jeni82-1 Review of Christmas in Notting Hill

Christmas in Notting Hill (2023 TV Movie)

Love at first sight and good kisses

[9/10 · 7 December 2023]

I usually do not watch Hallmark movies set in foreign countries because the bad accents sound like nails on a chalkboard. I actually loved this one. It was engaging and kisses streamy and the accents were forgivable. It kept me watching. My favorite part was when she made the statement that the secret he let slip was safe with her because she didn't know the people getting engaged and yet the viewer knew that she actually knew both. For a change there was more than one kiss and it wasn't started in the last minute of the movie and didn't come from out of nowhere by characters with no chemistry. There was significant build-up to the kisses so it actually seemed like it should've happened. It was weird that they both lied to their siblings acting like they were total strangers when they officially met. There have been a few this year where the conflict is overblown to the point of where I don't know what they see in the other person to beg for a do-over. I felt this was one of those times but not as bad as a few others. I blame it on the lead actress. She goes off on him because she didn't realize he is famous even though they had just gotten to where they were talking about careers when she cut him off due to getting a call. The thing is I saw chemistry with them love at first sight type of chemistry. That had to be why he apologized for something he didn't need to. I actually viewed his withholding his job as testing the waters to see if she really liked him for him rather than for his popularity as it seems like he would have women hitting on him all the time. To be critical of the guy being over the top, too, when the lead actress saw the tabloid, it seemed that she was entirely focused on finding the missing necklace. So it seemed unrealistic that the lead guy would think it is because of the tabloid headline. The injury recovery also did not seem realistic (for instance, sitting on a curb talking and seemingly not having much issue getting up). And the recovery didn't seem like a good reason to being late to multiple family events (extra media appearances, doctor visits, and therapy were all that were portrayed as his schedule). The actress's reaction to her sister wanting to get engaged was also out of proportion to how their sisterly relationship was portrayed. It was portrayed like that she has a problem with the guy that she barely knew rather than trying to protect the younger sister that the lead helped raise then totally flipped out about it. There were small details that showed how much they hit it off right away. Like the lead forgetting about the bag he left on the table. Or letting a stranger off the street in a foreign country walk her back to his parent's house (I wouldn't do that but she was somehow drawn to him). Thought it was weird that they didn't exchange phone numbers with as much as they seemed to hit it off right away. It was almost like the world kept having them see each other so they eventually took the hint and got together. Honestly, the lead actress should've picked up on that he was well known or there should've been a better explanation as to why she didn't pick up on the cues. It was obvious to the viewer with the picture on the bus and people swooning over him. The rest of the acting was awesome at supporting the leads without getting in the way.