EXmas

I am a curmudgeon who doesn't watch many Christmas movies. I have no idea why I watched this, except Amazon kept pushing it in my face on my home screen on my Fire TV. Anyhoo, I'm so glad I did. It was fun, it was cute, it was tingly, it was emotional, it was irreverent, it was well done.

ABOUT MY REVIEWS:

I do not include a synopsis of the film/show -- you can get that anywhere and that does not constitute a meaningful review -- but rather my thoughts and feelings on the film that hopefully will be informative to you in deciding whether to invest 90-180 minutes of your life on it.

My scale: 1-5 decreasing degrees of "terrible", with 5 being "mediocre" 6- OK. Generally held my interest OR had reasonable cast and/or cinematography, might watch it again 7 - Good. My default rating for a movie I liked enough to watch again, but didn't rise to the upper echelons 8- Very good. Would watch again and recommend to others 9- Outstanding. Would watch over and over; top 10% of my ratings 10 - A classic. (Less than 2% receive this rating). For Lifetime Movies for Chicks (LMFC), drop the above scale by 3 notches. A 6 is excellent and 7 almost unattainable.

In the world of Christmas rom-coms, 'EXMas' attempts to deck the halls but ends up tangling the lights. The film's premise - Graham (played with a surprising lack of charisma) surprises his family for Christmas, only to find his ex-fiancée cozily ensconced with them - could have been a recipe for festive fun. Instead, it's more like overcooked turkey: dry and hard to swallow. The script lumbers from one contrived situation to another, leaning heavily on tired tropes and a telegraphed plot that could have been written by a festive fortune cookie.

The acting is as artificial as a plastic Christmas tree. Graham's family, intended to provide comic relief, instead deliver lines with the enthusiasm of someone reading a microwave manual. And the ex-fiancée? She's as warmly engaging as a snowman in a blizzard. The chemistry between the leads is non-existent, making their inevitable reconciliation as believable as Santa fitting down a modern chimney. The film's attempt at humor relies heavily on awkward dinner table jokes that make you cringe rather than chuckle, and the forced sentimentality is as subtle as a flashing neon reindeer.

Yes, the snowy scenes are picturesque, and the Christmas decorations are on point, but they can't mask the movie's fundamental flaws. 'EXMas' is like that gaudy, over-the-top Christmas sweater: it might catch your eye, but you wouldn't want to be seen with it for too long. In short, this film is the cinematic equivalent of finding coal in your stocking - a disappointment you didn't really want but somehow saw coming.

For real though, this movie was way more fun than it had any right to be. The humore was spot on in so many places, and all the actors and actresses embodied and delivered their roles so well, while being relatively under-the-radar stars.

I loved how we had some genuine moments of emotion and vulnerability, which you dont always see in a christmas movie, as well as it being a somewhat novel concept, especially for me.

It was pretty goofy, and lighthearted, with almost no profanity or raunchy content, which i so appreciated. I'd definitely have a some cpuples friends over and watch this again for some good laughs.

Some reviewers bashed the movie due to unbelievable circumstances, but that's exactly what makes it funny. I was hesitant to give it a go due to the low ratings but am so glad I did. The writing was alright and l the acting pretty good. Some of the ad lib was hilarious, I love watching moments when comedians light up and other actors lose it. This is not an award winning flick, but several moments cracked me up. I especially liked that there were actually some twists in typical romantic comedy scenes which made it more enjoyable. What really matters most to me is that I felt better after watching it.

5.6/10

It's cuffing season and whether cuffed or not it's time to get on the train, sit at the back and observe the cuffed folk.

"Just cause I dumped him doesn't mean I have to dump his family. Besides they love me."

Based on the title alone it's a romantic Christmas comedy movie that goes exactly as you'd expect. The thing that did it for me was the sarcasm. It's not a savage film by any stretch of the imagination, but it gives moments where you think "yes, that is the appropriate response in this situation."

While it does have it quirks and odd moments of enjoyment it truly falls flat on its face. The story is not great by any means. It's mediocre at best. It falls in line with being a Hallmark film without actually being a Hallmark film so there's truly no surprises.

My biggest peeve in this film was the fact that things looked blurry and scratchy for the second half of the film. People and objects looked out of focus. It was weird.

Overall, if you like sarcasm and a little bit of family drama then you could potentially find something in this film. I laughed for a good chunk of it because the jokes and banter weren't bad. The story is mediocre, the acting isn't strong, and the film feels out of focus for the second half.

That's all for now. Thank you for taking the time to read my review. Until next time.... Enjoy the show!