A Hollywood Christmas

I have read a couple of reviews for this movie where they obviously didn't get that this is a deliberately awful movie encased in a deliberately cheesy Christmas movie. I admit that the first ten minutes were going hard until I realised the intentional cheesiness, and also thought that Anissa Borrego's fake voice was wonderfully awful, until I realised it was her real voice, I'm so sorry! This is simply a comedic look at Christmas movies, but done in an interesting way. Yes, it's not to everyone's taste, but when you realise how over the top it is you've got to find it funny. Not everyone's cup of tea, but I liked it.

You have to get beyond wanting a 10 out of 10 Hallmark movie. If you want a Hallmark movie go to Hallmark. This is on HBO. I stumbled across this one by accident and was pleasantly surprised. I thought the fact that it played off of the cheesy romcom was perfect. It showed the other side of moviemaking, not the three week perfection that other studios give. There was the main character with the flaw they didn't see, the goofy sidekick, the classic misunderstanding, and the unpacking of feelings. Oh yeah, it also had some romance as well. If you can get beyond wanting the perfect movie, this really isn't a bad movie. There are a few familiar faces as well. Just try it and form your own opinion. As a matter of fact, this movie made me hop on here and look for other movies that some of these characters are in.

We love bad, formulaic Christmas movies, and this is a movie about making one of those bad, formulaic Christmas movies while (mostly) following the formula itself. It's so meta lol!

It was fun to watch and the people leaving low rating reviews don't get that it is SUPPOSED to be a movie that doesn't take itself seriously with bad writing and "flat" acting! The acting actually is great, especially the actors playing the a lead actors in the "movie." It makes fun of itself multiple times, albeit subtly sometimes.

If you realize what this movie is before you watch it, you'll enjoy it that much more!

I enjoy a cheesy bad Christmas movie, but this one went too far with force-feeding you the "formula." I think if the writers took out the role of the PA spelling out the analogy between the Director's real-life interactions and the happy-ending Christmas movies then it could have really saved the movie. I hate it when scripts are too on-the-nose and GOD that assistants voice was annoying which only made it more excruciating. I think in any real life scenario, if someone behaved like that regarding another persons love life it would have immediately shut down any chance of romance. The second-hand embarrassment I got from her pointing out the chemistry in an unnatural way was out of control. I didn't hate the acting, which is typically the issue with these types of movies, but I couldn't get past how much they shoved the plot in your face. Let me live in the fantasy that the characters have no idea they will have their predictable happily ever after.

I very much enjoyed the movie, and I certainly appreciate the actors who made this "movie in a movie" setting worthy. Well acted and the movie itself moved along well as it riffed on the formulaic Christmas Movie theme. Despite other reviews that dinged the writing, I thought it was well done and entertaining. I know this is not a deep story (and that is said tongue in cheek in the movie), and nor did I want it to be. Some Christmas movies do pull the emotional strings more versus this movie, but I was fine with that, and again quite enjoyable all around. And again cudos to the lead actors for making a Hollywood Christmas Movie better than the rest.