will
begins to listen to a voicemail from the Barrisford Hospital, where Alice was treated, Grant
Lockley walks in. Grant, who is interested in Alice’s property and has money to spend, is
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intrigued when Will confidently tells him he can make the sale happen. It is not until days later
Will finally gets the voicemail from the hospital and rushes off to Barrisford.
Back at the Mitchums, Alice is joining in on all the Christmas traditions. She decorates the
Christmas tree with the family and hears a story about every ornament from Grandpa Charles.
Grandpa Charles reminisces about his late wife and how much he still loves her. The Mitchum
family plays “Christmas Messages,” a made-up game where each person writes one thing they
like about everyone else and then tries to guess who wrote each message. When it comes to
Alice, she reads what Matt wrote—that Alice is “kind of amazing,”—and is taken aback. Before
she can respond, Will “Billy” Mitchum arrives at the door, but Alice realizes it’s the wrong Will!
The family realizes that Will Mitchum and Billy Mitchum are two different people and Alice is
incredibly embarrassed. She goes outside to collect herself and call her fiancé. Matt brings her
a cup of hot chocolate and comforts her. He tells her she should still stay for Christmas, which
she sadly declines. Will arrives to pick Alice up and offers the family money for their
inconvenience. Slightly insulted, they turn it down and tell Alice to come back anytime. Before
she leaves, Alice hands Matt her Christmas message to him, which says, “He makes me laugh.”
The real Will Mitchum’s house could not be more different from the other Mitchum’s house.
Instead of Christmas decorations, baked goods and a cozy atmosphere, it’s minimalist modern
design and macrobiotic juice. Will’s mother, Judith, is cool and distant and his father, Roy, is a
sleazy workaholic. Just like his dad, Will spends the evening on his laptop and phone. After
Will inadvertently insults Alice for being disorganized and irresponsible, she asks him to take a
walk with her to the Christmas tree she sees down the street. He refuses, saying it’s too cold.
Despite Penny advising him not to pursue Alice, Matt shows up at Will’s family’s house in the
middle of the night and gets Alice’s attention with a flashlight. Delighted, Alice joins Matt for a
walk to the Christmas tree in the park. Matt shows Alice the bench he made so people could sit
and enjoy the tree and Alice knows she could sell benches like that in her store. She also
mentions the Bernkastel clock she received at the store and Matt, familiar with the story, relates
to the clockmaker. Matt tells Alice she’s making a mistake with the wedding and that he would
be a better match, but she maintains that marrying Will is the responsible decision.
When Matt arrives home, Grandpa Charles is still awake. He reads the phrase his late wife
engraved on the Christmas star ornament she gave him: “Eternity is where true love exists.”
Matt gets an idea. The next morning, Alice calls to wish the Mitchum family a merry Christmas
Eve. Matt, who is working on a gift, won’t come to the phone, but Penny passes along Alice’s
Christmas greeting.
In an attempt to drum up some Christmas spirit, Alice teaches Will’s family Christmas Messages.
The game results in arguments and vain compliments and also the revelation that Will received
a $3 million offer on Alice’s antique store. She doesn’t know what to do and takes a walk to
think about it. When she returns, Grandpa Charles is there, with a gift from Matt. Alice
confides in Grandpa that she thinks she may have made the wrong decision letting Matt go.
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Before Alice opens Matt’s present, Will gives her his gift: a lease for another store so she can
sell the property her father gave her. Even though it’s a logical idea, it upsets her. Alice locks
herself in the bathroom, feeling trapped and opens Matt’s gift. It’s a clock he has handmade
for her, just like the Bernkastel clock story. She is touched and this confirms her decision.
Alice musters up her courage and breaks up with Will. As she leaves his house to go to the
Christmas tree in the park, time seems frozen, just like the Bernkastel story. Will’s mother is
meditating, his father is asleep at his laptop and she’s met with a frozen ice sculpture at the
park. She is also met by Matt, who has been waiting on the bench since Grandpa gave her the
clock. Alice and Matt kiss and say “I love you.” Alice notices the clock is stuck at 11:58—the
exact moment she and Matt met. It’s destiny!
The following Christmas, Alice and Matt are at a store they now co-own, readying for their two
families to meet. Surprising Alice with an engagement, Matt reveals the newest item in the
shop: a diamond ring. The clock strikes 11:58 and they know it’s meant to be.
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