There are some good moments in this movie, but the chemistry in Josh & Abbey was without.
As friends it worked fine for them...but they weren't believable as a romantic couple. That first kiss they had seemed more awkward than anything else.
There are many feel good Christmas movies out there, but this one felt a little off and less endearing.
If you have a slow afternoon I'd say go for it, as it does have a good holiday spirit about it, but I wouldn't expect too much from the storyline.
104 Reviews
Cute but no chemistry
pee_bee9 November 2018
Warning: Spoilers
It's a cheesy Netflix Christmas film so you know what the ending will be five minutes in. And that's fine for the most part - grandpa is wise but sharper and more knowing than people think, there's a comic relief friend who laments his lack of a love life, and the kindly town mayor gives our heroine the break she needs. Hell, even chisel-jawed perfect on paper but not the right guy grandson of Gregory Peck really only makes a safe error to show us that although he's nice he isn't the right guy.
The problem is when the two main characters get together at the end there's nothing believable about the romance. As best friends their chemistry was excellent, but their kiss just seemed like two awkward strangers at a failed audition. Grandson Peck might not be the one, but I doubt the best friend would be if they were that lifeless.
Very predictable but still cute!
barofsoapppp5 January 2019
It is what is it
lilzsuzsika1 December 2018
It's a holiday movie, don't expect too much . It's wachable. Poor acting dough... But I liked the idea with the calendar, I could use that one in real life... :) It's worth waching if you don't expect too much from a Christmas movie.
Cute holiday movie!
JessaKat1821 November 2018
I thought this was a cute holiday movie. I wouldn't say it's an awarding winning movie that truly touched my soul! No nothing like that. Just a cute, clean family movie. Def. gave me the Hallmark Christmas movie vibe.
Feel good movie
esteller-935556 November 2018
First of all, i'm a sucker for these kind of movies. This was such a feel good movie and very fun to watch. Although the acting was off sometimes. But for the holidays, it's a great movie to watch, it's worth your time.
Okay..
cthompson-8964026 November 2018
The concept of the movie and the calendar gifts were unique but the rest of the movie was average.
First off they act like this girl is some struggling artist with her brand new car and her giant apartment. She's more like the daughter of a wealthy lawyer so she can be a photographer all she wants.
Then the male lead has braids and a unibrow going on where it makes you root for the other guy.
The meet cute with that other guy was pretty cute so the movie gets points there.
Good... But still a TV movie
sotheguy3 November 2018
Still not even finished the movie yet but just had to say it is so nice to a TV actress without a face full of botox and who can animate said face.
There are some original lines in this and it does feel modernised - complete with requisite blended family.
Still worth a watch when you want nice gentle entertainment
So bad and so annoying
d-cisowska25 November 2018
Warning: Spoilers
The predictability is not the biggest problem, most of Christmas movies are predictable. What I found most annoying is the storyline with the doctor who literally did nothing wrong, was open and direct, liked her and told her so and just seemed like a good guy. After which he got dumped for DARING to say that the calendar might not be magic. I found the main character obnoxious, angry at the whole world and not seeing any faults in herself.
This is really bad, you guys, just don't watch it
The Mom
cmrenshaw818 November 2018
The whole time I was watching this I just kept thinking about how that mom probably told her whole family she was in a Netflix movie and then she got everyone together to watch it and she put on this. Everyone was probably just like "wow Barbara.....this is different...."
Worst chemistry ever!
lik_mar21 December 2018
Genius
gracieliz954 November 2018
If we're rating according to how well the movie accomplished its goals, I have to give this a rave review. Somehow Netflix noticed that people love watching bad holiday TV movies, so they made their own perfect versions, taking every gloriously terrible detail into account. The Holiday Calendar combines a ridiculous plot, adorably unrealistic characters, incredibly cheesy writing, over-the top scoring, and the perfect amount of cliche, both of the Christmas variety and of the bad movie variety. It's a perfected version of your average Hallmark movie, but without the soulless blonde leads. I have to take off one point because it's neither a "good" movie nor an official satire, but it certainly impressed me. Netflix understands TV watchers better than any television network.
I am a sucker for a cute holiday movie!
reneew91318 November 2018
Plain, cheesy and boring
jsamual527 November 2018
This film lacks conviction. The storyline is flat and the acting falls short. I had hopes this would be an above average Christmas film but it is not. It is boring from beginning to end.
I can see why some people would like this film because if you are in to cheesy Christmas films it's right up your alley but if not I wouldn't bother wasting your time
I can see why some people would like this film because if you are in to cheesy Christmas films it's right up your alley but if not I wouldn't bother wasting your time
Good Christmas movie!
xxsocalgirlxx7 November 2018
Good enough for Christmas
sophieashwood6 November 2018
Warning: Spoilers
Classic Christmas movie, but it could have been better. I don't think it's the acting that was bad in the film, it's the editing that wasn't done well; they probably needed to keep it to 90ish minutes and ended up cutting too much out.
A lot of parts they mention something and then quickly move onto a different topic, such as 'first Christmas without nan is hard' and the gramps is like oh yes, but let's talk about the advent calendar. Next few scenes he says Christmas is always a hard time without his wife...so it's not the first Christmas without her?
I felt like this film could have had great potential but they added in the random storyline with Ty, which brought barely anything to the film. Is he a bad guy? Apparently not according to Abby at the end, even though those guys tell her he brings a lot of girls to the soup kitchen (and not one of those girls was his daughter).
Also - the mayor, who had never seen Abby's photos wants her to send them over to decorate her office?
Yes it's predictable, yes it's a bit of a lame storyline, but it is one of those Christmas movies you can throw on in the background to get you in the holiday spirit.
A lot of parts they mention something and then quickly move onto a different topic, such as 'first Christmas without nan is hard' and the gramps is like oh yes, but let's talk about the advent calendar. Next few scenes he says Christmas is always a hard time without his wife...so it's not the first Christmas without her?
I felt like this film could have had great potential but they added in the random storyline with Ty, which brought barely anything to the film. Is he a bad guy? Apparently not according to Abby at the end, even though those guys tell her he brings a lot of girls to the soup kitchen (and not one of those girls was his daughter).
Also - the mayor, who had never seen Abby's photos wants her to send them over to decorate her office?
Yes it's predictable, yes it's a bit of a lame storyline, but it is one of those Christmas movies you can throw on in the background to get you in the holiday spirit.
Nice little Christmas flick
rixiane8 November 2018
I think nice is the operative word here. This movie isn't great or awful, it's just nice to watch if you're into these predictably sweet movies.
Because it is, as most of these movies are, predictable from the very first minute. So no need to write down any spoilers, you'll find out soon enough if you decide to watch this movie.
The acting a little cringeworthy at times, but I believe that has to do with the storyline and choices in directing and not per se because of the lack of acting talent.
The acting a little cringeworthy at times, but I believe that has to do with the storyline and choices in directing and not per se because of the lack of acting talent.
Don't Even Bother
ladymalum2 November 2018
If it weren't for Quincy Brown being so damn cute I would have dozed off the moment it started. I had high hopes for this because of the amazing cast. Sadly, it was just like every cheesy and horribly written Hallmark Christmas movie.
It felt so dry from beginning to end. The acting was dull. There was literally no memorable scene. There was barely a climax. It felt like it just had one tone from beginning to end - there wasn't anything exciting, anything funny, anything that would literally just make you feel something - nada.
It felt so dry from beginning to end. The acting was dull. There was literally no memorable scene. There was barely a climax. It felt like it just had one tone from beginning to end - there wasn't anything exciting, anything funny, anything that would literally just make you feel something - nada.
Feel-Good movie suffers from pacing, muddled plot
jar842514 November 2018
Warning: Spoilers
If you watched the preview for this one, you've guessed the plot.
A young woman, whose life is going nowhere, is pulled from her doldrums by a holiday calendar (a gift from her doting Grandfather).
Problem is, the movie is trying too hard.
And about 3/4 of the way through the protagonist has to go back and rethink how she viewed her life with this magical device.
When your lead has to step in and course correct the plot - you've got problems.
Additionally, there are too many coincidences and jarring reveals.
Not a bad thing to put on your TV during the slow part of a family get together. But nothing that's going to hold your attention.
That, and I didn't buy the 'chemistry' between the romantic leads.
But still not the worst thing I've ever seen.
A young woman, whose life is going nowhere, is pulled from her doldrums by a holiday calendar (a gift from her doting Grandfather).
Problem is, the movie is trying too hard.
And about 3/4 of the way through the protagonist has to go back and rethink how she viewed her life with this magical device.
When your lead has to step in and course correct the plot - you've got problems.
Additionally, there are too many coincidences and jarring reveals.
Not a bad thing to put on your TV during the slow part of a family get together. But nothing that's going to hold your attention.
That, and I didn't buy the 'chemistry' between the romantic leads.
But still not the worst thing I've ever seen.
This Heroine needs the full Scrooge treatment
dormantdude-8881019 November 2018
So. Our heroine has problems.
She wants to be a photographer.
But.
She isn't brave enough to travel the world to follow her dreams like her best friend.
She can't bring herself to ask her parents to help her finance her own studio.
She forces herself to work in a studio taking passport photos to "pay the bills" and lives in this gorgeous, but I suppose less than mansion-like loft.
And worst of all? Her parents keep offering to give her money! Or a job at their law firm. They care about her life choices and worry for her. Her loving grandfather even has the audacity to give her a slightly broken family heirloom for Christmas that had belonged to her deceased grandmother.
The absolute horror of it all.
What this girl needs is a calendar that strips her of everything she has until the day before Christmas. Perhaps then, standing on the verge of the destitution and lonely despair that is the inescapable reality for so many people, will she realize how much she had to be grateful for.
I can't believe anyone could take this spoiled girl seriously or develop any form of connection with her as the leading character. This film was over for me before it began.
Predictable. Yet worth it.
swiftmetrick2 November 2018
It's easy to say that yes this movie is highly predictable. I'd presume that's one of the reasons it's receiving a large load of bad reviews. I think coming from my point of view is that the film is like any other good Christmas movie. It's predictable although always has a moral behind it. It's worth giving a watch. No you're not going to watch it more then once this year but it's still pretty good.
Predictable isn't the problem
tim-vanbaekel8 November 2018
Yes this movie is predictable.
Yes, 15 minutes in and you know how it's gonna end...
But that's not the problem, because lots of good movies are like that.
The greater story being predictable is acceptable, but if every sentence in itself is predictable than it's really becoming just boring.
The storyline and the acting are so goofy, really not floating my boat.
I'd definitely not recommend.
The greater story being predictable is acceptable, but if every sentence in itself is predictable than it's really becoming just boring.
The storyline and the acting are so goofy, really not floating my boat.
I'd definitely not recommend.
Fluffy But Spirited
TobaccoSmoke23 December 2019
OK, it's another romantic Christmas movie, generally catering to female audiences, BUT it does have a lot of beautiful scenery and the main characters are rather likable and speak from their hearts.
If nothing else, it's the perfect movie to see with the lights turned off, warming up to your snuggle bunny on a chilled December evening.
I guarantee Christmas spirit will gather around the both of you.
Surprised
amarnold-524531 January 2021
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