A Cinderella Christmas

I thought this was a clever twist on the elements of the classic story. Acting wasn't the best, but the way the plot developed more than made up for that.

This is one more of the "Christmas romance" genre films (I read there were 74 new ones made in 2020; they are cheap to make and very popular). There is no deviation from the formula: cute girl (make that EXTREMELY cute girl) wanders into a new relationship with a Handsome (rich) man who is looking for love, and there are obstacles, but ... guess how it ends? (I am not holding my breath). Despite a snarky comment by another reviewer about Emma Rigby's lips being bought, she has always looked this way and yes, many men do like full lips. Not sure why, I guess it's biological. Anyway, Emma is a really likeable actress in a likeable film. Don't stress out over the plot ... it's a pleasant way to spend a couple hours.

The best part of the movie for me was some of the witty dialogue between the two leads. For example it went something like this.

Angie- "I feel like I don't fit in here" Nicholas- "That is precisely what makes you stand out" These moments were thought provoking and provided depth to the characters. The 2 leads did a nice job.

Another nice feature was a Christmas stocking where the characters would put things that were only of value to them. Great stuff that really helped to identify with the characters in the story.

Also thought the character of Max was well done. A cool friend with cool language to give some humor to what Nicholas was feeling.

Oh yes- Lesley-Anne Down with an English accent (we saw her 30 years ago as Madelaine on North and South mini-series)

With all this good- why not a ten? The cousin Candace part did not add to the story- it may have been good for a few laughs. Such a superficial character- not really believable. Also the first 30 minutes were very lively full of surprise, but then some parts got a bit slow and predictable.

The witty dialogue and literary quotes between the two leads would get me to watch it again, but I'd have to tolerate cousin Candace.

Who wouldn't want Peter Porte as Prince Charming, BUT not sure if it was Emma Rigby or her lips that did the most acting ! I wonder how much they cost her, because they came into the room before she did.

And despite him being the ideal Prince Charming, as a character he clearly didn't have anything between his ears, if he couldn't detect a pair of lips on a woman like those beneath the mask ! You have to laugh !

This movie is cute, and as far as Hallmark movies go, it's one of my favorites. Here's a thought though...if the protagonists parents were dead from the beginning of the movie, why not let her be from the U.K.? I think her acting would have been better if she could just use her British accent. I could tell she was concentrating too hard on the American one. I know for an actress it's a challenge or rite of passage or whatever, but it was a distraction.