Feste col ladro

I thought the acting was horrible and boring. Couldn't make it all the way through this mess. It started out bad and got worse from there. Watch at your won peril.

Didn't think Michelle Borth could be any worse at acting than she was in Hawaii Five O, but miraculously she can! The story line is weak, so with the entire cast being bad, there is no saving this one. The cinematography is as bad as the acting.

Chase scenes with the police car going 10 miles an hour is laughable. The people having real stones in a garage display is unbelievable. Another movie with Vivica Fox as the successful, rich business woman ....she has never been able to pull that role off as believable. Makes you wonder who she knows to get the roles. The fact that UpTv is playing this off as a new movie in 2024 is even more laughable.

Another would-be thriller Holiday movie from ION. Apparently, not the last one. Not sure what Christmas and crime should have in common, beside both beginning with the letter "C". Michelle Borth, whose name does not appear in the IMDb cast list, is likeable, the plot is original and nothing offends. Thus said, there is not much chemistry between the protagonists, the rendering of the yarn feels amateurish, and the psychology of action and characters sits at a childhood level. In summary, unsubstantial, and very light-fare, yet watchable.

The plot of 'The Christmas Thief' is a great one, however the POV narration is a bit annoying and inconsistent. This Made-For-TV movie is just as great as any other MFT film released for the holidays. I do wish this movie was given just a bit of a larger budget to work with. Reason being, some shots where set noise required voice over in post makes the sound inconsistent with the ambient volume of the movie. This movie very well could have ranked high among other B-rated movies had the budget been a little higher. The acting also felt kind of "Nick at Nite" with adolescent style acting and wide assortment of Non-Copyrighted holiday music that didn't follow a particular style or flow. Despite my many gripes about production, I very much enjoyed the movie and its twist on traditional holiday entertainment.

I'm guessing this movie is aimed at the whole family including children since it lacks any subtlety and the PI wannabe, Lana. Is anything but inconspicuous not to mention clumsy. Detective cliches abound like the one at the start with Lana trying to channel Sherlock Holmes with her "deductions" regardless how accurate or inaccurate she may have been. The cliché terminology in the dialogue is even worse than the stereotype roles. Then there is the sting operation. I don't know which is more stupid - that the thief would "toy" with them or using real valuables as bait.

Even though I don't like many of them, Halmark Movies and Mysteries' Signature Mysteries are a definite step up in quality from this movie. Besides quality, another big difference is that this is a one shot movie, so any romance must be accomplished in 84 minutes and that with two candidates for Lana's affections.

The acting is fair to poor unless you adjust for aiming at a younger audience. Likewise the dialogue.

I figured out the theif fairly early but based more on what I know about this kind of story. The clues do build up over time.

Admittedly this, like several Christmas mysteries on Ion, is not the usual Hallmark Christmas Saturday night. It's probably family safe. But that's not enough. For a kid safe movie I might give it 7 or 8 stars. I'm not a kid and no longer watch with any.