Viel Lärm um Weihnachten

I always enjoy modern riffs on classic works particularly Jane Austen ones. This is Shakespeare and it was well done. Setting it in England, presumably London, and all of the English accents added to the overall charm. I like that they explained why the American mother and daughter's home was in England.

A sweet young couple fall in love, practically at first glance. He is a young advertising executive, Claude, who, along with Ben, works for Don. They are about to try to win a contract with Leona Lloyd, a rich and powerful head of a major corporation. She is also the mother of Haley, who is sweet and down-to-earth. She heads the charitable end of the corporation, and is the best friend of Bea, who once dated Ben, Claude's friend. It did not end well. Anyone who is familiar with the Shakespeare comedy can guess where this will go. The conflict between the young lovers, Claude and Haley, comes not from suspected infidelity, but because Haley does not tell Claude the truth about who her mother really is. She just wants to be treated like a normal girl. When he finds out the truth, in a very dramatic fashion, he is humiliated and dumps her and she is devastated.

The casting was on point. I've never seen Susie Abromeit before but she was fantastic. I was not impressed with Torrance Coombs in a previous Hallmark production, but he was perfect in this, playing Claude. Sweet and love-struck when called for, and cold and unyielding when needed as well. The Bea and Ben romance was wisely very much in the background. The relationship between Leona, Hailey and Bea, and the advertising agency's efforts to win Leona's favor provided interesting background to the romance.

Although there have been some stale plots and casting in Hallmark Christmas movies this year, in general, they have upped their game. If this is because of strong competition from other productions like this one, I'm all for it.

It was interesting to see Shakespeare's pairs flipped. Beatrice & Benedict (aka Ben) are now the secondary pair with Hero (aka Hailey) & Claudio (Claude) moved to the primary romance. I found both pairs engaging and well matched. The location was lovely. Ditto sets, music, costumes. I thought it was a great premiere movie for the new GAC Christmas season. Congrats!

Modern riffs/updatings on literary classics are very variable, there are some very clever ones such as 'Clueless' and then there are others that are rather derivative and lazy such as the Hallmark updatings of Jane Austen. Shakespeare's timeless 'Much Ado About Nothing' (one of my favourites of his) given a modern festive makeover fascinated me from the get go, and even more so seeing a lot of positive feedback on it from some not easily pleased. It did sound and look good.

And it was. For a film from an non-major and relatively recently rebranded network, 'Much Ado About Christmas' was to me very impressive and as good as the best of Hallmark and Lifetime. Also on par with the best of Hallmark's inconsistent 2021 festive output. As far as lesser known modern updatings on literary classics go, 'Much Ado About Christmas' (again from personal opinion) is one of the best, cleverest and most charming and one of the best of GAC Family's output (the biggest interest point of the film being that it is the first film from them under their rebranding).

It isn't perfect, with the ending being a little too neat and rushed and it being slightly too vanilla to begin with.

Torrence Coombs is a little stiff to begin with, but that he is based on a character who is very bland in the play plays some part in this.

Once he relaxes however, he becomes very easy going, subtly charismatic and charming. He also shares great chemistry with radiant and immensely likeable Susie Abromeit that has a real cheerfulness and charm, while not being too romantic too soon. Really connected to their characters, Abromeit's in particular is relatable without being too perfect. The supporting cast are great, especially the witty turns of James Rottger and Emma Colling, Colling has the most interesting role and relishes it without overacting. Loved the playfulness and initial tension between them.

Production values are attractive enough, especially the scenery, while the music has personality without being intrusive. The script has plenty of cheerful wit, light hearted charm and heart, with no cheese, awkwardness or over sentimentality. The story is both lively and heart-warming, with the take on the play full of liveliness and nothing lazy.

Summing up, very well done. 8/10.

This is a very upbeat movie. In fact it is a little too Pollyanna. Among other things, there are a couple of shots of Susie Abromeit where her smile is pasted on as a little fake looking.

The story starts in a very vanilla way with almost no tension. The inevitable conflict is very predictable based on Haley's secret. There is the cliché failed attempt at an explanation. Then the secret is revealed to everyone in an unusual way which is kind of clever. This leads into a well done ending.

Abromeit and Torrance Coombs have so much chemistry it contributes to the overly cheerful vibe. It's almost too perfect. Acting is mostly good. The dialogue has some good moments. There are a couple of nice singing scenes including some karaoke which is actually good (as karaoke goes).

I'm glad that neither the boss nor the mother is an ogre. In fact I like mom and daughter's relationship.

The setting is decidedly British, even if it is apparently filmed in Romania.

This is a good kick off for GAC Family's Christmas season.

The leads Susie and Torrance sold this story as Haley and Claude. I loved their chemistry in this movie. Good Christmas movie to enjoy with the whole family!