Just Like a Christmas Movie

For a Reel One film I was pleasantly surprised. Many of their Christmas romcoms are subpar in setting, acting, plot and especially writing. This starts off like a b-movie with unlikeable main character and unskilled lead actor (actually I was rooting for the assistant) but I soon realized it was a meta sendup through and through.

The jump-cuts from day to night and location to location might seem like careless filming but it's soon obvious they are absolutely deliberate. The main character is completely at sea when it happens, cuing us that something odd is going on in movie-land. When she once again sees the airport Santa that wished this 'curse' on her, the penny drops.

I have to say that the main character gets more likeable as the movie continues and she is forced to grapple with figuring out the parameters of this magical Christmas movie-world she's trapped in.

This movie is a 6 on its own, .5 more for the concept and another .5 for its execution, and the extra .5 (7.5 total) is for the very entertaining secondary characters who are completely oblivious that they are stock characters in a Christmas rom-com.

A comedy with a very classical theme: the Christmas spirit, Emily doesn't have any the feeling for Christmas ( a family story): her dream is to travel to Bali and write a story. But then she lands in a snowy town and begins to think that she is living nightmare. She meets Chris and his parents: all seems for her fantasy. Then she has a duty: to help Chris and his parents to save the Christmas fair and for herself to rediscover the Christmas: A comedy with some sweet and funny moments: I enjoyed the performances of Marile Collins, Brad Harder, Sptephanie Izsak, Beth Fotheringham, Dave Kenneth Mc Kinnon and Vance Potter.

I don't care what people say about this movie... It's amazing! I think me and my boyfriend and friends will be watching it every year from now on.

I never write reviews and I don't really like the cheesiness of Christmas movies so this is big for me honestly!

It's honestly so funny, it made me laugh a bunch at it's silliness. I actually liked the main couple for once? There's some moments where you cringe but literally in a good way!

I also wanted to write this review in hopes that the actors and crew are proud of this and know that someone out there who went through piles of garbage Christmas movies for so long is now going to watch this one every year! The acting was not hard to watch and I loved the realistic and super movie trope sides. It was self aware but not in the lame way that other movies try to do. Also, the main actress has a great singing voice and I love the best friend character and who she ends up with. I'm not great with reviews so I'll end this here! :)

This is Reel One Entertainment Christmas 2023 season TV movie, and unfortunately it's a failure like so many their on 2022 season. It's sad because technically is fine - it was shot in the winter and not summer or autumn like so many Hallmark Christmas TV movies, stock footage is minimal, and music score is fine except musical parts which I highly dislike.

The cast is so-so. Marlie Collins overplayed in the most of the movie, it was just sad and bad because she is a capable actress. I watched her in the four previous movies, and I actually wrote that she deserve to be promoted to the lead. Her partner Brad Harder was miscasted, they had zero chemistry and he was low energy whole movie. I mostly liked Lauren Jackson, and I hope in the future she's going to land the lead role at ROE.

Writing and directing killed movie for me, and when you check director and writers it's obviously why. There is no romance in the movie, and I'll try to submit removal of it as even ROE on their own site didn't tag it as one. Furthermore, the storyline posted in ROE is actually correct one, and here on IMDb is a bit of misleading. The movie is actually a parody and comedy about Hallmark Christmas TV movies.

It wouldn't be a big problem except Act I is outright horrendous, no romance, unrelatable leads, you simply don't care about anything and anybody in the movie. It was so bad that I actually rooted for Gwen hoping at least for once that "bad" person is going to win at the end.

Just watch 2:48 min long trailer (for some reasons not posted here) as it's the ROE one and for some unknown reason(s) it shows whole movie compressed, and save your valuable free time.