The Holiday List, or It's Christmas in Europe, is a cute little film about a family coming together during the holidays. The film follows Charlie (Brittany Snow), who goes to spend Christmas with her husband's family after her mother-in-law passed away. Charlie was closer to her mother-in-law than her own mother, and as a result, her sister-in-law, Jackie, is resentful of her. However, things take a turn as Charlie accidentally creates a list for the family to do over the holiday. Be warned going in that this movie was all improvised in that there was no script and that the actors were just making it up as they went along. I'm usually not a fan of movies like this, as often the dialogue feels wooden, and the plot feels bland. I feel like nothing is better than a well-crafted script with meaningful dialogue. This was my worry going in as, at first, the movie seemed to lack substance other than the characters were going to spend Christmas together after the loss of their mother. However, if you stick with it, the characters start to feel like real people. It's also more of a drama than a comedy. Sure, some moments made me chuckle, but the parts that really stood out were the scenes that dealt with loss and love.
The pros: Brittany Snow leads the cast and is amazing as Charlie. Brittany Snow is my all-time favorite actor and does an amazing job in this film. She does an excellent job portraying what it is like to spend time with your significant other's family and trying to figure out how you fit into the family dynamics. Now you can tell she is the most experienced actor, and her character really brings it home. She also was the only one who was really able to pull off the comedic as in the film aspects of the film. Jackie and Lola's relationship was cute. Seeing how other cultures celebrate Christmas was fun for me as an American. I also liked that it was your normal over-the-top Hallmark Christmas movie, which you usually get. It was a movie about real people dealing with loss during the holiday season. Lastly, it touched my heart, and I found it hopeful.
The cons: Sometimes the actors ramble, and you can tell they are thinking about what to say. Wesley, Brittany Snow's husband, was a little bland and felt whiny at times. I would've liked to see his character better developed. I do feel that having some form of the script could've helped tighten up the movie a little, especially the main plot points. Also, some plot points never go anywhere, like the father drinking too much.
Overall, it's not your typical Christmas movie that focuses more on the human sides of the season and how we respond to grief. And for a 90-minute movie, it did that well. I liked it better than I thought I would and would recommend it for Brittany Snow's performance alone.
