My wife and I are suckers for a sappy Christmas movie in the classic Hallmark genre. You do not expect Al Pacino or Jack Nicholson type acting. In fact, if you look at the IMDb reviews of Christmas movies, they are almost always on average 2 to 3 stars above what one would rate a non-Christmas movie because people understand these are "feel good" movies designed to inspire Christmas spirit, not win academy awards (and that is why I gave this a "3" instead of a "1"). That being said, as one reviewer mentioned, this movie HAD NO Christmas SPIRIT. There was no Christmas music, no decorations, no snow--nothing remotely Christmasy until the final scene (unless you count the endless references to "Christmas Lodge." And the acting—even giving due consideration to the usual sub-par acting in Christmas movies—was very poor with the exception of Erin Karpluk and the little girl--both did a decent job working amidst a bunch of stiffs.
Further, there was too much interjection of the Bible in the movie. I understand that Christmas has its origins in the birth of Christ, but frankly, it has become a secular holiday for many around the world. I typically do not mind and even enjoy some reference to Christ, but even Christmas movies that do that, avoid such overt, over-the-top references to the Bible this movie included. I almost felt as though I had attended a sermon by the end of the movie.
Moreover, the single most important aspect of a romantic Christmas movie as this one tries to be—where lonely forlorn man or woman find the true love and the Christmas spirit—is good chemistry between the male and female leads. There was zero chemistry in this movie—nothing, nada, zip.
I think the only reason anyone would give this movie above 5 stars (and "5" is generous) is a strong religious or sugary "G" rating bias—that is people who cringe when the realism in a movie moves a hair off dead center of the G rating scale. So if you have that bias, you'll have a chance of liking this movie—not much of a chance, mind you—but a chance. If you prefer real Christmas movies with all the attendant Christmas trimmings to get you in the spirit of the season, you will want to skip this movie—or watch it after you've watched all the others you can possibly rent or find streaming on the Internet.
مزید دکھائیں 
