Santa, Maybe

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source: Santa, Maybe

7.5 stars. A woman manages a theater that does Broadway type shows and Christmas shows like Nutcracker etc. She is in charge of production and the dancers and keeping everything going smoothly. They are having some issues with the budget, things aren't going as well as they should, so her boss hires a consultant of sorts to help make a change. Coincidentally, he was once a boy who bullied her in high school, now he's a man who is interfering with her work life. She has traumatic memories of his bullying, we are not talking about teasing and friendly stuff, he incessantly engaged in very hurtful pranks focused on her, and the unwelcome memories have resurfaced. Now she has no choice but to deal with the memories as they are working together. This film paints a picture of a woman who is having difficulty moving past her recollections of torment. Per the usual blueprint of this genre, the two of them will eventually be romantically involved - it's inevitable. I find it interesting how this story focuses on her intense struggles to overcome the fear that was ingrained in her from over 10 years ago. This is not something to take lightly, it's about bullying and what it does to people and the long lasting effects. It's painful, it burns, and it leaves deep wounds.

There are a lot of good things about this film. The romantic conflict is relatively refreshing and it's realistic situation. The idea of a performance venue management is really nice because you're not worrying about anybody having to step into a lead role on stage all of a sudden. The secret Santa is played out well with lots of sub characters getting there due. It's especially nice with the family relationships. The father, having survived the stroke with a vocal problem something that many families do deal with and so that's nice. Only one thing disappointed me, and that was the actual ballet dancers. The Portrayal of the finale of the Nutcracker with absolutely no ballet form or even pointe shoes was very weak. But overall entertaining movie.

I enjoyed the movie and it kept my attention. Covers several true-to-life side stories to learn from which I enjoyed. Acting was excellent throughout as the entire cast brought the story to life in a genuine way. Rated it a "7" because I feel the supporting cast stories could be developed more. (Loved seeing Brooklyn Brough again) Lila's family and Glenn's family had lots of interesting idioscracies that were "touched" on but I would have liked to see more time spent on. May be some of the "theater" workers. Music choices were fantastic! Overall it is a wonderful, uplifting movie and when it ended, I found mysefl personally challenged and inspired.

Not exactly a ringing endorsement, I know. I was curious about this because it's another Great American movie without any big names in the cast. I admit, I thought it was another dud in the first ten minutes. The acting seemed like it was another of those GAF movies where everyone is wooden and unnatural. Fortunately, I decided to put that aside, and the movie settled into a nice rhythm. The story itself is kind of sweet. Two employees at a theater (plays, not movies) are reunited years after attending high school together, where he tortured her with practical jokes, and she still hates him. Can he possibly make up for it after all this time? This is not Citizen Kane, but the lead actors are pretty good, and have a nice little chemistry, and the story, as I said is rather sweet. If you can overlook the somewhat spotty acting, this is a nice little movie.

Apparently, Lila is still living in high school. She is prickly and immature. I will admit that the pranks Glenn played in high school were bad. Very bad. But how many years have passed? It is odd that she turned out successful if she is still carrying so much pain. Successful people learn and grow from such trauma. And let it go. Glenn was even more unlikeable. He was insulting. At least for a while. That is the pattern in movies like this - there has to be animosity between the leads in the beginning and then it completely disappears. Usually it disappears instantly without much transition. In this case, it went away a little slower but still seemed rush. However, they only have 1-1/2 for the whole story. I also thought the end result didn't make sense in that it was rushed. The acting was fair. The dialogue was flat. The story depended on a Secret Santa theme which is common. There were no great highs or lows or surprises. Most of the tension revolved around either Lila vs Glenn or the guest dancer with neither being earth shaking.

This movie was a waste of my Saturday night. Lila needs to grow up. She's controlling when it comes to her job. The theater will fall apart if she doesn't have her hands in everything. She's distrusting of a man she knew in high school. She's easily in her 30's but living in high school and can't get past it. There is absolutely no chemistry between the 2 leads. The secret Santa storyline has been played out a few too many times. Although I don't mind that as much. That part of the movie was the only interesting thing. I think Great American Family did a miss with this movie. You can skip this one.