Noël est servi

The thing about Catering Christmas is that you don't feel any troughs and peaks emotionally. There is no ancipation. The writer and director set out to make a pleasant movie and this is what it is. It's sort of one-toned. It's a nice movie to watch if you have exhausted the top 20 Christmas movies on Netflix. As far as performances are concerned, I liked Rosemary Dunsmore the most, she suited her character very well. Daniel Lissing was okay but i felt that he is probably better at intense roles. I couldn't make up my mind about how I felt about Merritt Patterson's performance.

Suffice to say It's a one time watch.

I agree with the reviewer that GAF movies are hit or miss and that this one is a hit. In my opinion, GAF is still building. The success of any particular movie for theme depends on the quality of the stars and other creative staff. They have a few great actors and their movies tend to be winners. The newer faces have to this point not been at the same level.

Merritt Patterson and Daniel Lissing are true veterans in this genre and it shows. This particular pairing has good chemistry although not quite the witty banter seen in some movies. Good dialogue, but not sparkling. Patterson has always impressed me with her presence on the screen. Her presence is sophisticated as opposed to soft and fuzzy. Still she is definitely appealing.

This story follows familiar lines. The leads are thrown together to prepare for a Christmas gala. Molly's business is less than thriving and she needs this event. Carson is in the process of finding himself. Together they boost each other in their best qualities. I'm glad that the controlling Aunt is just that but not overly Scroogelike despite her reputation. She's tough but not mean or rude. Her side story contributes something to fill out the overall story. The activities are the usual - baking, decorating etc. The conflict near the end is another very common plot device and predictable.

Is there any significance that Patterson was the professional photographer in her Christmas movie 3 years earlier while Lissing plays that role here?

I enjoyed this move despite a story that doesn't stand out with any special highs or lows or surprises. Like many GAF movies, the level of dramatic tension is low but it is totally family friendly with little to cause controversy unless the lack of it is controversial in itself. I enjoyed it largely because of the relationship between the leads and upbeat atmosphere.

Whole thing odd and not very christmassy for me. It just happens at that time of year. 'Hello caterer are you free at one of the busiest times of the year? Yes of course!'

Interactions between everyone felt so 'acted'. Nobody felt like they belonged anywhere in that scenario.

Molly wasn't an awful actress and I would watch her in other things but the main guy couldn't carry a lead role for me. No charisma anywhere. The interaction between people felt like it was written by AI.

Weird contrived scenarios. Bizarre But at 1h25 it fit between getting the kids to bed, me downing a Bailey's with cheese and crackers, and bed for me.

As far as the made for TV romances go, we've always regarded Hallmark as top tier and Lifetime as a very distant second. Last year GAF stepped into the picture, and I thought they were better than Lifetime but still not quite up to the quality of Hallmark.

This movie puts GAF a giant step forward. Of course, they spared no expense bringing over Hallmark talent, and it shows.

Here we have an attractive leading couple who both hold up their parts well. We start out with an awkward and amusing "mistaken identity" that morphs to the "rebellious next generation."

Then we get a whole lot of what all these movies need and so many fail at ... LOTS of relationship building between the leads. There's little tension and lots of good feeling, making this a comfortable and enjoyable window into this story's world.

Even a couple of contrived speedbumps don't slow this down. Recommended.

7.8 stars.

This is the perfect example of a movie that will only strike a chord with people who really like one or both of the lead actors. The plot is so standard it reeks of complacent writing. The acting is well rounded and the people are lovely. It's just that the script is not amazing and the dialogue is average average throughout, maybe some dialogue now and then, but that's all. So why would I give this 7.8 stars, only for the leads. I really love Patterson, and I'm a guy, so that' the key. I like Lissing as a male lead, and so this helps also, although he looks a bit quirky to me at times, not sure why. The best part of the film was the old couple (the foundation lady and the "butler" manager fella). That was a very limited romance on screen, but that single scene was amazing.

The love between the leads is a slow burner and it eventually comes to fruition and becomes magical at the end. What's interesting is how the actors interpret the story and make it their own, and they make it work. I can feel the charisma this go around. Sometimes a movie just works, other times it don't. So if you don't like the leads, you will probably dislike 'Catering Christmas'.