The Holiday Junkie

There is a need for holiday films dealing with real life issues. Love Hewitt's idea about a Christmas film that incorporates the grief, trauma and stress that MANY people experience during holiday season had potential to be very relatable, in particular to people who don't have the cookie cutter families that most Hallmark formulaic holiday films showcase. Unfortunately, the script came off like an unpolished first draft, some of the casting included actors who wouldn't even get cast as actors with any lines in a Hallmark holiday film (and that's a very low bar), and some of the props and production were sub-par, which another Xmas film might get away with, but which was glaring in the context of a story featuring a supposed professional Xmas designer. It's a pleasure to see Brian Hallisay; feels like he hasn't worked in forever and a day, and it's cute seeing him on screen again with Love Hewitt, but...she should have hired some seasoned professionals. A script editor, props, costume, director's assistant - if she wanted to break into this scene, she should have given her production a boost by hiring people who have pulled off significant successes for her first outing. Now...I wonder if a studio would give her a budget to try again, since she clearly did not do that. An unfortunate miss.