The acting from the three leads was off. I kept trying to figure out why.
Were those real accents or fake from the two leading men? Was it missing background music at key points? Was it the super fake snowmen and snow scenes? The lack of any surprise or shock or wonder at where they were? The lead actress was rather unlikable. Not because of the script but she emoted a strange vibe to me. She does not have screen charisma. I had never seen any of these people anywhere before, and I watch a lot of movies. This feels like a true budget film. The food never looked appetizing at all in all the scenes, the two leading mens teeth are quite yellow, and that was distracting to me, there was zero chemistry between any of the leads. Sorry about the teeth thing, I know American actors have the fakest most brilliant white teeth and that can be distracting too. And so unrealistic.
The older supporting actors were all good.
The story was a cute idea and it could have been a great movie done better.
I feel like this movie being so flat and stilted must be partly the directors fault.
There was no spark in this movie.
I have seen worse Hallmark and other Christmas movies, but they usually have such lush settings and Christmas decorations and food, you can just ignore the bad plots, (sometimes) and enjoy the Christmas stuff. One thing Hallmark does have is a great stable of charismatic actors who can carry almost any plot. This movie did not have that.
21 Reviews
Typical Lifetime Movie, Main Character is Pretty Insufferable
erinicenhour-112 November 2020
I watch a lot of Lifetime movies and I have no problem with the cheese factor. However, the main character in this movie is ridiculously annoying, and it's highly unlikely that in reality any of her friends or family members would tolerate her bratty behavior. Lifetime doesn't have to make every white woman seem like an idiot with unrealistic and overly privileged expectations, but they're so good at it. This made it really hard for me to get through the first part of the movie. I know that they're trying to show character growth and "Christmas is more than just X" but...just TRY to make it a little more realistic!
Not Good Enough
PennyReviews12 January 2019
Even though you are not going to expect much out of it, it still felt empty. It fails to bring up the christmas spirit or the romance of the love story. It wasn't that it wasn't well executed or that the performances were lacking, though. I guess it was the story itself and the script.
Not perfection
TheLittleSongbird28 December 2019
Am not somebody who hates Christmas or has a bias against made for television Christmas films. The complete opposite on both counts and have made that clear more than once and will continue to do so if necessary (though am refraining as much as possible from reiterating too much). The comparisons to 'Groundhog Day', a great film, made it sound very appetising and if done well or at least competently it did have potential to be good.
'Christmas Perfection' is not perfection, a long way from that. It doesn't even reach good level, the complete opposite, and the worst done components are done terribly. Am taking no pleasure in offering that opinion, being somebody who has actually liked a good deal of Christmas romantic comedy made for television films. As well as being somebody who tries to be as balanced and encouraging as possible when reviewing and summing up the good and bad.
It is not a complete loss. The soundtrack is pleasant enough. The supporting cast do ably with what they are given.
James Henri-Thomas is also game as the only one of the three leads and of all the characters to have anything remotely likeable about him.
The other characters are too underdeveloped and unsympathetic other than that. Two of the three leads are incredibly weak, especially Caiitlin Thompson as a character that is very obnoxious and she plays her with very little ease or charisma. There is no chemistry at all between the three leads, either romantic or of any kind and they are painfully stiff together throughout. The romantic element suffers badly as a result, something that is further hurt by relationships being rushed and no character growth.
All the comedic attempts are laboured and have no freshness whatsoever and the more dramatic elements are far too mawkish. None of the different elements work on their own and together they are poorly balanced, with a tendency to be over-serious. Add to that inane dialogue, no spark let alone charm, warmth or heart, emotional coldness, quite cheap production values that never look authentic and contrivance galore and you have a film that really does not work on most levels.
Has a few decent things but 'Christmas Perfection' couldn't have been more further away from being perfection. Good idea with weak at best execution. 3/10
'Christmas Perfection' is not perfection, a long way from that. It doesn't even reach good level, the complete opposite, and the worst done components are done terribly. Am taking no pleasure in offering that opinion, being somebody who has actually liked a good deal of Christmas romantic comedy made for television films. As well as being somebody who tries to be as balanced and encouraging as possible when reviewing and summing up the good and bad.
It is not a complete loss. The soundtrack is pleasant enough. The supporting cast do ably with what they are given.
James Henri-Thomas is also game as the only one of the three leads and of all the characters to have anything remotely likeable about him.
The other characters are too underdeveloped and unsympathetic other than that. Two of the three leads are incredibly weak, especially Caiitlin Thompson as a character that is very obnoxious and she plays her with very little ease or charisma. There is no chemistry at all between the three leads, either romantic or of any kind and they are painfully stiff together throughout. The romantic element suffers badly as a result, something that is further hurt by relationships being rushed and no character growth.
All the comedic attempts are laboured and have no freshness whatsoever and the more dramatic elements are far too mawkish. None of the different elements work on their own and together they are poorly balanced, with a tendency to be over-serious. Add to that inane dialogue, no spark let alone charm, warmth or heart, emotional coldness, quite cheap production values that never look authentic and contrivance galore and you have a film that really does not work on most levels.
Has a few decent things but 'Christmas Perfection' couldn't have been more further away from being perfection. Good idea with weak at best execution. 3/10
A very lovely groundhog Christmas
bellafloor-6956330 November 2018
If you love the movie Groundhog Day, you will love this Christmas version of it.
It actually is a very sweet Christmas movie...... and not as frustrating as Groundhog Day. I think the story line is just adorable and well worth the watch. Happy Christmas to you.
Not as cute as it tries to be
fringe-214 October 2019
Warning: Spoilers
This is a 2018 TV Movie that smacks of being a 1983 TV Movie. The protagonist, Darcy, is a control freak even by control freak standards, and is worse on Christmas due to some family issues. All she wants is a "Perfect" Christmas.
Oh, and it had better start with waffles! And the just-out-of-reach perfect man from the office. Not her best friend from childhood, who is a bit frumpy. (Why can't the old friend ever be the sexy one?)
And then a mystical shop lady gives her a token that lands her inside her magical perfect Christmas village diorama. Where every day is the "Perfect Christmas". Sounds a bit like Groundhog Day. Except without the interesting personalities, or any character growth. No villains but no heroes either.
Problems with this movie include: 1. Only one character even remotely sympathetic (Brandon The Frump) 2. No characters that grow or change really. Darcy just gets bored or frustrated, but not mature. 3. More of a series of tropes and cliches strung together than a plot. 4. Perhaps five splashes of clever or fun dialog. Mostly between her divorced parents. 5. Bizarrely bad "Irish" accents. They'd be comically bad, if only they weren't so painful. 6. Painfully bad acting by two of the three leads. Which may be a side-effect of having to use an accent they aren't prepared for.
I like Christmas rom-coms, even mediocre ones. This one falls shy of even that low bar.
Oh, and it had better start with waffles! And the just-out-of-reach perfect man from the office. Not her best friend from childhood, who is a bit frumpy. (Why can't the old friend ever be the sexy one?)
And then a mystical shop lady gives her a token that lands her inside her magical perfect Christmas village diorama. Where every day is the "Perfect Christmas". Sounds a bit like Groundhog Day. Except without the interesting personalities, or any character growth. No villains but no heroes either.
Problems with this movie include: 1. Only one character even remotely sympathetic (Brandon The Frump) 2. No characters that grow or change really. Darcy just gets bored or frustrated, but not mature. 3. More of a series of tropes and cliches strung together than a plot. 4. Perhaps five splashes of clever or fun dialog. Mostly between her divorced parents. 5. Bizarrely bad "Irish" accents. They'd be comically bad, if only they weren't so painful. 6. Painfully bad acting by two of the three leads. Which may be a side-effect of having to use an accent they aren't prepared for.
I like Christmas rom-coms, even mediocre ones. This one falls shy of even that low bar.
Not bad apart from the accents!
thediva-8911412 November 2020
Wouldn't suggest anybody watch this
msarajoy20 June 2020
Ok this is just my personal view and we are all entitled to our personal views, good or bad.
The character Darcy is a piece of work. And I don't mean that in a good way. It must be emotionally exhausting being around her. And to imagine waking up to her and the same day every day, shiver.
I thought it was the height of irony that she has a sign hanging on her door "Be Grateful, Give Thanks." It must be in a foreign language for her. Her demands on everything being perfect is absurd. The instructions on the cheese she wanted, how she critised her own mum about the pie she bakes and then the pie she buys - I really hope that unless her character changes (and it did by the end), she doesn't have any kids. Her kids will need therapy all their adult life!
So, as far as the show goes, I don't think many of us are rooting for her to find a wonderful guy coz we (people like me) don't really like her until about the last 4 minutes of the show.
She is so absurd that she needed Brandon to literally disappear into a black hole in the wall to get her to think deeper because it takes quite a mental person to think that living the same day over and over again is great. By the second day, a rational person should kinda get with the plot that they are not in a good place and this is not a good thing happening.
And what on earth, Tom had the most amazing nonsense Irish accent. I feel like the producers of the show should apologise to Ireland.
And I don't know if it is poor acting or really brilliant acting on the part of the actor playing Tom because he is completely and utterly convincing as a zombie. Watching him is more boring than watching paint dry. I kept hoping it would rain because then it would dissolve his cardboard personality. Darcy must have hit her head really hard to ever think he is "perfect." He is perfectly one dimensional with a perfectly fake accent he tries to accomplish by talking as if he has marbles in his mouth.
The one very nice moment though is when Brandon warmed Darcy's feet. That was very sweet.
But for a RomCom, we hardly see Darcy with Brandon together and interacting so their love story is not built up properly and therefore not believable to the viewer.
The character Darcy is a piece of work. And I don't mean that in a good way. It must be emotionally exhausting being around her. And to imagine waking up to her and the same day every day, shiver.
I thought it was the height of irony that she has a sign hanging on her door "Be Grateful, Give Thanks." It must be in a foreign language for her. Her demands on everything being perfect is absurd. The instructions on the cheese she wanted, how she critised her own mum about the pie she bakes and then the pie she buys - I really hope that unless her character changes (and it did by the end), she doesn't have any kids. Her kids will need therapy all their adult life!
So, as far as the show goes, I don't think many of us are rooting for her to find a wonderful guy coz we (people like me) don't really like her until about the last 4 minutes of the show.
She is so absurd that she needed Brandon to literally disappear into a black hole in the wall to get her to think deeper because it takes quite a mental person to think that living the same day over and over again is great. By the second day, a rational person should kinda get with the plot that they are not in a good place and this is not a good thing happening.
And what on earth, Tom had the most amazing nonsense Irish accent. I feel like the producers of the show should apologise to Ireland.
And I don't know if it is poor acting or really brilliant acting on the part of the actor playing Tom because he is completely and utterly convincing as a zombie. Watching him is more boring than watching paint dry. I kept hoping it would rain because then it would dissolve his cardboard personality. Darcy must have hit her head really hard to ever think he is "perfect." He is perfectly one dimensional with a perfectly fake accent he tries to accomplish by talking as if he has marbles in his mouth.
The one very nice moment though is when Brandon warmed Darcy's feet. That was very sweet.
But for a RomCom, we hardly see Darcy with Brandon together and interacting so their love story is not built up properly and therefore not believable to the viewer.
I enjoyed it for a few right and many wrong reasons
MarioTee24 December 2021
It is one of those movies that could have been quite good but because of the lack of money and imagination ended up being mediocre... at best. The story doesn't really make too much sense nor the rules of the magic world are clear. The humour is almost non-existing. BUT... somehow, it ended up being good enough to entertain me on a lonely Christmas Eve. The actors are fine, and Irish Christmas is something I did not expect to see. All in all, 5.5/10 is all it deserves.
A crime against Irish humanity
abendorf1 December 2020
It's a fun Christmas fantasy...
nukyatalks1 December 2018
I really enjoyed this film. I think the main character just got stuck into wanting to control Christmas to make it perfect. I recommend watching this movie on a lazy morning before heading out to buy a Christmas village.
Not Perfect By Any Means, But An Entertaining And Enjoyable Watch.
P3n-E-W1s39 December 2022
Greetings, salutations, and a seasonal welcome to all you movie aficionados. Here are my considerations and recommendation for The Perfect Christmas Village.
Story: 1.25/2 - Direction and Pace: 2.75/4 - Performances: 1.25/2 - Enjoyment: 1.25/2
Total 6.50/10
The perfect Christmas Village comes with one flaw, it's the Groundhog of Christmas Day. Yes, this is one of those stories that emphasise too much of a good thing is too much. For Darcy, it's her continuous awakening to open presents, eat Christmas dinner with full trimmings, take romantic walks, and have the perfect ugly Chrimbo jumper lovingly knitted up by your perfect man - even with his terrible Irish accent. Live the same day, every day, and it will wear thin, like the poor sheep whose wool is making all those damned jumpers. On the whole, the movie works, and though the story is relatively basic and merry, especially when compared to Groundhog Day, there's enough to keep you amused for the hour-and-a-half runtime. In no small way, this is down to the director, who tells the tale at a gentle stroll of a pace while keeping the telling light-hearted. He adds to the heartwarming atmosphere with a plethora of lovely shots. The performers also do a grand job of keeping the picture light and amusing; though, it becomes a tad irksome when the Irish accents start a'slippin'. So, is perfection all it's cracked up to be - or does Darcy need a few foibles in her life? You'll simply have to watch the movie to find out.
And, on that note: I happily recommend The Perfect Christmas Village, AKA Christmas Perfection, for all the lovers and the fans of Christmas Romance flicks. It's delightful viewing merriment, ideal for cuddling and snuggling with a loved one on a cold, wet afternoon or evening.
Please check out my HO! HO! HO! Christmas Belles list to see where I ranked the movie.
Take Care, Stay Well, And Best Wishes For A Merry Christmas.
Story: 1.25/2 - Direction and Pace: 2.75/4 - Performances: 1.25/2 - Enjoyment: 1.25/2
Total 6.50/10
The perfect Christmas Village comes with one flaw, it's the Groundhog of Christmas Day. Yes, this is one of those stories that emphasise too much of a good thing is too much. For Darcy, it's her continuous awakening to open presents, eat Christmas dinner with full trimmings, take romantic walks, and have the perfect ugly Chrimbo jumper lovingly knitted up by your perfect man - even with his terrible Irish accent. Live the same day, every day, and it will wear thin, like the poor sheep whose wool is making all those damned jumpers. On the whole, the movie works, and though the story is relatively basic and merry, especially when compared to Groundhog Day, there's enough to keep you amused for the hour-and-a-half runtime. In no small way, this is down to the director, who tells the tale at a gentle stroll of a pace while keeping the telling light-hearted. He adds to the heartwarming atmosphere with a plethora of lovely shots. The performers also do a grand job of keeping the picture light and amusing; though, it becomes a tad irksome when the Irish accents start a'slippin'. So, is perfection all it's cracked up to be - or does Darcy need a few foibles in her life? You'll simply have to watch the movie to find out.
And, on that note: I happily recommend The Perfect Christmas Village, AKA Christmas Perfection, for all the lovers and the fans of Christmas Romance flicks. It's delightful viewing merriment, ideal for cuddling and snuggling with a loved one on a cold, wet afternoon or evening.
Please check out my HO! HO! HO! Christmas Belles list to see where I ranked the movie.
Take Care, Stay Well, And Best Wishes For A Merry Christmas.
Out of ideas.
teebear81728 October 2020
First of all, the accents are ATROCIOUS!!! Hallmark writers are officially out of ideas. It's already bad enough these movies are almost all formulaic, following a familiar pattern over and over.... but when they do change the pattern, it is usually Ludicrous, like... time travel, a real Santa Clause..... waking up in an Irish village, etc it seperates from reality so badly, it's impossible to watch. This one is an embarrassment to Film making. I'm beginning to believe these films are made for 10 and 12 year old kids... everybody's waking up repeating the same day over and over ( what a unique idea) and instead of being in a State of Shock they're giggling and joking it away if it was normal. If it happened to someone in real life, they be near a mental breakdown.
( as I sit here writing this, my wife is over there snickering and giggling at the movie.. so I have to be careful she doesn't hear me LOL)
What potential!!
Marynewcomb201313 January 2019
Warning: Spoilers
First off, let me start by saying check the positive reviewers and see they have basically only reviewed this movie and they have been members for a long time. That tells you these are paid for reviews and not honest reviews from everyday viewers!!
Now to the film. If they would have stayed on line with the story, it would have worked!! Darsy says she pretty much wishes she could have a Irish Christmas like her mother had in Ireland!! She ends up braking the post office to her Irish Christmas village and finds a local shop open at 2am and buys a new P.O. and gets a figurine that looks like her and puts it in the village & goes to bed. She wakes up in a bed that is in her village home with her parents still together like nothing had changed. The village is Christmas village & they wonder at first why she is acting funny at first. Next thing you know, parents & everyone else treats her like she's new to the town!! That's where they went off story line!! Everyday in this village is Christmas by the way!!! Then her boyfriend gets a figurine of himself and puts it in the village as well. Guess what, he wakes up in the same town too!!! They don't ask any questions about him though!!
Another good they do is the town from the beginning. It's supposed to be America but you can see it's not. You can clearly see this was filmed completely in Ireland!!! You can also tell this was filmed in spring or early fall, no steam coming from breaths and the snow is clearly fake!!! The love interests for Darcy is following a cliché!! Two guys basically fighting over the girl!! The potential that this movie had is great but as you can see, it's fell flat!! This is a skip on watching!!
The premise is fine for a Christmas movie
hypzrkunt16 November 2021
Groundhog Day meets Pleasantville
Jackbv12331 October 2020
The Groundhog Day parallel is very obvious and lest you miss it, each morning for Darcy starts off remarkable similar as it does for Bill Murray at least for the first few seconds. The Pleasantville comparison is a little bit of a stretch, but I am thinking in terms of both the transference and the theme of conformity (which Darcy calls perfection). This story certainly has an unusual premise compared to most of the Christmas movies around.
Another big difference to me is the lack of time spent together between the destined leads. Also, any relationship between them was already there, nothing developed. Darcy just needed to realize it. As a result, you don't really see the chemistry except possibly for the very brief scene on the couch where Brandon ends up rubbing Darcy's feet.
The outline of the movie seems to me to be quite brief and lacks depth. That's probably my biggest complaint. I kept waiting for something surprising to happen, or at least add to the story. The only real tension in the story was breaking the cycle. There was never any real threat.
The acting seems bad by all the village people, but that's because they were intentionally lifeless characters. I didn't think Caitlin Thompson was either very bad or very good.
Some reviewers don't like Darcy. And it is very true that she doesn't grow, as reviewer fringe-2 says. She gets frustrated and has a knee jerk reaction. Wait until next Thanksgiving. She'll be back. But as annoying as her perfectionism and controlling personality are, a lot of people should be able to recognize similarities in themselves. We all want some control over our lives. Some people go to extremes to get it. List makers are very common in this kind of movie.
This movie is tame for Lifetime (where I saw it). There is a bit of humor when Darcy starts trying to cuss and the words that come out are like "figgy-pudding!"
Another big difference to me is the lack of time spent together between the destined leads. Also, any relationship between them was already there, nothing developed. Darcy just needed to realize it. As a result, you don't really see the chemistry except possibly for the very brief scene on the couch where Brandon ends up rubbing Darcy's feet.
The outline of the movie seems to me to be quite brief and lacks depth. That's probably my biggest complaint. I kept waiting for something surprising to happen, or at least add to the story. The only real tension in the story was breaking the cycle. There was never any real threat.
The acting seems bad by all the village people, but that's because they were intentionally lifeless characters. I didn't think Caitlin Thompson was either very bad or very good.
Some reviewers don't like Darcy. And it is very true that she doesn't grow, as reviewer fringe-2 says. She gets frustrated and has a knee jerk reaction. Wait until next Thanksgiving. She'll be back. But as annoying as her perfectionism and controlling personality are, a lot of people should be able to recognize similarities in themselves. We all want some control over our lives. Some people go to extremes to get it. List makers are very common in this kind of movie.
This movie is tame for Lifetime (where I saw it). There is a bit of humor when Darcy starts trying to cuss and the words that come out are like "figgy-pudding!"
Great Christmas movie!!
lesliejoyusko29 December 2018
I have Christmas movies on literally from the day after Thanksgiving up until NYE so I've seen my share of them and I have to say, this is really a cute movie!! The lead actress, Darcy, has the right amount of believability and her best friend since childhood, Brandon is actually very funny. If you can get past the "weird" Irish accents, it's actually a very enjoyable movie.
Enjoyable
faronyoung2314 November 2019
So, most of these movies in this Christmas genre tend to be too silly and not to my liking. This may have to be more with being low budgeted and quickly made. Lifetime alone can now show several movies a day without showing the same one twice. So, this movie is both silly and far fetching to say the least, however, I was sucked in and I must say, I did enjoy it. As a man, eye candy is always appreciated and Caitlin Thompson was adorable! Making it an Irish Christmas town added to it's charm. I grew up watching It's A Wonderful Life and there is an element of that in this story. Also, elements of Groundhog Day show up as well. But, that's okay. I hope you can enjoy this movie as much as I did. Merry Christmas!!!
Refreshing Christmas Movie!
petap-3183230 November 2022
Not the typical Hallmark type bore. Caitlin Thompson shines in this magical treasure. She acts so natural you get get into her character and feel what she experiences. I really liked the special effects. Filmed in Ireland with breathtaking scenery which is a treat from the typically fake weather and snow scenes in these type of films. Definitely a family movie joy to watch. The background music is terrific and well done. I have watched this movie multiple times and still enjoy it which is a good measure of it's quality. This movie is one of my christmas favorites. Great ending solidifies this well done gem. AAA+++
i laughed
elliegraceweberiscool26 November 2022
Probably the funniest christmas movie i know of but in more of a laughing at it and less of a laughing with it kinda way. "darcy is a gazelle in a christmas sweater" will probably be my family's favorite christmas quote for a very very very long time. "your mothir and i have bin happili married for terty yirs" is definitely a close second. The accents make me laugh every single time. Ireland probably deserves an apology though. Brandon's little snow "man" that's really more of a pile of snow than anything else is probably the most realistic part of the movie. Darcy was incredibly annoying but i guess brandon likes annoying girls so good for him. Tom was definitely the funniest character and hes probably also my spirit animal so i love that for me. Was the movie good? No. Not even a little bit. Is it my favorite christmas movie ever? Yessir. Also this review was meant to be in all lower case letters but unfortunately it won't let me do that.
See also
Awards | FAQ | User Ratings | External Reviews | Metacritic Reviews
