Hotel for the Holidays

This movie isn't Oscar worthy, but it isn't as bad as some of these reviews would lead you to believe. I've definitely seen worse on Hallmark. Like several others, this caught my eye because of Mena Massoud, who is as charming as ever. He's not in it as much as I would have hoped, but I liked the leading lady as well. It's a simple film with the typical lack of communication trope, but I enjoyed the sweet characters and lack of drama. Some of the set pieces were pretty rough - the fake snow was obvious and I was a bit confused by the roof dinner scene, since there was "snow", but no one seemed cold? However, it was exactly the type of movie I was looking for while wrapping presents. Low stakes, holiday themed, and a happy ending all around.

In the beginning it wasn't too bad. The characters seemed interesting, and I love the actress that plays the older staff member.

However the last 30 minutes of the movie made absolutely NO sense to me! The entire time Mena Massud's character was pining after the female lead, all while she pays him no mind because she is trying to sell the hotel, then out of nowhere she has feelings for him??

I got the impression that the housekeeper secretly admired the other chef, at least that's the way it came across, so when he's on one knee proposing, it made absolutely NO sense!

The only characters that has some sort of buildup to their coupling was the older couple and the guy that lost his dog.

I went from wanting to keep this one saved in my PVR to wanting it to be over so I could delete it! Just so silly!

This is a multiple storyline holiday romance that takes place in a classic New York hotel, The Hotel Fontaine. The manager, Georgia, a lovely young New Yorker played by Madelaine Petsch, dreams of owning something and has worked months on a proposal to open a new ultramodern hotel to pitch to The Fontaine's owner who is vacationing somewhere tropical.

Meanwhile pining away for her and making her daily special lunches is friend and hotel chef Luke, who just hasn't worked up the nerve to tell Georgia How he feels.

Then there is the maintenance manager, Milton, who thinks he receives a secret gift from the bartender, Florence...but is really the maid, Anna's gift for her secret lover cook Victor. There is recently divorced Aj whose dog Dickens runs away and is rescued by handsome Hunter who is eager to help Aj navigate his new single status.

A runaway prince, Prince Raymond, might be the backing for the new modern hotel that Georgia needs. The other celebrity guest is a singer songwriter named Pandora who is trying to get back in touch with her fans by becoming an ordinary girl like them.

There is a quick talking crazy 12 days of Christmas finding hotel concierge, Kiki, who has been exchanging barbs with the bell ringing Santa all week.

This is fun, filled with Christmas color and was entertaining in that it followed more than just the main storyline. At the end of the day it is a holiday romance...so I recommend it to romance fans and holiday movie fans out there.

Everything culminates at the hotel's holiday single mixer which is a fun party idea to the accompaniment by Pandora at the piano.

(Also, can I just say I am so excited to find out that not only was Madelaine born in my home state of Washington, but she was born in the small town of Port Orchard...where my mom grew up!)

If you're looking for a movie that uses every used up repeated joke from other movies and extreme over acting then this is your cup of tea.

The writers jokes fell way below the line and this was way too impractical. Christmas decorations on a roof where a fire escape is? Or decorations all through stairs that are never used and only for random deliveries?

If you manage to watch past the security bag inspecting the prince who's not a prince bag of nuts you have watched way too much and in fact, every thing you think happens, happens.

Terrible one liners after terrible one liners. Amazon prime should be paying me to watch and waste those minutes of my life I'll never get back.

Main characters potential is very high.

Mena already an Oscar winner.

Although the movie suffer from bad scenes, camera position, lighting & decoration.

At a lot of scenes you see camera tilted 15 degree and in the next shot it's aligned but then back tilted.

Decoration is very home set. CG is very poor. There is nothing related to Newyork in this movie.

Script is very shallow. That even the most predicted phrases is not said completed.

All other characters are not worthy of rule in school play. To much facial expressions, childish acts.

This kind of movies u watch by mistake at Netflix or "in my case" due to my wife choice 🤣