Baby, it's cold outside so cozy up, grab a hot cup of tea and relax with these very merry and heart filled Holiday romantic comedies! Merry Christmas, and Happy Holidays! 💘
The Princess Switch
Netflix Although it’s far from perfect, The Princess Switch (2018) is a film that is really sweet. Margaret the Duchess of Montenaro and Chicago baker Stacy De Novo (Both played by Vanessa Hudgens) are two identical looking strangers who meet by chance and switch places so that the Duchess can experience what it’s like to be a “normal girl”. And in this process the two women each fall in love with a man from the other’s life; Margaret with Stacy’s best friend and sous chef Kevin, and Stacy with Margaret’s Fiancée Edward the Prince of Belgravia. And while this story is totally ridiculous and a little bit twee, the movie is endearing nonetheless. Stacy’s immediate involvement in Edward’s life – her building on charitable events that he’s already involved with – makes me want them to get together. And Margaret’s connection with Kevin over sentimental holiday activities makes their relationship feel natural and effortless. And this is what carries the movie. Sure, some of the dialogue is a little awkward (it sometimes feels like lines come out of nowhere and exist unnaturally in the world on screen), and yes Vanessa Hudgens’ British accent is distractingly bad, but the characters and their romances make all that forgivable because they’re likeable. Nick Sagar is Kevin; Sam Palladio is Edward. Directed by Mike Rohl.
-Gabe
The Christmas Wedding Planner
Netflix
The Christmas Wedding Planner (2017) is about Kelsey (the titular wedding planner) and her first gig: her cousin Emily’s wedding. Things are complicated by the appearance of one of Emily’s exes, a private investigator named Connor, who requests Kelsey’s help in investigating Todd (Emily’s fiancée). During investigation Kelsey and Connor begin to fall in love. And while this description might make the film sound fun, in actuality it is painfully dreary, primarily because everything in it is so stale. Half the shots in the movie look like stock footage of a snowy day, and the characters are so bland, delivering lines like “you’re not the pain in the butt that I thought you were gonna be” as if they were truly great witticisms. In addition to this, the score sounds like the filmmakers just went on YouTube and did a search for royalty free Christmas music. And while there are other problems besides blandness, like terrible catchphrases (e.g. Kelsey’s mantra of “I am a fierce warrior”), and the fact that every business in the movie is inexplicably located inside a house, these are not the main issue for me, instead it is the way that movie is so boring that ruins it. And while you might derive some type of ironic so bad it’s good enjoyment from the film, I, personally don’t get that here, and so I can’t recommend that you watch it. Jocelyn Hudson is Kelsey; Rebecca Dalton is Emily; Stephen Huszar is Connor; Eric Hicks is Todd. Directed by Justin Dyck. -Gabe
Anastasia
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Disney +
Anastasia (1997) is a great winter film about a Russian princess discovering her identity after being stuck in an orphanage for many years. She is accompanied by two scheming men who want to use her to con the queen and gain a large financial reward for finding the missing princess. But then this shriveled up, evil wizard, Rasputin gets involved and makes their journey quite dangerous. Along this journey, Anastasia and Dimitri banter their way into each others’ hearts. And it’s adorable. I loved their interactions. Overall, I really love this film because the animation is beautifully done, especially Anastasia’s wardrobe, the music and the singing is beautiful, the plot is interesting and the characters have more depth than the average older Disney princess. Yes, this film (when made) was not Disney, but as a 90s princess movie, it is often compared. Anastasia (1997) gives all the characters, especially Anastasia and Dimitri, a great amount of character depth and interaction that makes the relationship built between them more believable and lovable. This movie is like a romantic Christmas lullaby, besides the nasty Rasputin, and a must-watch.
-Thalia
Lovehard
Netflix
Love Hard (2021) is a Netflix original Christmas rom com that takes all the tropes and tries to give them a different spin. The film follows Natalie Bauer, a dating columnist who never has luck with love. After hitting gold on a dating app she heads to meet her true love face to face for Christmas across the country. She quickly learns her true love is a catfish and her dreams are crushed. The rest of the film follows your typical rom com path of mischief, miscommunication and fake dating. Surprisingly, for a Netflix original, this movie is not bad. It still hits a lot of clichés but the chemistry between the leads is decent and the whole film exudes a feeling of coziness In general, I would describe this film as inoffensive. It’s not bad but it's not a film I would re-watch any time soon. There are simply other rom coms and other Christmas films that I would much rather watch before returning to Love Hard. -Stacy
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