Merv

Look, it's a Christmas movie about a dog. It's a perfectly fine, perfectly predictable film.

But why is it so grey? The colour grading is horrendous. Half the film takes place in Florida, yet the colours look muted and washed out. It doesn't exactly ruin the film, but knocks it down a point or two.

You might expect a predictable story from a Christmas rom-com, but Merv delivers a massive surprise: the dog. Merv has an incredible presence that completely steals the show.

His performance is so convincing it makes you wonder if he is CGI or AI-generated. But he isn't-he is a real rescue dog named Gus! He conveys emotion with impeccable authenticity, at times even outshining the talented cast, including 500 Days of Summer star Zooey Deschanel and Daredevil himself, Charlie Cox.

While the plot involves a sunny detour to Florida rather than just snowy landscapes, it remains a heartwarming watch for the holiday season.

Verdict: Go for it!

Now this is such a cute little movie! I really enjoyed this corny cute holiday movie, especially with Merv. He's the cutest little guy and I just loved him on screen! Also brings great awareness to pet adoption and its importance. Great film for the whole family to watch and good for the holiday season.

A stereotypical holiday-themed romcom AND a dog? Yes, please!

It's a story about a modern couple that's co-parenting a dog and dealing with a break-up.

Charlie Cox was so good in this role: sweet, charming, funny and believable. He's exactly the love interest you'd want to see in a film of this caliber. He's the approachable guy next door, but then they put glasses on him and he instantly became 10 times hotter.

Gus the dog who played Merv is so adorable, i just couldn't take my eyes off of him.

However.....since when can Zooey Deschanel not act?! I'm a big fan of "New Girl", and I always assumed she was a good enough actress. Now I'm starting to think that the strong male cast of the show concealed he lack of talent so well that I was fooled. Here she is absolutely horrible. She couldn't even have chemistry with the dog on screen. The entire film it just felt like she really didn't want to be on that set. I didn't believe a single thing she has said, a single face expression. It devastates me to say, she was just bad in this movie. Replace her with any other female lead, plus Charlie and Gus - and it would have been a solid romcom.

I really wanted to like this given the actors, but it's super gloomy, be warned. If you're in the mood for a cheery holiday movie, this will not be it! The dog is sad (not funny), the actors are sad, the music is sad... and there is very little relief. I can appreciate if they were going for something deeper than a silly romantic comedy, but this is the anti-Elf.