It’s that point of 12 months once more, when individuals commerce of their Halloween decorations for Christmas ornaments and exchange their scary motion pictures with jolly romantic comedies stuffed with vacation spirit. Streaming service big Netflix isn’t any stranger to the style that brings within the cheer, laughter, and occasional romance. Its newest, Christmas With You, sees Aimee Garcia and Freddie Prinze Jr. be part of forces to create Christmas magic by track. Gabriela Tagliavini directs the screenplay from Paco Farias, Jennifer C. Stetson, and Michael Varrati. It’s tacky in all the suitable locations and critical in only a few, however Christmas With You is reliably candy and honest when it must be.
Aimee Garcia stars as pop celebrity Angelina, whose profession takes a flip for the sudden when her label brings on rising star Cheri Bibi (Nicolette Stephanie Templier). Left with restricted alternatives to advance her profession ahead, Angelina should present her label that she’s nonetheless bought the star energy by bringing them a success Christmas track. Feeling low on inspiration, Angelina escapes to a small city, the place she meets her primary fan Cristina (Deja Monique Cruz) and her songwriting single father Miguel (Freddie Prinze Jr.). Collectively, they got down to create music magic, the place love is within the air and hope is true across the nook.
Christmas With You is every thing one would anticipate from a Netflix Christmas film. It’s predictable, a bit of farfetched, and it typically leans into cringe territory. But, every thing about it makes the movie an ideal look ahead to this time of 12 months because it reliably navigates emotions of affection, loss, and new beginnings. By way of Angelina, the script properly conveys these sentiments and experiences in a approach that audiences would discover important. Though Angelina is a celebrity, she is an individual with regular hopes and desires, which humanizes her character. And seeing her character navigate this level in her profession with the heavy burden of loss creeping up at each turning nook enhances the script, making the characteristic greater than meets the attention.
Whereas Tagliavini’s path by no means overpowers the honest nuances of the storyline and character relationships, she properly showcases the significance of simplicity. That is principally demonstrated by Angelina and Miguel’s rising relationship, as they develop a stronger bond by songwriting. Whereas some other rom-com would seize the chance to generate overly romantic eventualities and obnoxious dialogue, Tagliavini practices restraint, counting on her actors’ chemistry and specializing in the guts of the movie. This resolution ends in candy interactions between the movie’s leads, making it all of the extra pleasant general.
Nearly each level of Christmas With You is predictable, and even considerably typical by rom-com requirements. And but, there’s no true barrier to enjoyment because of the touching script and nice solid. Aimee Garcia merely rocks as Angelina, exuding true star energy identical to her character. Her chemistry with Freddie Prince Jr. merely works, regardless that his strategy to enjoying Miguel comes off a bit of stiff and awkward. Oddly sufficient, it really works for the character, and actually allows viewers to cheer on this unlikely pair. Then there’s Deja Monique Cruz as Cristina; Cruz’s resume could also be quick, however her efficiency right here actually showcases her expertise nicely. It wouldn’t be stunning if audiences noticed much more of her within the coming years.
Full of affection, laughter, and vacation spirit, Christmas With You is that this season’s rom-com that’s certain to tug on the heartstrings of its viewers. Not solely does the script present a touching tribute to chasing one’s desires irrespective of the age, it additionally fantastically rationalizes the necessity for human connection even amidst the lack of a liked one. It doesn’t break any style limitations, nor does the movie provide something new to say about these respective subjects. Nonetheless, Tagliavini properly crafts a Christmas rom-com that’s humorous and honest — a feat with which many different vacation romantic comedies have struggled.
Christmas With You releases on Netflix on Thursday, November 17. The movie is 89 minutes lengthy and never rated.
