Saying Yes to Christmas

Throughout my whole Hallmark/Lifetime Christmas film completest quest undertaken namely late-2019 onwards, an interesting quest but very mixed one, there was never the mentality of expecting a classic or the film in question to be flawless. Something that was never managed with Hallmark's output. There was always the expectation of seeing a film where one can see at least some effort rather than merely cash-in level. One could see that with most of Lifetime's output but not all.

Effort that was absolutely seen in 'Saying Yes to Christmas'. Did like the premise, it did sound different and it was nice to have a change from seeing Lifetime regulars. 'Saying Yes to Christmas' maybe could have done more with the premise and had more freshness, but of a variable year for Lifetime's Christmas output it is better than most and is worth saying yes to. Is it great? No. Does it have a lot of good things? To this reviewer, it certainly did, more so than not so good.

'Saying Yes to Christmas' does have imperfections. Outside of the magic wish, the story is very predictable and does little fresh with a formula that is pretty old hat. It did feel a little off to begin with, rather slow moving and awkward.

Like a lot of Lifetime films, the ending is too pat and the music could have been toned down and not been as prominent.

However, there is a lot to like. Namely the immensely likeable performances of Erika Prevost and Romaine Waite, with Prevost in particular injecting a lot of charm and spirit. They also sparkle in their chemistry together (sweet, warm and genuine) in by far one of the better and more believable 2021 Lifetime Christmas film chemistries, and their characters are not too perfect or too negative. Which was crucial, as they are together a lot here and how good their chemistry would be would make or break the film (luckily it was one of its best aspects). The supporting cast are solid and while their characters are cliched they don't bore or irritate.

Furthermore, the festive atmosphere is very well done and there are a fair share of sweet though thankfully not sickly scenes. Was not crazy about the script early on, but it did have a nice mix of funny and poignant lines and mostly flowed naturally. The story may be predictable but has a warm heart and charm and doesn't take itself too seriously thanks to some sparkling playfulness with the leads. The film doesn't feel dull. The scenery is typically lovely and shot very nicely.

Nice film all in all. 7/10.

Not every Christmas story is the same, because everyone has a different heritage, with different traditions, and people in the U. S. come from different countries. While this movie has a familiar story line of a woman who works in a publishing company and finds her own voice, this story is culturally unique, heartfelt, and beautiful!

It showcases asian culture and traditions (which I haven't seen before in TV Christmas movies in the states), but it also shows Asian and African American values like: love of family, pursuing a higher education, striving to be successful, continuity of traditions, service to others, the importance of creating community, etc.

It also shows young people the importance of knowing your value, standing up for yourself and your beliefs, not compromising your happiness for material things, that success is preparation meeting opportunity, and that taking risks in the pursuit of success and happiness pays off when you balance your heart and your mind.

It is sad to see the bias in some of the reviews, usually from people who are intolerant of minority stories, and minorities in lead roles.

For those complaining about the plot, Hallmark has made a living off of repeating story lines, usually putting actors in rolls with similar themes way too often at this point, and you've been supporting them for years!

Why can't Lifetime do a familiar story line with a twist? They're called universal themes for a reason, many can relate as it happens to almost everyone in different ways.

I invite open minded people, who see everyone as "human beings" first and foremost, to give themselves the opportunity to watch this and other lifetime movies (especially those with minority leads and cast), and rate them in a fair, objective, and unbiased way, as it should be.

I'm very pleased with this beautiful movie, and others done this 2021 -22 holiday season, which have shown classy, and culturally diverse stories that celebrate family and love in all its forms.

Bravo to Lifetime for making a commitment to be a network that employs a diverse casts and champions inclusion! Please continue to do so always, and continue making beautiful movies! Lord knows our nation needs to see our stories, our children need to see themselves represented in people who look like them, and our actors need the platform and the opportunities.

I celebrate and support them all! Bravo!

🙌💝🙌

P. S. My only negative mark: The actress that played a Puerto Rican writer did not speak Spanish with a proper pronunciation, and unfortunately she botched "Misa de Gallo" (Mass of the Rooster or Midnight Mass) as Semilla de Gallo (Seed of the Rooster).

I appreciate the effort to talk about different cultures. However, if you're talking about the traditions of Puerto Rico (for example), shouldn't you at least hire an actress who speaks fluent Spanish and has an accurate native "Puerto Rican" accent? There are plenty of amazingly talented actors on the island that would love the opportunity.

I do appreciate seeing my culture in a Christmas movie in the U. S. immensely, even if it was for three minutes, and hope to see an entire movie about Puerto Rican Christmases in the future!

Thank you!

Saying Yes To Christmas (2021) -

I have seen a similar film* with Alicia Witt in the lead role being unable to tell a lie and enjoyed that one too, but I liked the idea of having the option of saying No taken away in this film, because we should all say yes to more things. As a wise man recently said to me "You only die once, but you live everyday" and I am definitely guilty of not making the most of those days, so I could appreciate this film which showed how much happier people can be when they do get involved and sometimes make a difference to the lives of others.

June (Erika Prevost) seemed very young in the lead role, especially to be a book editor, but it worked as a way to get her home for the festive season to try and recruit a visiting author.

Whilst there she reconnected with Romaine Waite in his role of Blake.

He was cute without being too gorgeous and distracting. And by that I mean that he didn't take over the rest of June's journey too much, but was enough to allow the romance to blossom.

They were both actually quite lovely together, because neither actor was trying to outshine the other.

I also enjoyed the inclusion of a different culture's festive celebrations.

June's Chief Editor Boss, Shannon (Sabrina Grdevich), was way over the top but in a good way that made you hate her and her terrible values and the rest of the cast all did their jobs well too.

Ultimately, everything that June goes through causes her to realise the true values in her life and how she wants to move forward in a happier way with a love interest by her side (That's not a spoiler, we all knew it would happen) and I liked the way that the production delivered it all.

7.47/10.

*I'm Not Ready For Christmas (2015).

A political correct film. For me, this is the main characteristic of it. And the pieces of cultural traditions - for drawings for presumed book to the chain of Christmas duties, the wish about yes about Christmas and the family atmosphere, the good job of Catherine de Seve and the multiculturalism / interculturalism bricks are just nice details for a not bad Hallmark romance, except, maybe, the romance itself who , in the last scenes, is only portrait of friendship.

But, sure, it is only Hallmark.

In rest, .Erika Prevost and. Romaine Waite are young and beautiful and the story of old budies just works in nice manner.

So, not just bad but the taste of political correctness is the most powerful.

When I saw the poster I thought that it's going to be a checklist for inclusiveness and all that so I had planned to skip it. However, I had some time to kill and gave it a shot. I am glad I did.

Does it check some inclusiveness boxes? Definitely but it doesn't feel like it's on purpose. I don't like being force-fed any kind of propaganda and I skipped many other films because of that. It wasn't the case of this film.

The protagonists are sweet and have great chemistry together. The entire cast did a good job. I will definitely look for more of their projects. The girl is very charismatic, she draws you in. The way she reacts to the "forced yes" moments, especially in the beginning, is really amusing, in my opinion. I also loved the comedy caused by the competitiveness of the main characters.

Of course, the events and decisions were not the most original. I knew how it was going to end, after the first 10 minutes. It is, like I said, a basic romance. The Christmas stereotypes are in, some of the romance stereotypes are in, as well. Also a few original traditions that I enjoyed. The nice thing was that nothing was forced, the main characters actually respected their parents, cared about not hurting people around them. No exaggerated drama.

Consider this a recipe with a few mandatory ingredients. The spices and the technique make the difference and the end product is delicious.