The next film on my 25 Days of Christmas movies was "Christmas Do-Over." With a child on the cover and Jay Mohr, I was pretty sure I would find something to enjoy.
Movie Six
Christmas Do-Over
Starring: Jay Mohr, Daphne Zuniga, and Adrienne Barbeau
About the Movie (from Barnes & Noble): A ne'er do well father and ex-husband who always raced his way through
the holidays is forced to relive Christmas Day time and again until he
gets it right in this family oriented fantasy comedy starring Jay Mohr.
It's Christmas time once again, and as usual Kevin (Mohr) is scrambling
to get his son Ben a last minute gift before stopping by his ex-wife
Jill's house for a quick swig of eggnog. Ben can't stand Jill's
impossibly perfect new boyfriend, and the prospect of spending the
entire evening with his former inlaws is nearly too painful to ponder.
But this Christmas things are going to be different, because this
Christmas might just last forever. At first Kevin resists the curious
development by simply reverting to his childish ways, though he is about
to find out that sometimes in order to build a better future one must
finally make amends with the past.
My Review: Kevin is definitely a bit on the self-centered side. He is invited to his in-laws' home for a Christmas celebration and drags his feet the whole way. He, of course, wants to see his son, but he is not really thrilled about family time with the ex, her family and her new boyfriend. Of course Kevin's son is thrilled to have the family together and doesn't care about anything other than that and wishes that it was Christmas every day.
In the fame of "Groundhog Day," Christmas repeats itself again and again with only Kevin realizing what is going on. Kevin is not remotely delighted to spend the same day again and again with his ex and her family and acts out like the selfish man he is. But a change may come if he is willing to open his heart and his eyes.
"Christmas Do-Over" is a sweet Christmas film. There is a lesson to be learned which makes it nice for the family. Don't dig too deep though because there are a lot of things that would make you dismiss the magic of the sweet spot of this story. Well, once Kevin stops being a creep. :)
I would give this one 3 Stars. I liked it. I would possibly watch it again, but it would not be a yearly thing.
Here's the trailer:
CHRISTMAS MOVIE REVIEW
One of my favorite things about the Christmas season is the abundance of Christmas movies. I am not terribly sappy, but I love a good Christmas movie (especially if it causes me to get a little teary-eyed too). To keep myself in the glow, I've decided to watch a Christmas movie a day until Christmas, and do my best to share them here.
This past week, I picked up a new-to-me Christmas movie called "Christmas Child" at Family Christian Store. It seemed to be a great way to start. It is based on the book "The Christmas Cross" by Max Lucado. I had not heard of either so it seemed to be a great way to go.
About the film (from Amazon):
Jack, a Chicago journalist dealing with a midlife crisis and a troubled
marriage, is sent to Dallas, but a detour to a small Texas town that's
home to a life-size Nativity scene leads him to a discovery about his
past and the courage to face his future.
Starring: William R. Moses, Megan Follows, Steven Curtis Chapman, Tonya Bordeaux, Vicki Taylor Ross, and Muse Watson
Impact Productions and Bridgestone Multimedia Group
My Review:
Christmas Child brings us into the life of Jack Davenport, a journalist who is at a cross-roads in his life. Jack's adoptive father has passed away, his wife and he are simply not getting along and he is on the cusp of turning 40. With many heart questions and quite a bit of emptiness, Jack hits the road for another inconvenient assignment from his magazine. Leaving behind an upset wife who is simply ready to close up her own heart.
The small town that Jack stops in is exactly the small town you would envision in your mind. There is a large nativity in front of the church and the town is loaded with character and characters that brought me lots of smiles and a little bit of aggravation. Almost everyone in the town is extremely open and helpful to Jack who really needs the kindness at this time in his life. The genuineness of the townspeople caused me to hope that Jack would scrap it all, grab his wife, and move there....maybe in another film?
The actors were well cast though I must admit, Steven Curtis Chapman reminded me of Ned Flanders of the Simpsons (but I liked that about him). It was also nice seeing William R. Moses who I remember from my young...young...young years when he was on Falcon Crest.
Christmas Child is a story of searching, struggle and hope. It is a story that shows the importance of reaching out to others. There was a strong focus on adoption and redemption. I enjoyed it a great deal and highly recommend it.
If you can't find it in the store, I suggest you stream it. I saw it was available on Hulu. Myself, I'm glad I purchased it. It will definitely be a part of our Christmas traditions. Here's the trailer:
Christmas Child trailer from
American Family Association on
Vimeo.
