Il était une fois à Castlebury

Yes this story is absolutely ridiculous. In fact, I thought it went even beyond most of the other stories of this type. But that doesn't mean it isn't fun to watch.

Jules and her niece and nephew have had a heartbreaking struggle in the loss of her sister and their parents. But we get to see the wonder of children living the fairy tale at Christmas. Leilah de Meza is totally cute as the little girl who doesn't care that her grandpa is a duke. She even overlooks his grumpiness and just loves him.

There are some silly but fun scenes as the common folk meet the stiff royalty and sometimes try to loosen them up.

one of Christmas film. seductive for its childish story, using of expectations of public , beautiful Peleș Castle and Roger Moore. and, sure, few Romanian actors. so, not great expectations or critics. because it is only a fairy tale, the classic fairy tale of Cinderella, using Christmas as pretext for remind the joy of love, family spirit, the prince and the poor girl, the dreams of childhood who becomes reality. all in a seductive story who is real charming. so, it could become a classic of the season. because it has grace and beauty and nice performances and the right cast. and this is the most important fact. to discover the spirit of Christmas as pure form of joy and flavor of fairy tale.

A romantic, modern day fairy tale that is perfect for all the family, but especially for young girls and their Mothers, Grandmothers and their Granddaughters, Aunts & nieces, etc.

Boys, be warned, this may all be a tad emotionally mushy for your taste, but who knows, you may learn some wonderful manners during the process of watching it. Every little girl (and we are all little girls at heart), dreams of being treated like a princess, whether they like to admit it or not.

The beautiful Katie McGrath plays the lead female role and I felt at times, she gave a rather wooden performance that actually enhanced her displays of awkwardness in an unfamiliar situation and so rather than distance the viewer, it actually made her character more endearing to them.

It was wonderful to see Sir Roger Moore acting again, in his typical, suave male role.

A wonderful Christmas Fairy Story.

The biggest problem I found was that a 24 year old man was cast to play a "teenager" and older brother to a seven year old whose parents were likely in their early 30's. If they took the time to cast a young child for the little girl, why couldn't they do the same for the son? The actor is so out of place, it ruins the movie. His face doesn't match with his words and actions. Katie McGrath is only four years older that the actor. It seems so fake when she is talking to him as an adult to a child.

Also, some of the mannerisms of the character of Jules Daly do not match. She does not seem to be the kind of person who would put her elbows on the table at a formal dinner in a castle, or grab sandwiches from a tray and run out of a room. These things are an annoyance because it looks like she does them because it calls for her to do it as an actress, not because the character would do these things.

Overall, I found it very hard to stay focused on the movie.

This is truly a modern fairy tale...and I watch it every Christmas season... The actors are believable and the scenery and locations are stunning.

The added bonus is Sam Heaughan as the Prince...I truly was agog....and it was rather cool to see a former James Bond...acting opposite a very strong front runner for the next James Bond...