A Christmas Frequency

"A Christmas Frequency" tries to tune into the holiday spirit but ends up as a static-filled mess of clichés and predictable plotlines. The concept of setting up blind dates on air could have been a fresh take on the Christmas rom-com genre, but instead, we're served a re-gifted plot that feels like it's been under the tree for too long. The radio show in the movie is dying, and unfortunately, no amount of on-air chemistry can save the lackluster script and the underwhelming performances.

Watching the Kenzie juggle her affections between her boss and a radio caller is as cringe-worthy as overhearing a breakup on a bus. The movie aims for heartwarming but lands squarely in the territory of second-hand embarrassment. Ansley Gordon's acting is as convincing as a mall Santa in July, and the romantic tension is about as thick as the budget seems to have been. It's a wonder that the frequency didn't cut out halfway through filming, saving us all from the awkward dialogue and forced festive cheer.

In a final act of desperation, "A Christmas Frequency" tries to wrap everything up with a big red bow, delivering a resolution that's supposed to be touching but feels as rushed as a last-minute Christmas Eve mall run. The choice between head and heart is less of a dilemma and more of a foregone conclusion in a film where the only true surprise is that the runtime felt twice as long as the 12 days of Christmas. If you're looking for a film to add to your holiday tradition, keep scanning the channels-this one's just static.

I had the sense that this had more potential than it actually achieved, but it's pretty cute and there was plenty to like if you're a fan of the Chritmas rom-com (guilty or shameless). For starters it's a better performance from Denise Richards than I've seen from her for a long while. I felt like she tapped into something genuine and personal and really made the character of Brooke feel like she had some human dimensions. I believed the relationship with her estranged husband.

The lead actors were likable and the supporting cast did their best with the material they were given. Jonathan Stoddard as the romantic lead reminded me at times of a Gilmore Girls era David Sutcliffe, and that's no bad thing. His IMDB page says he has 14 projects coming up, so clearly we'll see lots more of this actor.

On the negative side, there were points where the script was just running headlong toward its inevitable conclusion like a sprinter with plans after the race, even more than others of its genre. On the plus side that meant that the moments of cringe were generally brief and breezed through.

I am a little confounded as to why no one called any of the characters at the radio station out on their horrifyingly abrupt (off the air) phone conversation techniques. It was almost like they were speaking to voice mail, except there was a person looking stunned and baffled on the other end of the line. But those people never called them back and said 'Hey, buddy, wtf was that?'

On the whole it was an unstressful way to spend an hour and a half, with some good performance, that just could have used a bit more care on the script.

A Christmas Blind Date/Frequency (2023) -

From the beginning this film was very silly. The best friend Maya (Casey Hodge) was an idiot, the boss Brooke (Denise Richards) was annoying and Ben's best friend Liam (Edward Lewis French) was aggravating too. Why do the British stand out so much in these films?

Not to mention the irritating boss, Mark (John F. Henry II). And what was with Ben's Mother Judy (Iris Anthony)??

I feel that they either need to make these films full comedy or lighthearted drama, not a half and half of both, because dropping in daft characters amongst the two leads who aren't hamming it up ultimately just jars it all.

To start with Kenzie (Ansley Gordon) was at least relatable as a person, although her behaviour let her down and was hard to believe towards the end.

And even though Jonathan Stoddard as Ben was sort of cute, if a bit sleepy looking, he was easy to connect with as well and a nice guy to boot, who didn't deserve to be mistreated so badly.

As Kenzie tried to set up Brooke on blind dates and Ben got mixed up in the attempt the story got a bit convoluted, which let it down a bit and I did feel that Ben forgave a lot easier than I would have. I thought that it was probably an attempt to create a love V (It's not a triangle unless they all fancy someone different) in order to vary the standard story slightly, but for me it just made the main connection a bit weak.

Other than that I had to wonder what had happened to Denise's voice??? She actually seemed like a 70 year old with loads of plastic surgery, not because of how she looked, but how she was acting and moving. It didn't help that her character wasn't particularly likeable and I did question if she was worthy of Todd played by James Hyde.

I also felt that some of the wardrobe choices were terrible and who tied the ties??? I hope someone got fired for that!

Overall it was all fairly predictable as I had expected, but it was sweet enough I supposed. I might not rush back to see it again, but give me ten years or so and I probably wouldn't say no to trying again.

6.09/10.