Nov 16

Nov 16 Christmas Reservations

It’s Christmas at Treeline, the ski lodge owned by Holly’s family. And each visitor is checking in with their own baggage - including Holly’s one-who-got away, Kevin. Will the group be plagued by après apprehensions… or can a little Christmas spirit help the guests cancel their reservations?

Christmas+Reservations.jpg — Christmas clichés:

Christmas-Named Lead
Event Coordinator
Deceased Parent
Rekindled Romance
Widower
Cute, Precocious Child(ren)
Tree Buy & Trim
Reindeer!

Our Thoughts

This Melissa Joan Hart-led film ranked #4 on our list of most-anticipated 2019 premieres. The plot wasn’t what grabbed us—it was MJH as the star and producer, the same roles she played in 2018’s A Very Nutty Christmas. That film was a delightful surprise that infused needed humor and diversity into the genre. Perhaps her magic would translate to her 2019 effort?

Well, we’ve learned our lesson. What makes someone successful in the past is not a guarantee they’ll be successful in the future. And “Christmas Reservations” is far from a success. It’s more of a baffling waste of star power.

Via an extra-long opening voiceover, we meet Christmas-Named Holly (MJH, on-screen for about 30% of the movie) the Event Coordinator at her family’s ski lodge. Booked for the holidays, Holly helps check in a myriad of guests: two single sisters who won a Christmas trip on a gameshow, a grandmother from India duped into the trip by her lying granddaughter, a generic family with a college-aged son who’s wooed by the aforementioned granddaughter, and Holly’s college one-that-got-away, Widower Kevin (Ricardo Chavira, a great Xmas leading man)…with his two kids.

And yes, all of these characters are as important, if not more prominent, than the Rekindled Romance expected to bloom between these college sweethearts.

The plot infuses Christmas-y elements in the events Holly puts on, a good nod to the genre. A snowman contest, some wreath-making, and a gingerbread house build sprinkle in some joy. But none of these clichés get to the heart of the season. The best feel-good scene comes from the Tree Buy & Trim between Holly’s dad and the potentially ill half of the sister duo. Their love of ornaments and tree-topping angels gave us what we love about these movies, if only for a moment.

What really threw us off, though, was the quantity of storylines and their utterly confusing details. What’s the purpose of the former Olympian playboy skier? Who leaves a golden retriever on a mountain? And (mild spoiler) what kind of doctor needs to give you good news in person, thus making you wait until Christmas Eve to calm your fear? And don’t get us started on some of the dialogue. When taken out of context, it makes you question the quality of what you’re watching. Example:

“I want my photo studio in a solar-powered, gingerbread house in Buffalo where I can take pictures of your two beautiful children.”

Yeah…Rob lost it when he heard that. (Jess got video proof of his laughing/crying.)

The primary reason to watch “Christmas Reservations” is to see something with such potential go terribly wrong. We yelled at the screen with our many questions and laughed a few times at a great cast delivering mediocre dialogue. But what we left with was disappointment in what could have been. Maybe 2020 can recapture the magic, MJH?

Rob's Final Take: Not Very Merry
Wow, what a huge disappointment. The only saving grace was MJH’s speech about getting a house in Buffalo - I haven’t laughed that hard in years.

Jess's Final Take: Not Very Merry
It almost falls into the “So Bad, It’s Good” territory, but it’s far too earnest for that. Not enough Christmas and not enough focus to make me feel anything but frustration.