zkotpen

I've never seen such a modern enactment of a true Elektra as "Christmas is Cancelled." To think, after thousands of dramatizations over the millennia, nothing comes close to Emma's iron grip on her daddy, played by none other than Dermot Mulroney. But this version of Elektra has a welcome, modern twist: It had me laughing all the way.

I have been aware of the myth of Elektra for most of my life, but never considered it in any depth. But Hayley Orrantia portrays such a wicked, selfish, manipulative spoiled child, all grown up and looking forward to wreaking havoc on those closest to her, all in painstaking detail.

And then, there's Dermot Mulroney. I've recently watched several rom-coms from the late 2000s and early 2010s, including a few in which he starred. I was so happy that his movie career fizzled out back then. Clearly, Hollywood tried to make him a star with longevity and greatness; his acting talents never rose to the occasion. More than a decade later, we have a more mature, middle-aged Mulroney with a more tempered, toned-down ego, no longer commanding leading man roles in big movie releases... and he performs very well.

In summ, the two leading actors execute their roles perfectly. Supporting cast & production also perform admirably.

Best of all, whereas the ancients had this sort of tale ending in over-the-top morbid tragedy, "Christmas is Cancelled" made me laugh quite a bit.

Recommended!

Leading female gains access to high profile leading male by means of false pretenses, in which she claims the identity of her suddenly and inconveniently absent female boss. She then proceeds to charm him beyond measure.

Once you've seen one of these concoctions, you have quite literally seen them all. There's no need to waste additional time in one's finite life with "My Summer Prince" (despite the allure of Taylor Cole's charming cheekbones). In the present case, seventeen minutes were enough to make this Romantic Comedy a completely unwatchable fiasco for me. I'm sure Ms. Cole played out the role of pretending to be her boss admirably. I'm sure the lie was conveniently forgiven in the end. I'm sure everybody lived happily ever after.

I'm also sure I wasn't interested in wasting one more second than necessary.

Taking on the boss's identity under false pretenses is absolutely a non starter as a plot line.

I'm out!

"Arranged Love" is a great story, especially within the uber cliché Rom-Com genre. It's a refreshing break from so many recent Rom-Coms that play out almost exactly the same script, with changes in setting and character names.

The problem is, it's way too Bollywood: It relies too much upon the crutches of melodrama and exoticism, which end up choking the potentially good performances by a solid cast. As a result, what had the potential to be something great ends up being a safety dance -- Bollywood style -- of superficiality, leading us right down the same path of the cliché Rom-Coms I thought for a moment that it just might transcend.

Basically, entertaining, until the shoulder-shrug ending.