Oh, another Christmas movie and another letdown. Am I just not feeling enough joy this year? Am I not giving enough of myself to the holiday? What did I do wrong that everyone thinks that they can just label anything a Christmas movie?
YOU CAN NOT DO THIS.
Just because it takes place around Christmas, does not a Christmas movie make. Does it have Santa? Does it have holiday cheer? Does it have cookies? Yes, I could go on and on about this, but I’ll behave.
However, when I log onto Netflix and see a movie at #1, and it’s “christmas” I am going to watch.
The premise of ‘A California Christmas‘ is simple, “With his carefree lifestyle on the line, a wealthy charmer poses as a ranch hand to get a hardworking farmer to sell her family’s land before Christmas.”
And that’s the only thing that has to do with Christmas is the timing.
The movie is about a charmer, who can basically get women to do whatever he wants. But it’s kinda really gross, cause he’s a womanizer with no regard for anyones feelings. He comes across as the fuck them and leave them type.
His Mom is rich and tells him that he’s only getting a promotion if he gets this girl to sign over her land. Basically she doesn’t want to let go of her families land and his Mom wants it for a vineyard.
When he arrives at the ranch, he’s mistaken for a ranch hand and doesn’t correct the girl. He instead puts up with her condescending attitude and smart ass mouth. She’s distant and cranky and you can tell that she’s been hurt.
She’s got a lot going on – she’s trying to save the ranch, working her job, and her Mom is dying of cancer. She is trying to hold the world up, but she’s feeling it fall down all around her.
Little by little she lets him into her life, and he still lies to her. He sleeps with her and still lies to her. Her ex has to be the one to break the news. She confronts him and he tells her the truth, and then his hand is forced even more when his mom shows up to close the deal.
Of course he ends up saving the ranch, she ends up forgiving him, and the end up together.
The movie flat out sucks for a Christmas movie. It’s a good if you are drunk, bored, and need something to watch.
But it’s not something you should go out of your way to watch. It’s a story you’ve seen before, a million times over, and rides the Christmas holiday movie wave versus just being what it is – a poor man take on romance.
