I Believe in Santa

It's a film with a completely illogical premise that takes itself really seriously. The main actor has a gay best friend, wears a lot of make up, is as camp as Christmas (pardon the pun), and pouts all the time. He looks like Julian Clary. He's incredibly gay and it was just not believable to see him in a heterosexual love story. NPH in HIMYM or Bulldog in Frasier are also gay men but they were believable as straight love interests. This actor was very camp and so the premise seemed ludicrous.

I can't believe things like this get commissioned and made because they are so cringe. There are much better movies of the Hallmark Christmas genre.

I agree with the reviewers who felt the male lead was better suited to his male friend! I could not believe him and the female at all as a couple and then read on and find they are married in real life. What?!

I will say this was reasonably entertaining for a Xmas movie. Maybe because he was kind of creepy going on about Santa, his expressions and some of the clothing choices that made him seem like a big baby! It was like watching a car crash. I do think they were channeling Buddy the Elf here. I'm sorry, I would laugh my head off if I was dating a guy who behaved like that (and then run). This guy seems like he's got some mental issues.

Acting is very wooden, but I've certainly seen worse Xmas movies.

The movie was fun, although, a very Hallmark channel type of movie. C'mon, a working girl meets a guy really into Christmas, never done before! (/s) And it was rather predictable, since the scene where Lisa's daughter (who's name I definitely remember /s) gets lost I pretty much predicted the whole movie. The acting was weak,certain parts were very corny, and (no offence), Lisa's eyes annoyed me.

Now's the part where i'll discard all of the problems and full-heartedly defend this movie! The idea is like many Hallmark Christmas movies, but more over the top. And people say that this movie is unrealistic and the idea is stupid, and for that I have one word: So? This is a Christmas movie for gods sake! Who the hell is going to sit here and critically judge a CHRISTMAS movie for crying out loud? The idea is fun and that's whats the only thing that matters in a Christmas movie. Christmas needs to be cheerful, heart-warming, not serious.

I rest my case.

Like a lot of other reviewers, I found the love story hard to buy. Like one other reviewer I saw, I was pretty convinced that the actual couple was Tom and Assan.

BUT, I love seeing a love of doing all of the holiday things with kids. This movie caught all of the family rituals of Christmas without being overbearing and just stressful like it was depicted in Bad Mom's Christmas. There was a joy in sharing all of those rituals with the kid that made it believable.

In the end, I really liked the message of the movie. I liked all of the reasons to believe and all of the reasons not to steal that from your children. For me, this movie was all about Ella, the little girl even though she was supposed to be playing the minor role.

I couldn't buy the love story--my apologies to the married actors. But, I didn't need to in order to buy into the powerful Christmas message of this movie. I was prepared to hate it and was pleasantly surprised.

I knew from the log line that this would be corrny, but so what. I love corny Christmas movies. Corny is a Christmas movie definer. But, this movie was altogether something else.

First, I was sorely disappointed that Assan was not the boyfriend! TOM she fell for Tom??? I agree with a few other comments that Tom and Assan made a more compatible couple. I also agree that Lisa looked spooked the entire film.

I rated it a 3, a point for Assan who had the best lines, a point for Ella's who was a cool kid, and a point for the sister who played ( just don't get me started on the trope of the minority friend with no life of her own) Lisa's friend for watching her girl go through this foolishness without judgement. Okay, they did finally show her family... and Assan's at the end.

The rest of it was purely ridic.