Un Noël romantique

Emily Rose had her 3rd child in June 2019 - the movie was released in Dec 2019 - you do the math. Hallmark did the same thing and spoiled two decent movies with a pregnant Jen Lilly - now lifetime has done the same thing. Emily even walked into the room in one of the early scenes holding her belly - really sexy - this was a shame because I love Emily Rose and the plot for this movie is a good one but it is just hard to watch a obviously pregnant romantic lead - Sorry lifetime but your casting Department needs some work.

I was distracted by the fact the female lead was obviously pregnant. I didn't even verify I was correct until after I watched the movie. They try so hard to hide the fact that it's just annoying especially in a romance show. The actress didn't seem to know how to act like she wasn't pregnant because it was clear she wasn't comfortable with her body in the way she drew attention to her midsection. It ruined the movie for me. She also has absolutely no emotion range in her acting. The way she acted so aloof to interacting with her all the other actors made it feel like she could never be a matchmaker. The part with Chester pooring out his heart to her seemed thrown out there, she couldn't even act interested. Would've been better to get a different actress and one that could actually display some genuine emotion to make it believable there was love for the leading male character. Change the leading actress and the show would be more watchable. It's not one I'll ever watch again nor recommend anyone watch. At least the leading love interest was good at his job and nice to look at. Honestly, he was the only thing that got me through the movie.

Emily Rose made this movie. Her work friends and ex-love were also really good. So many times 1 actor ruins the movie. I started it to see what it was like. Watched the whole thing. A few surprises kept the story a cut above so many Xmas movies. Well worth watching

Christmas films can go either way, which has been my experience watching overtime the festive output of Lifetime and Hallmark. They can either be well-meaning, charming, warm-hearted and don't feel too heavy. Or they can be too over-sentimental, cheesy, contrived and bland. There have been many films of theirs that have fallen in both camps and in the camp where there is a bit of both. And 'Matchmaker Christmas' did have the sort of premise where the execution could have gone either way.

Luckily, for me, on the most part, 'Matchmaker Christmas' is in the former category. Having seen a lot of Christmas films that were in the latter category prior to seeing it, that was something of a relief. It is not perfect and not a Christmas classic, with a few common (for Lifetime's festive output) flaws, but as far as 2019 Lifetime films go 'Matchmaker Christmas' is to me one of the better ones and a nice way to spend 90 minutes.

'Matchmaker Christmas' has a few shortcomings. Do agree that the music was not very well balanced with the dialogue and tended to be overdone, if used less and toned down the film would have fared better. Some of the dialogue in the early portions is a bit too on the corny and gooey side, not unusual for Lifetime.

It is a bit of a slow starter as well with it feeling a bit thin to begin with.

However, 'Matchmaker Christmas' also has some very attractive scenery quite photogenically shot. It is directed sympathetically without being routine. The film is helped hugely by the very appealing performances of Emily Rose and Corey Sevier, both managing to make their characters rootable and interesting. The supporting cast fare well too, with Melanie Nelson giving her all without being over-the-top. Really liked the chemistry between Rose and Sevier, which was very easy-going and charming. Not to mention that it looked genuine and like they cared for each other.

While not starting off on the right foot perhaps, the dialogue does improve drastically and flows better. Also being in general a lot less cheesy and over-sentimental than too many previously seen Christmas films, not to mention being thought-provoking in a sincere way without patronising. The story is heart-warming, sincere and has enough of a light heart to avoid things from getting heavy. Really appreciated that the central relationship took its time to develop and did have more depth than most central relationships in the company's festive outings. Also that the ending wasn't abrupt ot too pat, with to boot a final decision and motivation reveal that rang true.

Concluding, solid effort. 7/10

This movie is an entertaining Christmas love story. It's the kind of movie to help get in the holiday mood with a cup of hot cocoa. Light, warm feeling with a good pace, it's something you'd expect to watch on Lifetime.