Happy Howlidays

I liked the lead actor. Knowing iit was his first movie, I cut him some slack. He was actually pretty good. His character was exactly what he was - unhappy and grouchy after a bad breakup. Jessia Lowndes is as wooden as always. She seems to be awkward all the time. She is a beautiful woman, but not an actress. She is stiff and never seems invested in anything I've seen her in on Hallmark. The dogs were cute, and stole the scenes they were in together. I'd like to see Mr. Christmas with a different - less wooden - actress to see what he's got. It's hard to learn to act opposite someone who isn't very good at it - so I thought he did well for what he had to work with. He needs a seasoned actress to act with, someone more relaxed and more invested would help him loosen up and be more relaxed and invested as well. He's easy on the eyes and hope to see him again.

The storyline was kind of slow. The lead actress was bitter and we didn't know why for quite a while. If we knew what had been going on in her life, it would have made it easier to continue to watch. I still muddled through. The lead (new) actor was given a role that was worried and angry most of the time. He never really had the opportunity to shine. Sure, the saving of a dog rescue is serious business. The one time it looked like he smiled the most the camera was at his back. When he said he fell in love with her the moment he met her, I would have never known. Put these two together again with a more lighthearted story. That might work.

The storyline was cute. The dogs were cute. The male lead was not cute or compelling. While print model, Ezra Moreland's performance had flickers of authenticity, it was for the most part wooden & superficial. If he went to acting class and got some real training maybe it would help. That said, this was his first acting attempt, so he probably was anxious about his performance, but right now, he seems to be "modeling" through the role & not finding his character. Like several others, I was surprised when Ezra was given (yes, given) the Hallmark "Mr. Christmas" title over the more talented and charismatic, Hayden, who was always the stand-out; the one your eye was drawn to in every ensemble//group shot and every acting scene. Hopefully, Hallmark will rectify their original decision & sign Hayden to a contract, too.

Mia finds a dog in the rain one night so she takes to the shelter because she can't take him on. Max, the owner of the said rescue shelter rejects them. Because the world works in mysterious ways they meet again with their dogs who developed an instant attraction.

It's safe to say the dogs had more chemistry than the leads. Which is a shame. With a new face in Hallmark I was looking foward to this one but was disappointed. I'm not gonna judge Ezra because it's his first one, but maybe he should have started with a secondary role and the go from there. Like many leads nowadays did.

The plot of the movie is quite flat, maybe with other actors it could have worked. And it wasn't even necessary the Christmas factor. It could have been a summer movie.

I can't help but notice that this is the second actor to come back to Hallmark after the fail that is GAF. I just hope it ends there. And that's all I'm gonna comment about it.

I agree that the two leads took away too much from this story that otherwise had potential. The dogs were the attraction and Penny was the most likeable human. In this genre, most of the time the romantic leads start off antagonistically toward each other. Max did so a little too much. For example, I don't care how much you are trying to help someone, a man basically off the street doesn't walk into her bedroom while she shouts no, no, no, no. That is so far out of bounds it is a dealbreaker.

I can understand how a novice with dogs allows him to make a mess the first night, but any idiot would have made at least some changes before the second.

The backstories go part of the way to explain some of Mia and Max's behaviors, but don't nearly justify them. These backstories are obscured until later in the movie to the point of being a twist, at least Mia's. The viewer gets a few hints that all is not smooth at the shelter giving a slightly fresh approach to one of this genre's most common premises.

Shipping dogs, rather than people, is another fresh approach. Their antics were entertaining. And I wanted to see more of Penny. Jessica Lowndes, whom I normally love, had no chemistry with rookie actor and contest winner Ezra Moreland. This isn't that surprising that a veteran professional might not easily bond with the newcomer. This was bad enough that it was very hard to buy into the idea that they might be in love.

I think many viewers will be disappointed with the failure to capitalize on the potential here, especially when you have two likeable dogs getting so much attention. I give the movie way more stars than it probably deserves because of the dogs, Penny and some of the elements of the story.