Kristin's Christmas Past

the basic idea of this story is the most seductive ingredient of a film who looks for be more than soft-comfortable film about a family in Christmas period. the second good point is Shiri Appleby performance, remembering the frustration of a woman front to her errors from past. and the second chance is a seductive hypotheses for everyone. so, a simple story, with cinnamon and honey taste, about a way for fix the past bad options.

A bit of a different take on A Christmas Carol. Kristin is a slutty, narcissistic, lush. She is also more or less failing at life. I found this personality difficult to get past, but some might see the humor and enjoy it. The different approach is that Kristin doesn't visit the past in ghost-like fashion, she actually goes to the past and interacts with herself and her family. For much of the movie, only her past self knows who she really is. It doesn't take the older Kristin long to realize she needs change.

The acting is enjoyable. I loved A.J. Langer as Aunt Debbie.

There might be a couple of ways it can go, but neither would be a big surprise. Even so, I thought it was worth staying with.

Delightful story of a 34 year old woman going back to when she was a girl of 17. The lead actress is very good in this role. How at 34 one can see things like they couldn't at 17. This alone is worth the watch. We also get to see two of the characters at 34 and then at 17 (done with different actors). Nicely done. The filming could have been a bit better- in the opening scenes it was hard to hear the dialogue clearly.

I liked how they showed Kristin's family and the conflicts they were having. The contrast between 1996 and 2013 was also well done- smart phone versus AOL dial up internet. I don't rate them this high unless there was something special.

When 34 year old party girl Kristin begins to regret her past decisions, she suddenly wakes up one morning to find herself transported to 1996, where she meets her teenage self on Christmas Eve. Kristin see's this as an opportunity to rectify her past problems. But it's easier said than done.

The story has been done quite a few times but not like this. The story flows naturally, we see great character moments that are sad, fun and everything in between. My only issue was the ending, it felt rushed and didn't do justice compared to what a great time we had getting to know Kristin, her family and her past.

A heartwarming, sometimes funny but not sickly-sentimental, Kristin's Christmas Past is a real treat for the season.

There are Christmas films that will rightfully forever be considered as classics and then at the opposite extreme there are those movies which forever exist under the radar, known only to a handful of fans. Kristin's Christmas Past falls into this category, an absolute gem of a film almost completely unknown outside of its fan base.

Its central premise is the heroine's emotional return home, a plot repeated a thousand times in a thousand different Hallmark movies. The difference this time is the quality of the script and the brilliant touching interplay between the leads. Kristin's waking up on Christmas Eve 1996, the year she left her family home never to return, gives us comedy moments, teenage angst and some genuinely heartfelt moments involving Kristin, her father, mother and aunt. One moving scene in particular situated under the Christmas tree is an acting masterclass in itself.

Shiri Appleby does a brilliant job as Kristin, a perfectly pitched and nuanced portrayal of someone trying to atone for past mistakes and to compensate for lost time. Elizabeth Mitchell as her Mother and AJ Langer as her Aunt Debbie both provide strong support and the interplay between the three is very touching. In addition, the scenes involving Kristin and her younger teenage self, played by Hannah Marks, are also well written and performed. There is also a bell chiming scene which is perfectly played by the leads.

Kristin's Christmas Past will forever stay under the radar but do yourself a favour and check it out. You'll soon find yourself adding it to your own classic Christmas movies list.

Lastly, for reasons known only to the film's marketing idiots, the film name was changed to Last Chance Christmas and Debbie Ryan was listed as the star on the poster at Appleby's expense. Ignore this re-writing of history and appreciate the skill and care which was put into this film by Appleby and her co-stars.