Rescuing Christmas

Wanted to love it, but the cast didn't grab, hold my attention. I found myself doing other tasks while checking back in periodically. Sam Page is a good anchor, but felt monotonic in this particular offering. Rachel Leigh Cook appeared a bit off, perhaps being executive producer took away from her usual shine. The ending seemed to be a bit of cut ins pasted together to wrap up the ends. The elves were annoying which in an odd way brought some sort of emotion. The optics of a non White Santa was irksome. Non White, female, Christmas overlord was bothersome. In fact, a good reason to downgrade further.

Kudos to the writers and folks who produced this clever movie. At first blush the concept of 3 wishes seemed overused or even silly but it wasn't at all. Many chuckles were delivered through the great imaginations of the folks who wrote, conceived and produced this movie. I won't state any of the details to reduce spoilers but expect to see many elements of Christmas viewed from very unique aspects.

Sam Page and Rachael Leigh Cook work well together and brought this clever story off nicely and made it seem fun and realistic. And, kudos to the folks who played the elves and Santa. So, if you want a fresh and fun Christmas flick, this is it.

The radio intern emerged as the unequivocal star of the movie, delivering a performance that not only breathed life into a lackluster storyline but also set a standard of excellence that the other actors failed to match. His acting prowess, marked by a professional and captivating demeanor, showcased a rare talent that surpassed the mediocrity of the film's lead characters, Sam and Erin. While the radio intern's authenticity and refreshing presence enriched every scene, the shortcomings in the performances of Sam and Erin were glaring. In comparison, the radio intern's unbothered attitude and nuanced portrayal stood out, highlighting his superior acting abilities and making him the true highlight of the production. His contribution was not just commendable; it was a masterclass in elevating a movie beyond its limitations.

In some ways the premise is common. It's a quest where the romantic leads work together to achieve a goal, in this case to bring back Christmas. It is a not so common subset where the quest is to restore some reality that has been changed, usually by a wish. In many cases, the lead is the center of the quest and has been given a new life. In some cases like this one, the entire reality has been changed for everyone, that is if you accept the reality of Santa and Christmas magic.

It takes a while to set up the quest. And enlisting Sam doesn't seem to be the obvious choice, but Erin needs help from someone. The romance development doesn't receive a lot of screen time and therefore it may seem like "falling in love" was rushed. Rachael Leigh Cook and Sam Page still manage to display some chemistry.

There is a strong thread that the meaning of Christmas is family and friends and love and spending time together. Also some stabs at Christmas commercialism.

There are a lot of good lines. I typically don't laugh at lot at movies but I found myself laughing out loud a few times especially early on. The acting is good if you allow for some necessary silliness. I think RLC has good comedic timing.

My title says "Clever". I thought this was shown in imagining of the results of trying to get people to celebrate a Christmas that they have no basis for. Tennis balls for ornaments is just a small example. Or the mom complaining about what Erin was telling her kids which was actually kind of creepy.

Two elves convince (an unconventional) Santa Claus to let them rekindle Christmas spirit by giving someone three wishes ... as long as the wishes aren't outrageous ... like wishing for a million dollars.

The only issue with the movie is that it takes far too long to get to the crux of the story, which is when our female lead wishes away Christmas. This is a bit too similar to another 2023 film where the female lead ALSO wishes away Christmas. In both movies, they have to start convincing people to take the holiday back on ... albeit in slightly different ways.

But ... no outrageous wish ... yet wishing away Christmas is allowed. LOL

This movie doesn't really hit its stride until the third wish which cancels out Christmas and she has to try to recreate the holiday using whatever they can find, since dedicated Christmas decorations don't exist. That gets a bit humorous.

Dialogue is also good. Definitely worth the watch.