Happy Howlidays

6.1 stars.

What everyone else already said. But the actors both have screen presence. It's a weird feeling watching several bad actors in one film. It's deliberate they cast these awkward leads, for sure.

The producers see something in the male lead. He has potential, he's getting there. But yikes, he's off sometimes. Lowndes is who she is. All of her characters are generally the same. She needs help too. She creates too much tension and drama in characters, so we often get the wrong impression.

The male lead's little sister seems cool and maybe she will get more opportunities in the future. The woman who is Lowndes' character's boss and best friend is likable too. So this movie is not all bad for casting choices.

The "other" woman should have been the lead actress. She is a good actress. I am going to repeat that the male leads younger sister is actually pretty good and should have had a more prominent role.

Hallmark took an average script and made a cheap movie. You can see how inexpensive this was. There are no big city scenes or major sets or props and I'm sure the actors weren't paid much. It's a free plug for spreading the message of animal adoption and such.

Her parents seemed out of place as if they were three strangers in an uncomfortable way. We soon find out what the problem is with her character, and it's an emotional moment, but she doesn't fit the mold for who she's supposed to be. I think you'll see. I think her parents were portrayed well for the short screen time. A shame they got stuck in this dead-end story.

Why am I wasting so much time criticizing this film? All said, this movie is grossly underwhelming, but I still felt the need to finish it.

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.

My friend and I watched Finding Mr. Christmas together, a reality competition to find the next male lead for a new Hallmark Christmas movie. The show was sweet and warm, like being wrapped in a cozy blanket for an hour. The ten guys truly rooted for and supported each other which was refreshing to see. The ultimate winner ended up being model Ezra Moreland.

My problem with the series was that there were just not enough challenges to fully show the men's acting chops. We watched very brief acting scenes as well as talent, dancing, and improv challenges. The second placer, Hayden, was seemingly the best actor but ultimately the crown went to the best looking guy with the best body.

I had high hopes for Ezra and wanted him to succeed. But watching Happy Howlidays is like watching someone drowning. Ezra looked great for sure, but the acting was tentative, flat, and one note from beginning to end. The poor guy was clearly in way over his head, not having acted before and having to carry a film. On top of that he had to work with dogs, a so so leading lady, and a bottom of the barrel script.

It was an incredibly disappointing ending to a terrific series. Hopefully lessons were learned for next years Finding Mr, Christmas. Meanwhile, I hope this at least leads to more modeling jobs for Ezra. And just maybe Hayden can be given a well deserved spot in an upcoming Hallmark film.

Followed Finding Mr Christmas through it all, we were confused with much of it in terms of the challenges. We loved the support of four female actors/directors who shone in their help in this process and the oh so cute Jonathan and Melissa were great of course, but one thing I found curious was why they were never put up opposite a guy (they fudn't know), as there are many roles opposite a brother/best friend/potential competitor etc. The loss of Daxton to eye damage was sad as I felt he was our clear choice early on, and we do hope they bring him back in future competitions. We stuck with it, and sadly Ezra was our last choice to win the competition.

We looked forward to Ezra's debut in his first movie, and then heard he had two big challenges to his first show...#1 working with beautiful dogs, who were incredible actors and stole the show - FULL STOP, and Ezra was paied with Jessica Lowndes. I understand she is a good singer/composer, and liked her song in this movie, but I am not a fan of her acting, and certainly not in this movies. I have seen her in quite a few of her movies and not one did i enjoy. So having Ezra come out of the blocks working with dogs and Jessica felt like a double whammy and quite unfair to him. The movie's story was uninspiring and obvious to the outcome. The dogs were just charming to watch and we both would have watched another five or six movies with them.

Ezra is an extremely handsome model with an incredible, great build, but that doesn't translate to a 3-d performance...emotions and heart just aren't there on screen, which we saw lots of with the other two.. So if they do decide to make another with him, please gjve him a decent opportunity with an experienced actor (any of the four from this competition would be great) and with no or minimal animals.