A Cinderella Christmas

Who wouldn't want Peter Porte as Prince Charming, BUT not sure if it was Emma Rigby or her lips that did the most acting ! I wonder how much they cost her, because they came into the room before she did.

And despite him being the ideal Prince Charming, as a character he clearly didn't have anything between his ears, if he couldn't detect a pair of lips on a woman like those beneath the mask ! You have to laugh !

The best part of the movie for me was some of the witty dialogue between the two leads. For example it went something like this.

Angie- "I feel like I don't fit in here" Nicholas- "That is precisely what makes you stand out" These moments were thought provoking and provided depth to the characters. The 2 leads did a nice job.

Another nice feature was a Christmas stocking where the characters would put things that were only of value to them. Great stuff that really helped to identify with the characters in the story.

Also thought the character of Max was well done. A cool friend with cool language to give some humor to what Nicholas was feeling.

Oh yes- Lesley-Anne Down with an English accent (we saw her 30 years ago as Madelaine on North and South mini-series)

With all this good- why not a ten? The cousin Candace part did not add to the story- it may have been good for a few laughs. Such a superficial character- not really believable. Also the first 30 minutes were very lively full of surprise, but then some parts got a bit slow and predictable.

The witty dialogue and literary quotes between the two leads would get me to watch it again, but I'd have to tolerate cousin Candace.

Keeping in mind this is a Christmas romance film, it's quite good. It's got everything you want from a Christmas romance:

• A case of mistaken identity
• A rich and wonderful bachelor;
• A hard-working and generally good protagonist;
• A masquerade ball; and
• An evil step-sister (cousin) who is obviously toxic but so obviously that it makes you stop and think.

Some plot points were a little farfetched, such as the urgent wedding, the fact that the bachelor couldn't work out who our protagonist was because she was wearing a mask, and of course, anyone believing the dress our protagonist wore was actually nice. Not to mention the stocking game which seems ridiculous because you're forced to give someone else five (5) of your possessions which have little-to-none monetary meaning but a whole lot of sentimental value. Personally, I'd rather keep the things that have no monetary value but great sentimental value because that's the point of keeping sentimental objects. Maybe, just maybe, the guests were supposed to return the stocking to the original owner, but considering that our protagonist and bachelor did not, I have no idea. Also. You were supposed to use the objects in the stocking to find the person who they originally belonged to, but neither our bachelor or protagonist did this. So, what's the point? Other than the risk of losing your five (5) possessions because someone else took them because they were supposed to, or took them because they just never returned them to you and went home with them (I'm looking at you bachelor and protagonist).

This movie is cute, and as far as Hallmark movies go, it's one of my favorites. Here's a thought though...if the protagonists parents were dead from the beginning of the movie, why not let her be from the U.K.? I think her acting would have been better if she could just use her British accent. I could tell she was concentrating too hard on the American one. I know for an actress it's a challenge or rite of passage or whatever, but it was a distraction.

Emma Rigby is bewitching and delightful! The sister is such *****I heard that Emma worked as a party planner to get prepared for the part.. you can tell. This little gem is a magical Christmas ride into romance. I like to pretend that I'm that princess! Adorable.