The Lost Holliday

The Lost Holiday is a meandering, pretentious mess masquerading as indie charm. It's like someone found a half-finished student film and said, "Yeah, good enough." The characters are insufferable, the dialogue is painfully forced, and the plot - if you can even call it that - stumbles around like a drunk at closing time. Watching this movie feels less like entertainment and more like being trapped at a party you desperately want to leave, but the hosts just won't stop talking about themselves. A complete waste of time that somehow manages to feel both hollow and smug.

Spend your hours watching something else.

If The Lost Holiday were an actual trip, you'd cancel it halfway through and Venmo request everyone involved. It's a meandering, try-hard mumblecore flick that thinks it's charming, but mostly just feels like watching brunch plans go wrong in real time.

Now, let's talk about Juicy. Remember when he became a national headline for staging the most infamous Subway sandwich run in Chicago history? Well, somehow, his energy in The Lost Holiday is even less believable than that. He floats in and out of scenes like he's lost, method acting, perhaps? Or just genuinely confused he's still getting cast? Either way, the film is not so much a "holiday" as it is a reminder of how quickly goodwill can evaporate like cheap champagne on a sticky floor in Lincoln Park.

Smollett tries to bring nuance to his role, but all I could think was: "Is this scene before or after his trip to that -10°F sandwich shop?" Chicago might forgive, but the audience won't forget-and neither will Rotten Tomatoes.

Avoid like a sleet storm in February.

The Lost Holiday, offers an emotionally rich and deeply nuanced story that explores themes of family, love, grief, and reconciliation. The film is centered on Cassandra Marshall, played by the legendary Vivica A. Fox, who learns of her estranged son Damien Holliday's (Jabari Redd) death and travels to Los Angeles to handle his arrangements. However, Cassandra is shocked to discover that her son's husband, Jason Holliday (portrayed by Smollett), has already taken care of everything. Cassandra not only grapples with her son's death but also the revelation that he was gay and had a life - including a husband and a foster daughter - she knew nothing about.

Vivica A. Fox commands the screen as Cassandra, a character that blends fabulousness with moments of being a bit over-the-top. Her performance is both spunky and heartfelt. Fox's impeccable comedic timing brings levity to the heavier aspects of the story. She masterfully conveys a mother grappling with the shock of discovering her son's hidden life, all while grieving and undergoing her own journey of personal growth. This subplot of Cassandra's evolution injects a sense of hope into the film, serving as a reminder that life, even in the wake of grief, continues.

Smollett's direction shines, particularly in his ability to tell a story that authentically captures the experiences of Black LGBTQ+ individuals. The relationship between Jason and Damien is portrayed with respect and depth, avoiding stereotypical narratives, and instead focuses on love, care, and partnership.

Overall, The Lost Holiday is a solid, heartwarming, and often humorous film with a stellar cast and a script that skillfully weaves humor with heavy emotional moments. Smollett's performance as Jason is a standout, as is Fox's award-worthy portrayal of Cassandra. This film is not only about family and love, but also about coming to terms with the past and finding healing in unexpected places.

Don't waste your time on this one. No story and bad acting. The other reviews don't match the movie I saw? Could they be a hoax and staged? At best written by employees of the movie, only way to explain them.

If you want a fun Holiday movie watch Office Christmas Party. Has a great story and fantastic effects the drone shot outside the building showing the party on multiple floors is fantastic. Another good holiday movie is The Holiday tells a love story of a house swap, watch it.

The Lost Holiday attempts to tell a tragic tail but misses the mark. The story is convoluted and goes out of the way to over explain the obvious. Please just move on life is short.

Man, I love Vivica Fox but woosh, girl, what were you thinking? I also like Smullet on Empire but the guy really messed up his whole career with the fake attack incident so he's now "directing" movies that he is funding and putting together and as a result, you get this mess.

The characters are contrived - I mean really forced and a predictable. She finds out her son is gay and has to deal with new emotions - emotions that don't ring true in this awful attempt at being a "Christmas movie" that people may want to watch during the holidays every year. There are other folks in this who are good actors but wasted on a terrible script and direction.

Again, I love Fox but she's got to stay away from terrible stuff like this. And of course, there are a few 10 star reviews here, all written the exact same way "it's emotional depth and authenticity and the cinematography was a visual feast!" I think they're reviewing Lawrence of Arabia, definitely not this movie. Of course the "people" have one review - this movie. I think we've gotten to the point where you come in here to see what people say about a movie but if there's a bunch of ten star reviews, you need to look at the person's account to see if it's a real person with multiple reviews or Jussie Smullet.

At the time I'm writing this it's a 2.2 rating but I suspect that will still go down. Avoid.