It's true the writing of this story wasn't up to par, and was apparent to me that virtually any and all other problems with the film can be clearly sourced back to the misdirection of its writing.
You can clearly tell that the producer intended this for a select niche. At first I believed it to be the equestrian crowd (of which I'm unfamiliar with, but it was evident enough), but I soon realized that the writer must not have been well versed in marrying this plot with professional horse events. I then gathered that its intended audience went more for ambient feel-good Christmas moments for families. It isn't for everyone. If you don't fit into that category, I would move on, but for those that do, go for it!
Sidenote: I'm not as ignorant as some of the other posters as to immediately bash the actors. As a stage director myself, I've seen that the performances of my actors can be affected by such things as poor direction given to them, hurried rehearsal times, or even poor craft services and meals provided, as I've seen many low budget sets provide nothing but starchy carbs for the poor actors to load up on. Who if anyone is working at their top game in anything under those conditions. Were they given trailers and appropriate working hours? Smaller budgets are harsh conditioned like that. That's why Union involvement exists. Again it's quite ignorant to attack an actor's performance without knowing their working conditions.
As I previously stated, this is for families looking for a feel-good redemptive movie. For those it isn't for - well, the smart ones move on and spend their valuable time watching things that pertain to them, rather than writing a hate review. In summary: Despite its writing, still enjoyable!
You can clearly tell that the producer intended this for a select niche. At first I believed it to be the equestrian crowd (of which I'm unfamiliar with, but it was evident enough), but I soon realized that the writer must not have been well versed in marrying this plot with professional horse events. I then gathered that its intended audience went more for ambient feel-good Christmas moments for families. It isn't for everyone. If you don't fit into that category, I would move on, but for those that do, go for it!
Sidenote: I'm not as ignorant as some of the other posters as to immediately bash the actors. As a stage director myself, I've seen that the performances of my actors can be affected by such things as poor direction given to them, hurried rehearsal times, or even poor craft services and meals provided, as I've seen many low budget sets provide nothing but starchy carbs for the poor actors to load up on. Who if anyone is working at their top game in anything under those conditions. Were they given trailers and appropriate working hours? Smaller budgets are harsh conditioned like that. That's why Union involvement exists. Again it's quite ignorant to attack an actor's performance without knowing their working conditions.
As I previously stated, this is for families looking for a feel-good redemptive movie. For those it isn't for - well, the smart ones move on and spend their valuable time watching things that pertain to them, rather than writing a hate review. In summary: Despite its writing, still enjoyable!