Recipe for a Perfect Christmas (2005) (TV)

User Rating:

6.4/10   

Director:

Sheldon Larry

Writers (WGA):

Rachel Feldman (written by) &
Susan Nanus (written by)

Release Date:

5 December 2005 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy

Plot:

The holiday season is turned upside down for a neophyte food critic JJ (Pope) when her uninhibited mother (Baranski) shows up unannounced...

Plot Keywords:

Christmas

Cast

Christine Baranski	...	Lee Bellmont
Carly Pope	...	J.J. Jenner
Bobby Cannavale	...	Alex Stermadapolous
Monica Parker	...	Irma Van Wyck
Kristen Hager	...	Morgan
Tracy Dawson	...	Cody
Peter Cockett	...	Elliot
Garwin Sanford	...	Clay McNeil
Clive Walton	...	Malcolm Bristol
Fulvio Cecere	...	Johnny Iannides
Louise Pitre	...	Coco
Dean Armstrong	...	Reynard
Jonas Chernick	...	Peter
Lubomir Mykytiuk	...	Dmitri
Scott Gibson	...	Kenny

Also Known As:

Smothered (Australia) (New Zealand: English title)

Runtime:

120 min (including commercials)

Country:

Canada

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Certification:

Australia:PG

Company:

Jaffe/Braunstein Films

Really average holiday movie

I live for the Lifetime holiday movie schedule, and always look forward to the new movies each year. Sadly, this one was not nearly as good as some of the past winners.

Christine whats-her-name, the mother, as always gave a great performance. But the daughter and Alex were both really weak characters, and didn't leave much room for the actors to show off. I thought there were zero sparks between them. It's like we were supposed to think they're a match made in heaven just because they brushed arms a couple times, and both like books on WWII history. I watch these dumb movies because they're supposed to make you feel all warm and goo-ey Christmas-y inside. But this was just bland; Their first kiss didn't have any of the predictable goo-eyness that i expect from these movies... I dunno, it just left me feeling flat. So much so that i fast-forwarded through dullsville parts with my tivo. I never do that. Normally I rewind those scenes. And watch them again the next night. Yes, I'm a giant loser.

I won't watch this again next year. But some of the past made-for-TV holiday movies that I've enjoyed in the past, and I'll watch again this year include Picking Up and Dropping Off, Boyfriend for Christmas, Comfort and Joy....All cheesy and feel good....

PS I'm tired of all these lifetime movies being about women in 'high powered' jobs, and they illustrate this fact by making them hollow, shallow, vicious jerks. Like women making over six-figures can't like Christmas. Arghhh.... At least this one deserves credit for giving her an actual job description (food critic), wherein most of these movies just have these ditzes in tight suits, stressing about some vague work-related issue on a wireless earphone, saying stuff like "I didn't get my masters in marketing at Columbia and rise to the top of the marketing business to not close this deal"....just to show how successful and professional, and not into Christmas this character must be (problematic because first, a masters in marketing is an MBA; second, what the heck is a 'marketing business'?, and third, can we be more vague and touchy feely about women in business? Make them an accountant, for god's sake; at least that's a real job.)