This article discusses the ending of the Netflix film A California Christmas: City Lights and will contain spoilers.
Opening with scenes of the family making wine in the sunshine, we’re given the idyllic farm life. Gorgeous topless men moving hay bales, one big happy family, living their best life, at the Vineyards. Very much a dream life, living in the sunshine, making and drinking wine all day.
Hannah is missing her mother, especially on this day, where they are promoting their new wines – whilst Callie is giving her speech Joe breaks in and proposes to her in front of everyone. A strange place for a proposal, but it’s sweet and sickly enough for me. So blissfully romantic he proposed one year after joining the farm and becoming a ranch hand.
Callie comes up petal-filled stairs to a hunky Joseph waiting for her in the bedroom, letting the hot love-making begin.
Due to family obligations Joseph is asked to come back to the city and work for his father’s company in San Francisco, he asks Callie to come with him, which she resists, and even admits to her best friend she’s been keeping him busy so he wouldn’t want to go back to the city and miss his old life. Ultimately, she does go with Joseph to the big city.
They fly in a fancy helicopter, Joseph in his “city” clothes. After arriving in a much darker San Fran, we have a montage of the couple driving and running around the city. Then, in a fancy, posh hotel, Joseph and Callie run into Joseph’s old “friends” from back in the day. These girls are the opposite of Callie, showing the divide between country and city life.
Joseph has booked for them to be married in the city on Christmas Eve. A romantic gesture that Callie must think about.
We’re taken back to the farm where things are heating up between the property manager and best friend.
Callie is given a ridiculous dress to wear for the gala, and luckily chooses to not wear it and goes with a more suitable, sexy dress and agrees to marry Joseph on Christmas eve. With a jealous Ex of Joseph’s on the move, we can anticipate she’s going to cause trouble for the young lovers.
Callie and Joseph go look at the room where they would have their first dance and slow dance, as we cut back to the farm where love is blossoming over a video game.
Owen, an old friend of Callie’s who was at the gala, meets her again, we can tell something is brewing between this friendship. Victoria, the old friend of Joseph, is slowly trying to get closer to him. A rift between the loving couple is pending.
Callie is having so much fun in the city and planning her wedding, she is neglecting her life on the farm, ignoring and missing calls, Hannah is very upset – Callie is clearly enjoying the city life more than she thought, and admits to wanting to spend more time there.
Joseph has been offered a full-time role taking over from his mother and his father, and he hasn’t told Callie. Victoria blurts this out at a meal, causing Callie and Joseph to argue.
Callie helps Owen by playing mother Mary in his nativity when Victoria pays for the actress playing Mary to pull out from the show. This is the last year of the show because the funding for the soup kitchen has been pulled. Victoria takes photos of them, which she is going to use later to try and break Callie and Joseph’s relationship up, when really Owen and Callie are good friends. Victoria catches Callie on her walk home and reveals that she and Joseph were once engaged. Callie is furious, confronts Joseph about the funding of the soup kitchen and her engagement ring. Callie packs her suitcase and leaves.
Joseph confronts Victoria, and she shows him cropped photos of Callie and Owen. We then cut to scenes of Callie back on the farm. They both question what they really want in life.
Netflix film A California Christmas: City Lights ending explained
As Callie looks at her mother’s old wedding dress, we flashback to memories of her mother showing her the dress and her mum telling her a poignant story. So inspiring that Callie is clearly going to marry Joseph.
Joseph confronts Owen and learns that Victoria is a manipulative liar and Joseph commits to not closing the soup kitchen. He stays to watch the show. We cut to Joseph talking to his mum, and Callie visiting her mum’s grave, and we learn that we all need a parent, no matter how old we get.
Joseph gets the wedding arranged and started, Callie shows up as Joseph makes an important speech. She forgives him, and they get married. In the vineyard, in the sun, with all the family around. Followed by a montage of their life and how they fell in love. 9 months later they are back on the farm and the baby is coming. Joseph runs into the house and the film ends.
