The Spirit of Christmas
Kate has been tasked with brokering the sale of a historic home a few days before Christmas. But she’s stymied by the long-dead former owner, who refuses to to cooperate. Will Kate be haunted by her failure… or will she be spirited away by a spark with a specter?
Christmas clichés:
Career-Driven Woman
Hate Becomes Love
Tree Buy &Trim
Evil Corporation
Red Dress
Sage Grandpa Figure
Ends w/ Kiss or Ring
Our Thoughts
With the early start to Christmas movie premieres, we struggle what to do pre-Halloween. Rob’s not big into scary movies (sans the hilarious “Cabin in the Woods”), and we get zero trick-or-treaters in our Condo. So how do we cope?
Enter 2015’s “Spirit of Christmas” – perhaps the most confusing, kinda spooky, but yet still Christmas-y, classic in our favorite genre.
Career-Driven lawyer, Kate (Jen Lilley, the best kind of perky) is charged with getting a B&B appraised by Dec 25. Too bad the last two appraisers left for mysterious reasons…so off she goes to the Hollygrove Inn.
The caretaker isn’t too forthcoming before he leaves for 12 days, like he does every year, but after some slammed doors, a (pretty sexy) stranger in a vest tells Kate to leave him alone. We learn his name is Daniel (Thomas Beaudoin, the hair!), he has no idea how he died, and after some Hate Becomes Love banter, he agrees to explore his past so he can move on and Kate can sell the place.
What makes this movie unique, beyond the ghost storyline, is the flashbacks. We learn about Daniel’s 1920’s drama of being a “Rum Runner” and his fiancé, Lilly, in her turtlenecked dresses. These scenes could be cheesy, but their sepia tone works. Plus, when Daniel warms up, a sweet Tree Buy & Trim and his insistence to play bartender at a Christmas Eve dance play like a more traditional plot.
The part that doesn’t quite work? It’s kinda scary! Jess jumps at any loud noise, so the slammed doors and (spoiler?) second ghost pull away from the usually climactic Red Dress scene. And if you think too much about why Daniel only manifests for the 12 days before Christmas…well, that kind of speculation isn’t quite the Christmas spirit.
Give this one a watch. You might learn something about international bootleggers. But try to get it in before October 31.
Rob's Final Take: Not Very Merry
A plot this ridiculous needs to poke a little fun at itself, but the mood is so bleak and somber that it’s just dispiriting. Ghost this one.
Jess's Final Take: Merry
I can’t say it gets me in the Xmas mood, but there were enough chuckles and a Jen Lilley. Feel-Good Halloween is basically a Pretty-Good Christmas.
