Un Natale su misura

Warning: not for the hyperglycemic or the lactose-intolerant!

I was expecting to hate this based on low scores and poor reviews on here...BUT, shamefully, I liked it!

It's cheesy & sugary and yet it works at the superficial level it was created on...it's better than it should be, and I've seen worse.

Not so keen on the male lead and his overly preened eyebrows but the leading lady had a nice presence, and both worked well together.

This could turn into an annual 'guilty pleasure', for many viewers!

The theme of follow your dream is a drum beaten pretty loudly in this movie.

The story premise of a bachelor hiring a Christmas decorator/planner isn't unique but it works out in this movie. Interesting climax too.

Alexa PenaVega is a lot of fun in this movie. I like optimistic characters and she's all that here. But I'm not so sure that her acting comes off as natural. Likewise Jonathan Bennett for acting. It's not that either one is bad, but sometimes a shot or a line just doesn't seem right.

I recently noticed (too late, I fear) that Hallmark likes throwing in Easter eggs this year (little surprise treasures for the observant viewer). In this one, watch for a photograph of PenaVega and a special someone.

I watched this movie expecting it to be better based on the rating here, however, I was unpleasantly surprised. The main problem for me was the leading lady, she felt like "acting nice" and her facial expressions were cringy. No chemistry between her and the leading man as well. I couldn't bother finishing it.

After so many Hallmark Christmas films, Christmas Made to Order is just...comfortable. Not surprising, not touching, not sweet. Only comfortable , in many scenes against Alexa PenaVega and Jonathan Bennett, each giving fair jobs but the expected chemistry between them being only a sort of...sketch. Her hard effort to be the lovely young woman, his try to be the expected architect, the total unrealistic end are, for many reasons, too much but, like many Hallmark productions, it is saved by secondary actors , by the eulogy to family and by not very bad humor. And, sure, the spirit of Christmas is the first savior.

Before seeing 'Christmas Made to Order', catchy title don't you think, some of my previous Hallmark Christmas film viewings had not been particularly good (not at all in a few cases) so feelings were somewhat sceptical. Did have some glimmer of hope though for 'Christmas Made to Order', as the premise was interesting and as far as Hallmark Christmas films go it and the setting are or at least sounded different from the norm.

'Christmas Made to Order', actually saw it a while back but have been behind on my reviewing, turned out to be much better than expected. Of the Christmas films seen in the period it was seen in, 'Christmas Made to Order' was generally up there among the better ones. It's not great or perfect, with a few of the usual gremlins when it comes to talking about the flaws but with a good deal of good things that Hallmark Christmas films have quite a number of times shown.

It didn't for me start off particularly promisingly. Quite routine and a lot of the dialogue was laughably bad early on (the worst of it had me cringing in my seat).

Some of the support acting struggled to make much of an impression and was quite anaemic in roles that never were more than just there cliches. Also would have liked more development to the central relationship, it was nice and didn't seem forced but with more time to unfold and wasn't quite as whirlwind feeling.

To me though, 'Christmas Made to Order' did get a lot better. So don't be deterred. Jonathan Bennett is likeable enough and even better is Alexa PenaVega, refreshingly spirited in a role that isn't over-written or personality deprived. Their characters weren't meaty, but they at least had personality and personalities that actually appealed. Their chemistry is unforced and charming. It looks attractive in its own way, with nice scenery and the photography complements it nicely. The soundtrack is pleasant enough and is not as overscored as other Hallmark Christmas films. The direction is not exceptional but is solid enough for the type of film it is.

While the dialogue is far from perfect, it did improve later on and didn't feel as corny or gooey. It induced some smiles. The story may be straightforward and doesn't have many surprises, but the setting is made very good use of and there is not too much of a stale feel compared to other Hallmark Christmas films, not feeling as over-familiar. The film is very light hearted and really warmed my heart and when the sentiment came in it didn't feel excessive or manipulative.

Overall, pretty good. 7/10