Christmas by Candlelight

This story is completely formulaic without any surprises. You will guess every single plot point within the first ten minutes and then suffer through the predictable dialogue for the rest of the movie. The characters are an embarrassingly stereotypical collection of recycled troupes. The performances are acceptable within the low standard that has been established by the writing.

This would be better if it was rewritten as a self-mocking comedy spoof of every other holiday movie that has already been made. They could have saved a lot of money and time by editing together scenes from a dozen second rate shows that have already been made.

It was a nice storyline. A different premise than the usual stories told in Christmas romance movies. Albeit, it does have the typical single parent with a deceased or divorced parent. The acting was pretty poor all around. My main criticism is that the two main characters have absolutely no chemistry whatsoever between them. No fireworks, warmth, absolutely nothing. The casting was just a poor choice for the lead roles in this movie. It definitely could've been a much better outcome with actors that meshed together seamlessly. So, while it wasn't unbearable to watch, it was disappointing that it had promise to be oh so much better.

Christmas By Candlelight (2023) -

Erin Agostino as Juliet was ditzy and a bit much. I thought that it might have worked better with her as the creative candlemaker and him as the executive actually. She did seem a bit like a big eyed Anna Kendrick too.

And while Harmon Walsh was attractive, I didn't feel that connected with his character Tom, or find him as appealing as some of the others that have appeared in these films.

I also didn't want the pair to get together because he just wasn't right for her and I felt that she would drag him down with her constantly overzealous drive and hyperactivity.

The overall production seemed a few years older than it was as well. It seemed a bit behind the times and the acting didn't feel that brilliant either. Some of the lines of dialogue seemed a bit unthought out too, as if they had just opted for the first draft of the script.

It was ultimately fine as these things go, but there are a lot of others of this genre that would always take precedence over watching this one again.

5.44/10.