A Snow Globe Christmas

I saw and disliked the first snow globe movie with Christina Milian but hoped that the presence of Alicia Witt , Trevor Donavan and Donald Faison in the cast would make this an enjoyable movie. But alas , the snow globe failed me again.

I watched the whole movie and kept hoping that it would get better, after all it had Alicia, Trevor and Donald in it. They deserved better than this. But it was just so disjointed, badly written and badly edited that it made it difficult to watch. The actors tried their best but the writers gave them very little to work with. I am not real sure what the plot of this movie was supposed to be, but the entire movie felt like a collection of unrelated scenes, strung together at random, in hopes of making a christmas movie.

This is not a Hallmark movie and doesn't attempt to be. However, if you have enjoyed Hallmark movies with Alicia Witt , Trevor Donavan and Donald Faison in them, avoid this movie.

This was a boring movie, who knew 90 minutes could be so-o-o long. It is right up there as one the worst movies I have ever seen.

I gave it no stars, and that was being generous.

A cynical TV exec looks at the perfect town inside a Christmas globe and rants about how the holiday movies she produces are as fake as the ornament. She throws it against the wall and it bounces back and knocks her out. But when she wakes up in a perfect snow-covered town, married to a local woodsman, she discovers it s not all just a fantasy.

The film is really a first class production. The story is a little bit of a retread of better films however its so well made you can't get mad. Alicia Witt seems to be in every other Christmas movie that gets made. It was also so sweet to see Donald Faison be romantic. This film is family safe. It so safe that if your single the film might even change your life. Watch and enjoy.

This movie doesn't really have any flow and is hard to follow. Rather than feeling like its own show, it feels more like a bad editing job of splicing together every other Christmas movie you've ever seen. Considering that the main character is trying to make the perfect Christmas movie when she passes out, I'm sure this is probably on purpose, but unfortunately the end result isn't good. It feels more like we were dropped into a fun house than a snow globe. Also, the male and female leads didn't demonstrate any believable chemistry, or at least not for more than a second or two at a time. Both actors are terrific, and I've loved them in other shows, but it just didn't work here. It might not be their fault, though. It could be because the movie kept jumping around and never held still long enough to maintain emotion. In any case, your time would probably be better spent watching one or more of the other Christmas movies instead of this trippy imitation.

Courtesy of the Great Canadian film factory (which, as explained in my other reviews often masquerades as production companies from other parts of the globe), we have this soppy entry, a strange take on the X-mas fantasy classics from the 1940s.

The good news? Alicia Witt. Witt is not only a singer but a comedian and actress of special merit. This reviewer first noticed her in a season of Justified where she stole the spotlight from several dramatic actors more seasoned.

And speaking of "seasoned," this Xmas effort even with its many flaws could have been a lot better than it was were it not for the criminally inept casting of Donald Faison as the fantasy husband.

Folks I understand the benefits of political correctness in the modern age (even though as a youngster I did not go to a "snowflake" university) but there are some things more important than political correctness, such as writing, casting, directing and acting. For starters.

Witt is not only competent, she delivers some very awkward dialog like she means it. Not so with Donald Faison. He seems to think he is in a slapstick comedy instead of a romcom and keeps mugging for a laugh. It would help if there was even a smidgen of chemistry between the two. THERE IS NOT. Worse, the writer/director makes a major faux pas and actually takes this lack of chemistry and tries to turn it into a plot arc.

Ugh! Other than for Witt fans, not recommended.

Though it rings of Family Man as many have pointed out, it bares a stronger resemblance to Nancy McKeon's Comfort and Joy. The film twists and turns in ways that are sometimes more frustrating than entertaining. However, the acting is good and the lighting is good and so is the sound. 2013 has not been a good year for sound and lighting in these types of holiday films. In particular kitchen scenes have been riddled with reverb, but not this film. They came through. The overlap with prior Snowglobe films is apparently coincidental more through casting than the story. There is no connection other than the name and a shared actress. It definitely tightens up at the end and makes for a good watch.