User reviews

Yeah but higher points for McKayla Witt who created an absolutely charming elf as "Pep". Watch for this one going forward, she has fully natural comedic talent. So endearing, so lovable and funny. This one has real instincts for humour. She makes the film for me.

I actually found this movie to be quite enjoyable. The actors/actresses were pretty good, especially Devon Werkheiser and Mckayla Witt. But, he needs a hair cut. Jennifer Stone was pretty great also. The story was nice and different. Overall, it made me laugh and smile.

Yeah but watch out for McKayla Witt as "Pep". This one has real comedic chops. She's absolutely adorable and demonstrates natural instincts for comedic performance. Utterly charming.

I love the cheesy Hallmark movies. This isn't that kind of quality. I felt like it was some low budget film school project, and after reading the other reviews it sounds like that is exactly what it was. The only redeeming part of this entire film is Pep. She was great. I gave her 10 stars and everything else dragged down my ratings.

'Santa Girl' (2019)

Opening thoughts: Have said many times about my love of Christmas and getting a lot of pleasure out of in particular watching films, cartoons and specials during this period, something that most years has been much needed. Wanted to see some more festive films that were more recent, lower in budget and were not childhood favourites, so in a way to broaden my horizons and have been doing so since November 2019. The idea for 'Santa Girl' did sound predictable and not particularly interesting, but still watched for completest sake.

Have seen my fair share of above average and more Christmas films recently, but 'Santa Girl' is not one of them. If anything it is the complete opposite, there were some surprisingly decent Christmas films (and films in general actually) that year but there were some that were mediocre and below. And 'Santa Girl' is one of the worst, with very little good about it. Eve with the couple of redeeming merits, they are outweighed by everything else being so awful. Even Barry Bostwick couldn't save it.

Good things: There are a couple of plus points. Namely the charming and peppy performance of McKayla Witt as the aptly named Pep. Devon Weckheiser also has moments where he is amiable.

Bad things: Otherwise, 'Santa Girl' is a complete and utter mess. Jennifer Stone has a very dull character, to say she is sketchy in development is being too generous, and plays her very stiffly and with cold indifference. This is also one of the few times where Borwick is not watchable, found him far too mean spirited and at points unintentionally creepy. Didn't care for any of the characters other than Pep, little effort is made to develop them or to make them interesting or likeable. The chemistry is completely disconnected.

It is a very cheap looking film, with very choppy editing that had the same sensation of a seriously scratched DVD when it constantly skips. Plus the effects are a long way from special and would have been out of date in the 90s. The music is overbearing and is used in a clichéd way.

Writing is cheesy and stilted throughout, with forced and at times out of place comedy and sickly drama that shift uneasily. The cobbled together story is dully paced with no heart, energy or charm, is excessively silly, jumps around a lot and is full of over familiar story tropes. Too much of it has a fifteen plus years out of date quality too.

Closing thoughts: Very bad overall.

2/10.

A very low budget Christmas film staring Jennifer Stone from Disney's Wizards of Waverly Place.

A film based on Santas daughter Cassie (Jennifer Stone) who gets approved into a college in the real world away from her fairytale land. With strict rules from her father that a contract is in place for her daughter to marry Jack Frosts son, she is given permission to attend the college but must return for the very old school arranged wedding.

I don't know why the arranged wedding is even part of the story. The film is obviously aimed at young children, and they shouldn't feel like these types of weddings are acceptable. Besides the marriage the story wasn't good. I feel bad for Jennifer Stone cause she always gets these B Grade films, but I also don't think she's the best actress Her character was so boring and always dressed in such dull colours like greys and whites.

Best thing about this film is when Devon Werkheiser's character Sam tied his hair up for literally 30 seconds and then enters a scene to dramatically let it down.. sigh.

Don't waste your time on this one, there's plenty of other dull things you could do with your time

Cheesey but good! I actually thought this was a good and easy watch for the 1st November! :)

The storyline is problematic, but the characters and the actors are the bigger issues. The main storyline hinges on an arranged marriage for Santa's teenage daughter, a plot device that is outdated. The main characters are completely unlikeable and poorly acted. It's hard to have much empathy for any of them. I finished this movie because I was watching it with my son. It qualifies as a family friendly Christmas movie so it gets a few stars.

Ticks all the boxes for a real feel good Christmas movie. The start had me worried but give it 10 mins and you really start to enjoy it. Good characters. Bad guys. Good guys. Happy ending and a good romance All wrapped up in Christmas paper. Def one to watch again.

Cassandra Claus, Santa's daughter and our main character, has a slow start but really blossoms as a kind of Kimmy Schmidt in the real world. We like all of the right people. Cassie's elf, Pep, more than lives up to her name and truly brings a lot of nuance to the role; she is a delight! All of the characters, especially Santa, the campus barista, and one college student who keeps being startled by Cassie's appearances, are carefully crafted and totally believable. Everyone adds value to the production. Yes, some of the plot movements are predictable, but one thing that might surprise the viewer is just how enjoyable this movie actually is. Filmed on a real college campus in northwestern Virginia, the settings are totally authentic.

This was a fun to watch. Parts of it were filmed here in Winchester VA where I live, so perhaps I'm a bit biased

As a fan of cheesy holiday movies, this one was disappointing. Bad writing and production.

None of the characters were likeable, Santa was mean, everyone treated the elves like they were second class citizens and the movie never apologized for it. The dramatic moments were poorly acted to swelling orchestra music. The special effects were dated about 50 years. The only redeeming quality was that it wasn't shoving Christianity down your throat. Sam actor was okay, hope he moves on to real movies someday. Good luck buddy.

This was so aweful, I couldn't even finish it.

The "Santa Claus" actor is so terrible, there is a reason this guy only acts in "B" feeling movies anymore. Thr filming and production was so bad it was painful to watch even the 20 minutes I could get through. I had to stop watching because it was just so sexist, and the personality of the Santa Claus character was just so nasty. The way he treated the elves and others in general was so deplorable. He's supposed to be a role model for pete sake. I stopped watching when Santa was talking to Jack frost. He can't even get the names of his elves straight? I don't like the sleezy feel of Santa in this. HARD PASS.

There something that just doesn't work in this movie. There are cheesy performances and scenes, distracting changes in photographic techniques that don't appear to have any artistic value. The editing and shot selections sometimes seem jostled and cobbled together. Even some of the dialogue and acting seem haphazard and spontaneous but not in a good comedic way. While the story outline held promise, the script needed a lot more work. The typical triangle of one girl and two boys doesn't come across the screen in smooth way as they struggle to relate to one another, it's almost as if the actors themselves were unsure of how to play their parts. It's not that the movie is a tangled mess, the plot somehow holds together and the effort to make this a palatable movie is more than apparent, it's just that it doesn't quite come together as a finished product. It's not absolutely terrible and it may be worth seeing if one is really bored and there don't seem to be many other options

It is a cute movie. The chemistry between Sam and Cassie is great. The scenes with them were great. The rest of the movie is okay, a lot of the acting is stilted. Jack Frost never quite fits into the movie, the character just falls short. It is a good movie to have on in the background while wrapping presents. It is fairly wholesome and Cassie is cute. I wouldn't watch it again, though.

• The camerawork at the beginning was a bit wonky and unprofessional and somewhat throughout the film. And also the colour grading could have been better in some places especially the beginning.
• The storyline is original and great!

Not a typical x-mas story! There is a twist but somewhat it is predictable.

• The acting was unprofessional and somewhat over exaggerated especially from the elf - Pep. But the other characters were good for a low-key x-mas movie.
• Also shout-out to those retail workers who have an experience with complaining customer like that coffeeshop girl, or the bookshop girl.

This film is incredibly stupid and cheesy, yet I've watched it at least four times. There's a lot that's problematic in this storyline, even moreso than in other hallmark-type films (forcibly marrying off a barely legal teenager? Really?) but it is kinda appropriate for a Christmas fairytale film. Given it's clearly aimed at kids the acting is a bit pantomime, but you shouldn't be expecting the Royal Shakespeare Company. Three of the stars are exclusively for McKayla Witt as Pep - she she's perky and appealing for kids without driving adults up the wall.

Poor acting and poor special effects. So disappointed.

I loved this movie! Not oscar worthy by all means, but a cute little Christmas movie to watch when you are bored. Love Devon and Jennifer in this! Both did great!

I'm a sucker for both a cheesy rom-com and a cheesy Xmas movie, but this veers off into Xmas rom-com bizarro world. Then again I'm also a sucker for movies that veer off into bizarro world, so...

Much of the plot of Santa Girl makes very little sense and some of the actors appear to be playing in very different worlds (I'm pretty sure Hank Stone is working in a low budget horror flick here, which I'd kinda like to see). However, it is a production largely generated by students, working with more experienced actors and filmmakers, and for that I give points for effort and a level of quality that is not entirely expected. I love the concept of students getting the opportunity to work on something of this scale, something that lands on Netflix no less.

So there's good and bad here. And then there's Pep(!) for the moments of great.

I've watched this twice, just for the character Pep, as played so vivaciously by McKayla Witt. Funny, quirky, adorable and genuinely relatable; Witt provides much needed grounding here in her first feature. It's a manic pixie role for sure, but she's playing an elf so that's only fair. For me she steals the film and raises it above what it might otherwise have been. I look forward to many dazzling lead roles to come for this bright and talented actress.

Overall it's a hot mess, but that's still better than just being a mess. And congrats to all the students that took part. Oh, and kudos to Barry Bostwick for taking it all so seriously. I mean that sincerely, Barry Bostwick never phones his roles in, even when the material might make it reasonable for him to do so. Bostwick doesn't always get the credit, but he always puts in the work.

Why is this on Netflix? It's embarrassingly bad. I don't know why a review needs to be longer than that, but here's an extra sentence.

I love a cheesy Christmas movie I but I honestly don't know how this one even got made. It's unwatchable. The budget must've been minuscule-I would save some time and skip this one.