Christmas with Felicity

The one thing I thought I could rely on in the UK's Channel 5 Christmas films was their unrelenting niceness - that is, until I saw this one (which was titled Baking My Way to Christmas in the UK, for some reason). The charm that usually fills these kind of films is sadly missing here. Making the lead character so mopey and unpleasant in the early part of the film backfires badly, and I can imagine that many viewers would have given up when the first ad break arrived. The script is terrible, the performances weak, and the story just never grips. As others have said, the 10-star reviews on here are mighty suspicious and should probably be taken with a pinch of salt.

This is a sweet story about a young baker who rediscovers the magic of Christmas. With romance, drama, comedy, and plenty of baking, it has all the right ingredients for a heartwarming holiday movie.

I usually enjoy these type of easy to watch, feel-good movies. It is quite rare for me to give these kind of movies anything less than a 5 but this one is just so awkwardly bad that I got uncomfortable watching it.

It comes down to acting, casting, directing and camera angles. None of it works. The lead figures have no chemistry, their interactions feel very staged, almost like a middle school drama performance. The supporting cast really has terrible acting skills. Take "Caitlin" for example; her cry-acting is so bad that if you told me she was doing a parody performance, I'd believe you. The background actors and supporting cast are so awkward too. This is mostly due to the setting, directing, and camera work. It looks scripted, staged, unnatural. None of the acting feels genuine or natural. It's not just fake, it's uncomfortable.

And let's not forget the terrible matching. "Madison" is supposed to be 13 years old but looks like an 18 year old. She gets matched with a boy who looks like a sixth grader. It feels and looks so wrong...

When I pick these types of Hallmark-esque Christmas movies, I don't expect great writing, acting, camera angles or editing. That's a given.

This one lost points because of how over the top rude Felicity is pre-Christmas spirit... she's so sulky that she doesn't even want people around her to say , "Christmas cookies", but "cookies you eat during the winter season"? And no explanation for this level of crankiness...she's just down on life and directs it all at the holiday in a very weird, specific way. Sure, give your main character a little chip on the shoulder but don't make her so insufferable. Hard to root for someone who's kinda just awful to everyone in her life because they won't bend over backward to her weird issues.

If you need a break from the negative news cycle and love Christmas movies, look no further. I really enjoyed all the beautiful scenery, the performances, and holiday cheer.