Un Natale a colori

This is one of the most driest Christmas movies I have ever seen. I get the storyline but the entire film is so lackluster, and feels forced. I have nothing against the characters but it feels like they're trying too hard to make the entire film convincing, let alone the storyline. It's a film you'll watch one time and forget about it because it's just not solid enough, even with a few cute elements. Those elements feel forced, too.

Christmas movies, generally speaking, is meant to give you the holiday feels, I get that, but it's also cheesy and unrealistic. It forces us to believe that everyone is giving, helpful, more specifically, around Christmas time, and that there is always some handsome prince out there waiting to sprinkle his magic by accident to someone unsuspecting, and fall in love. Total cliché for sure. Anyway, circling back, this film is a solid 5/10 for me. It's nice but only for one night.

Some viewers may find this made for TV Christmas film a bit corny, and some may consider (the teacher named) Ryan Tanner's handicap an insult to people who may be legally blind. A lot of people may be color blind to different extremes and not consider themselves to be handicapped which Mr. Tanner and his girlfriend Optometrist, Michelle Stevens, was making a bigger deal about his handicap than I would have expected. Dr. Stevens suggesting that Mr. Tanner entertain the idea of joining a medical test group for his color blindness and him being stubborn and trying, when all it included was trying on a new pair of eyeglasses you may understand why I think they blew out of proportion his handicap. I believe the message the producers were genuinely attempting to convey to their audience was for people not to be afraid to accept assistance and/or suggestions that may significantly improve their health. Whether that handicap may be a severe disability or something less obtrusive such as being color blind.

Just an observation about this film and please not to be critical a Mrs. Shullivan and I quite enjoyed this film. I am glad they did not show Mr. Tanner behind the wheel of a car as he would not have been able to distinguish between a red light or a green traffic light.

I give the film a wishy washy 5 out of 10 IMDb rating as I can see how some people may enjoy the romantic undertone and then others may be insulted with Mr. Tanner overcoming his color blindness by simply putting on a new pair of glasses. Duhhhh.

This is an unusual premise. The usual Christmas activities in this movie seem limited to a pageant and Christmas decorations, the latter for obvious reasons. The persistence of Michelle and her daughter, Bailey, lead to tension that isn't romantic for over half the movie. The ploy by Bailey is cute and changes the tone to be more Christmas like.

No matter how accurate is the representation of what Ryan sees, the movie works to capture the wonder he experiences. I do question how accurate the science of it is especially given that during the premiere on Hallmark, there is a commercial for corrective glasses. Is it irony that Ryan is a science teacher? I couldn't find anything conclusive in a simple internet search, but what I saw led me to believe that the actual experience is not as pure especially if Ryan's case was extreme as Michelle stated.

And Mark!? What is with his request that leads to the misunderstanding? Why in the world would Michelle agree?

The acting is OK. The dialogue is ok with a few good moments. Given the relatively small amount of screen time spent by Michelle and Ryan when things are good, it is hard to say there is much chemistry between Katrina Bowden and Christopher Russel or why the characters would feel so strongly.

You know what to expect from this movie. But, the surprise is the knowledge you will take with you when the credits roll.

Being color blind for me, was just a "thing" that some people have. Now because of this movie, I am more aware of not only the condition, but of the related problems and trauma associated with it.

The lead actors - Chris Russell and Katrina Bowden - are fantastic and well cast. The cinematography used attempts to teach the audience with normal eyesight what being totally colorblind May mean. And the captions during the closing credits... offer contacts for those with this type of problem to get help if needed. This underscores the reality of the problem.

Although this is a message movie, I was pleasantly surprised by how good this movie is: from writers and director to the actors involved . And, I highly recommend it to any audience of any age to watch, learn, and enjoy.

7.0 stars.

I am surprised that Hallmark opted for an optometrist with the opportunity to operate her magic opting for open arms verses opportunistic opulence.

I think Michelle (Bowden) is extremely alluring, something about her style, and she has great potential, please showcase her in more movies. Ryan (Russell) is equally so, if not more. I kept thinking he starts off looking like Superman, then he gets these magical glasses that make him look like Clark Kent. Either way, you can't go wrong. Such a shame that the good looks and good acting was squandered on this half-priced quality of a movie.

Like I said, both leads are surprisingly easy on the eyes, and it's a shame that their visual appearances and performance skills are lost in the translation of such a dry and lifeless script. There is a strange lack of stimulating dialogue, and everything is in slow motion. The story just drags along as we are waiting for something really enlightening or at least exciting.

One illuminating moment is when he is defending his choice to become a teacher... very sincere and touching scene. And the ex boyfriend... do they get any more creepy? Hallmark sure knows how to make a person look ghoulish.

There is another great scene with Michelle's sister as she opens the flood gates for Ryan near the end. It is pure gratification for me and a rare way for Hallmark to reveal hidden feelings.

And the final scenes with the kiss (one of the best ones ever). I am so disappointed there were only about five brilliant moments interspersed throughout this sub-standard film.

The theme was great, the premise was great, but the writing was like a poopoo bag exploded and all of the contents hit the fan.