★ 2 / 10
A poorly executed, 'ticking the boxes' holiday flick
Mathias K
A poorly executed, 'ticking the boxes' holiday flick falling flat whenever it attempts to build any form of tension, romantic or otherwise. Bella is a flat…
A poorly executed, 'ticking the boxes' holiday flick falling flat whenever it attempts to build any form of tension, romantic or otherwise.
Bella is a flat, uninspired and hollow protagonist with neither edges nor flaws, nor any character development to speak of. With the exception of her relationship status, she ends the movie as she started it. That lack of character is, fundamentally, what contributes to any sort of chemistry between Bella and the Duke.
It would be expected that at least her male counterpart would undertake some sort of character development, but no. "Duke Stefan Brown" has himself very little in the way of character to develop; at the very least, he came pre-packaged with an unpleasant breakup and a tragic family history. And while, to his credit, he does change over the course of a very, very long 1.5 hours, that change is formulaic rather than earned. There are no profound or emotionally charged moments - character development is told and explained, not shown or felt.
The story does precious little to change any of that. The plot is expectedly predictable, and not without a bit of Christmas spirit in the shape of a surprisingly gracious paparazzo. Fortunately, in this case, that also means it takes no suprising turns, making it an entirely inconsequential piece of holiday entertainment.
Add to that an overall cheap and tacky feel - visibly dirty floors, cheap-looking suits, an overabundance of all-too-obviously-fake fake snow, not the faintest touch of believable royalty - and rapid, jumpy cuts in conversations. Then sprinkle in every cliché imaginable, and you're left with a film that feels disjointed and uninspired for much of its runtime.
The saving grace here is low expectations: You don't start this film expecting a masterpiece, so the disappointment doesn't hit all that hard. There is almost a feeling of relief once the credits roll.
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★ 6 / 10
Predictable holiday romantic comedy that still manages to
Laurie E.
Predictable holiday romantic comedy that still manages to be enjoyable.
Predictable holiday romantic comedy that still manages to be enjoyable.
★ 1 / 10
Filme fraco, o roteiro é fraco, as cenas
thiago s
Filme fraco, o roteiro é fraco, as cenas são fracas, a história é fraca, o elenco é fraco, e ninguém ajuda a melhorar o filme, os personagens são fracos, e o…
Filme fraco, o roteiro é fraco, as cenas são fracas, a história é fraca, o elenco é fraco, e ninguém ajuda a melhorar o filme, os personagens são fracos, e o filme deveria ter cenas bem melhores e relevantes, para fazer o filme ser bom
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