Sugar Plum Twist

I enjoyed this Latin twist on the boring Balanchine nutcracker...don't get me wrong, I absolutely love Tchaikovsky and disagree with those classical snobs who think his work is too Plebeian! (Check out his piano concertos...they are amazing.)

I love Latin dancing and I enjoyed its incorporation in a Hallmark holiday film.

The acting was great, the music good...I think they could have used a bigger budget for the costumes...but otherwise was happy.

The romance was as lame as can be but I loved the message and the character arcs. From the beginning Miss Kat the head of the ballet company was a very unsympathetic character. Cold, Rigid, harsh and snooty. Maybe a little bit bigoted. I loved the way she turned around. The actress did a superb job. We hear a little back story of why she blew up at our heroine Natalia. And when she sees that Natalia was not being disloyal with all of the hard work and professionalism , she apologizes sincerely and promotes her. And then she makes the finale perfect with her own initiative reflecting Natalia's vision and dreams. The good ending, interesting plot, beautiful dance, seldom seen Latino culture well presented rescued this one which did get a little draggy at times.

"Is Miss Kat actually smiling? It's a Christmas Miracle!"

This was ok. Hallmark still trying to pull in viewers by being more diverse in storyline and performers used.

Can't complain about that, but I feel the writing and storylines just aren't as strong as they used to be overall.

That comes with new staff and writers, so can't be helped.

Saw that someone said Hallmark used to show movies based on good clean fun.

What about this wasn't good clean fun?

Just because it wasn't your culture or race it was horrible?

It wasn't mine either, but that doesn't make it horrible or bad or "not good clean fun."

Overall this was an ok Holiday movie.

As always based on wishes, hard work, good people and romance.

I hope the writing and storylines get better, I can be patient.

Keep working at it Hallmark.

Don't worry so much about being PC.

Just make it about life in the world as it is today, but don't forget about the dreams and romance.

People went to Hallmark for the that and Prince Charmings. That should still be that core of your movies. Don't forget to focus on that.

Honestly shocked and baffled by some of these ridiculous reviews. So because people like that Hallmark is diversifying their Christmas movies, and leaving good reviews that must mean they are paid for? Girl, bye.

Having a movie with people of color does not mean that this movie strays from Hallmarks, "good clean family Wholesome films". And yes, Latin dance and ballet actually do scream Christmas, because shocker other countries and people celebrate Christmas. I know it's a hard concept to grasp.

The acting is honestly no different than any other Hallmark movie. No one on Hallmark is going to win an Emmy or Oscar for their performance. And to be fair, they clearly cast for dancers and not actors, so yeah, their acting isn't going to be strong. They're dancers!

I've watched most of the movies this season, and this one actually has a pretty good story. You're following two "main" plots that make the movie a little more interesting. I love holiday movies that center around dancing and The Nutcracker.

I'm glad Hallmark is trying to reach a broader audience and making it more inclusive to other people. Some of these reviews actually sound like a character in the movie who doesn't like anything other than straight, classical ballet with zero variations.

Don't be swayed by these weirdly racist reviews of people who can't admit their views are old, outdated and kind of sad.

Also, this is not a paid review. Written by a girl who loves the cheese of hallmark movies.

Lately Hallmark has often been accused of going woke. For many, this movie will be another example of that. I prefer to look at their recent lineups of movies as having some that educate about and celebrate different ethnic cultures that are all around many of us. It is interesting, however, that this story is set in Richmond, VA where the Hispanic population is a fairly small percentage.

This movie explores two things related to cultural diversity. One issue is the difficulties some minority performers face in classic performing arts. Another is the question of including new cultural ideas into these traditional cultural activities,

We have Ms. Kat who stands for all the traditional or classic norms in a big-time ballet production company, especially as it regards a production of the Nutcracker. And then there are Natalia and Vivi. They represent minority performers in a world many assume doesn't give minorities enough opportunity to shine.

And it goes deeper. Passion is always important in Hallmark and other similar TV movies. Natalia tells Vivi that her performances must have passion. And to be truly fair to the performer, she needs the opportunity to explore her own cultural background in her performances. So, Natalia choreographs the Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy in a Latin style similar to Salsa. Her objective is to give Vivi something to put in her performance reels.

This movie also explores where does an iconic performer (or sports hero) go when their body is no longer fit for the actual performance?

And we have two simultaneous romances. Both are secondary plot threads.

There is plenty of sappiness and a little melodrama. And lots of dancing.

The acting was good across the board. The dancing looked good to me, both classic and Latin. The result is an upbeat movie that also explores cultural issues.