Natal a la mode

'Christmas a La Mode' had one of those premises that actually didn't excite me all that much. It sounded very thin on the ground and like one of those films where everything was going to be obvious from the get go all the way through to the end. It is one of those premises that has been done quite a few times before and done quite conventionally each time. Saw it anyway, being such a big fan of Christmas and because of seeing a number of Lifetime/Hallmark etc. Christmas films overtime.

My somewhat indifferent feelings on the premise has sadly not changed all that much since watching 'Christmas a La Mode', with its execution of it being pretty much what it sounded like reading the basic synopsis. It isn't a terrible film, there are moments and good things, but there is not much really that is great either and some things are downright badly executed. There are certainly far worse Christmas films around, also far better.

There are good things here in 'Christmas a La Mode'. The best thing about it for me was Ryan Cooper, who came over as charming and sympathetic and his character was easily the easiest to warm to. Katie Leclerc also fared well and gives it her all, she didn't overdo the role and it didn't sound like she was just reading the lines. Did like them together and it was clear that they cared for each other.

Visually, 'Christmas a La Mode' looks attractive with some lovely scenery complemented without any signs of drabness or garishness by the photography. There are a few sweet moments here and there.

However, do agree with those that found the music too constant and too loud and it was neither interesting or appealing music. It balances poorly with the dialogue, which is also nothing to write home about due to the overload of cheese and over-sentiment. Also agree with those that found the character of Dorothy insufferably irritating and her last minute character change far too unrealistically abrupt. Jennifer Ellis overacted the character in my view too.

Found the story paper thin, with a pretty uneventful first half, and dully paced on the whole. While also hastily and too patly wrapping things up at the end. Generally it lacked charm and heart, with too little to it, and pretty much everything was obvious well before they happened. Only the two leads are good when it comes to the acting, everybody else overacts or is forgettable with none of their characters being interesting. The direction is workmanlike at best.

Overall, lacklustre but with moments. 4/10

Despite the leading female character being a thoroughly unpleasant person, I enjoyed this very much. The actors playing the two lead characters were very appealing. I loved the hero. He was very attractive both inside and out. I would love to see more of the actor who played the character. I loved the actress as well. She was very cute and wholesome looking. A true girl next door look. There was good chemistry between the two lovebirds.

The story had good tension and suspense. While it is true that the citified sister was an antagonist in the noble quest to save the family farm, for most of the movie, I was onboard with her sensible move to sell it to a large Dairy Farm concern rather than having the family lose the whole thing to bankruptcy. Emily, the farm sister was unreasonable, sulky, and obstinate in her refusal to see anyone's viewpoint other than her own. Not to mention lying to her mother. I didn't have any sympathy for her at first. She was effectively putting loyalty to her dead father over her Mom's future. Homelessness, here we come. And why didn't she go into crisis mode earlier to formulate a plan to save the farm? It was limping along for years, apparently. Also, I'm not a fan of asking for donations to save a business that was not making it on it's own steam and business plan. It does not bode well for the long term viability of the business. It was just putting off the inevitable. Of course when the sister went completely over to the dark side, by switching her support to the housing development, I really started rooting for Emily. By that time she had finally got a fire lit under her and her schemes were bearing some fruit. After she lost the attitude, she was actually very charming.

I also want to note the actress who played their farm hand. Not conventionally pretty, but I liked that choice. She was excellent. I liked the final solution, it made very good sense. And since I didn't hate the city sister from the get-go, I was OK with her retconned personality change at the end. And the apple-pie ice-cream sounded absolutely delicious.

I.

"Christmas a la Mode" is a Drama - Romance movie in which we watch a woman trying to save her family's farm in order to continue her father's legacy. During Christmas she has to find a lot of money and she has to find them very fast.

I have to admit that despite that I did not have any expectations from this movie, I was happily surprised by it. It was a nice Christmas movie to spend your time, it had a simple but beautiful plot with a nice meaning. The interpretations of both Ryan Cooper's who played as Charlie Blanchard and Katie Leclerc's who played as Emily White were very good and they both did a nice job. The direction which was made by John Stimpson was average but good enough for this kind of movie. Finally, I have to say that "Christmas a la Mode" is a nice, beautiful Christmas movie and I recommend everyone to watch it.

The movie was fine, but we had to put the captions on to understand the actors. Turn down the music!!!!!!

Loved the actress for once. Other than the big 3, which everybody likes, most others are lousy until this woman.................worth watching.........