Um Natal em Montana

I usually don't watch Christmas movies on Lifetime or Hallmark Channel unless my friend is playing an extra on them. But I saw Duane Henry (killed off of NCIS😡) and Jamey Sheridan was in it so decided to watch.

It's not a bad movie and the acting isn't bad either. It's the typical from-Christmas movie so expect cheesy storylines. It's not bad in my opinion. Would I watch it again? Probably not.

The story has no highs or lows and no tension or surprises. The dialogue is blah. The acting is terrible almost all around. The wardrobe is ridiculous. There is no chemistry between the leads unless you count all the moon eye they give each other across the set. The sets are cheap. There are a couple of nice shots of scenery.

I saw some comments about weather and I noticed it too. The worst case is when they take refuge from a blizzard in a remote barn. They draw attention to the fact there is no fire or other heat and the weather outside is supposed to be frightful. Yet neither one wears gloves, ear covering, or a scarf and Duane Henry's coat is open.

I'll give the director credit that when they are looking at stars there are no bright lights around them which is a mistake most of these movies make.

I'm from MT. I get that filming took place in summer and outdoor scenes were shot in early fall to get snow on the mountains, but we DO NOT have sunlight at 6 am in December. We don't have green grass in December, you cannot sit outside at a campfire or wear such light clothing in December. There's no snow on trees and Kalispell/Flathead Lake area would be super cold and covered in snow at Christmas. I'm really disappointed that this is not a more accurate depiction of what MT really looks like. I live 30 miles from East Helena where the town scenes were shot, so I know what it should look like. I love Kelli Martin and Melissa Joan Hart, I thought it would've been better. I watched Melissa posting on FB while she was here and our local news posted the filming, so I'm not guessing at this stuff... content was good though.

Apparently Christmas takes place in the summer in this movie. The grass is green and there is zero snow. Beautiful scenery, but completely filmed out of season. There was no chemistry between the two main characters. I can picture a scenario where they were best friends from college that dated twice and decide being friends was better. I liked all the characters, however, especially Merry's dad and the girl. I loved the photography arch and the message of being present in your kids life and ditching the devices. I also loved that they cast a Native American two actors and made them multi dimensional instead of a sterotype. It was an okay movie, but a little dull.

Yes, there are flaws, but when I need a distraction I don't focus on the negative. Duane Henry did well in this role and I look forward to more of his movies.

As far as the mistakes, I don't take them seriously and have to laugh when the clothing, makeup, and hair don't reflect what would happen in real life. Ditto for the indoor and outdoor decorations. Of course, if they did reflect real life, there would be complaints.

The snow, or lack thereof, is a glaring error and I am not certain why the decison was made to film a Montana winter without snow.

If you need perfection in your movies, this is not for you, but if you like Duane Henry or you want to just escape the pressures of the season, this is a good choice.