Without wanting to sound like a holiday cynic, one must lament the premature release of holiday films prior to the Thanksgiving holiday. Even as the weather cools, it feels too soon to completely immerse in the platform’s annual feast of cheap festive entertainment.
Similar to US candy that no longer contain real chocolate, the service’s Christmas films are relied upon for their brand of mediocrity. They provide predictable elements – familiar actors, modest spending, artificial winter scenes, and absurd premises. In the worst cases, these films are unmemorable disasters; in the best scenarios, they are forgettable fun.
The new Netflix film, the latest Christmas offering, disappears into the vast middle of the forgettable spectrum. Helmed by Mark Steven Johnson, who previously last Netflix romcom was utterly forgettable, this movie goes down like cheap bubbly – fittingly lackluster and situational.
The story starts with what appears to be a computer-made commercial for drug store brand champagne. This ad is actually the proposal of the main character, played by the actress, to her coworkers at a financial firm. Sydney is the construction paper cut-out of a professional female – underestimated, phone-obsessed, and ambitious to the harm of her personal life. After her boss sends her to Paris to finalize an acquisition over Christmas, her sister makes her promise take one night in Paris to enjoy life.
Of course, the French capital is the ideal location to pull someone from digital navigation, despite the city is covered in unconvincing digital snowfall. At a absurdly cutesy bookstore, Sydney meet-cutes with the male lead, who distracts her from her phone. Following rom-com conventions, she initially resists this ideal guy for silly reasons.
Just as predictable are the film elements that proceed at sudden shifts, reflecting the turning of aging champagne bottles in the cellars of the family vineyard. The catch? The love interest is the heir to the estate, hesitant to manage it and resentful toward his dad for selling it. Maybe the film’s most salient contribution to romantic comedies, he is highly critical of corporate buyouts. The problem? Sydney truly thinks she’s not stripping this family-owned company for profit, vying against three stereotypical rivals: a stern Frenchwoman, a severe blonde German man, and a delusional gay billionaire.
The twist? Her skeevy coworker Ryan shows up unannounced. The grist? The two leads look yearningly at each other in festive sleepwear, despite a vast chasm in economic worldview.
The upside and downside is that nothing here sticks beyond a short-lived thrill on an unfilled belly. There’s a lack of substantial content – Minka Kelly, still best known for her role in the TV series, gives a merely adequate performance, superficially pleasant and acts of kindness, more maternal than love interest material. The male star provides just the right amount of French charm with light inner conflict and nothing more. The gimmicks are not amusing, the love story is harmless, and the ending is predictable.
Despite its philosophizing on the exclusivity of sparkling wine, no one is pretending this is anything other than a mainstream product. The things to hate are the very reasons some enjoy it. One might call an expert’s opinion about it a minor issue.
- The Holiday Film can be streamed on Netflix.
