Memorable, crazy movie

How sad is this?

As somebody who had not heard any of this before, it became a curious phenomenon to sit and watch a film and slowly have the realities begin to click into place.

While it doesn't offer any answers, it both thrills and makes you think.

I see from some of the reviews, some Grinches have seen this movie! No it's not going to replace "Christmas Story" on anyone's 'must watch' Christmas show list, but the story is charming. Why is Tilly interested even remotely interested in Cameron, one reviewer asked? Because he is about 5 times as flashy as Gad, has a foreign accent, and the false pretense of money and title probably swayed her some as well. It's not like that story hasn't played out, oh say, 50 million times in the course of history, entirely believable story line. Of course, Gad is the better man (much better after you watch Cameron for about 30 minutes). Bisset's character falling for the Tilly's grandfather was a bit much, but I really enjoyed this movie, give it a 9/10.

Okay, I'm generally a sucker for Christmas movies. I also enjoy the Merchant-Ivory style films about the prim and proper Victorian age. This should have both, right? Wrong.The acting from some of the principles is bad. The story is pretty lame. The ending is predictable. Having the Bissett character show affection for a character she loathes (and who despises her) is out of character and doesn't fit in with the movie.The local romantic figure is such a loser that we wonder what Tillie ever saw in him or why she would even question her relationship with Gideon/Gad.Yawn is a good description. "Lame" would work just as well.

I only watched this because Mommy made me. I'm thinking the cider with the cyanide would have been preferable. Ho ho ho! Christmas movies are rarely either profound or intellectually stimulating. The point is to make the audience glow with Christmas cheer. Still, even the least demanding viewer requires something more than bad acting and a plot that presents itself in its entirety within the first 15 minutes. Oh yes, and something having to do with Christmas besides the time of year in which the story happens to be set. An old-fashioned Christmas seems to consist of scheming with and against friends and family between exchanges of insults. Then, you can hang some holly, sing some carols, eat, drink, and be merry--if you can find the time.If you've ever read a Jane Austen novel or seen one of the movie adaptations, pick one. Then, move it to Ireland. Then, set it at Christmas. Then, make the heroine American. Then, remove any semblance of wit or charm. Then, skip this movie.

I know it's always hard to make a sequel - the fans of the first will be harsh critics - but it can be done fairly well. Sadly, this wasn't one of those times. They tried too hard to emphasize Isabella's being American. They should have left her accent alone (it was slight enough in the first that it was just assumed it was higher society). No offense to the woman who played Tilly this time but I much preferred the actress from the first. A shame they couldn't get her back. There was far too little Gad for my liking. And his competition? What competition? He was a jerk. They tried to play him off as a passionate alternative to Gad but trust me, if you saw the kiss in the first one you know Gad has plenty of passion when it comes to Tilly. The story they gave us could have worked but the final script just didn't cut it. The only redeeming quality of this film was Gad. He's the only reason I didn't give this film a rating of 1 for being awful. He seemed to be the only character who's development didn't get a complete reboot from the first. It wasn't the worst movie I've ever seen but I think I may stick with the first and pretend this one never happened. I'll write my own sequel for my amusement.EDIT: After writing this I went and watched the first one again. And just as I remember, it was wonderful. Checked and discovered this one had a different writer and director. I'm not saying they have no talent, I've never seen their other work, but they dropped the ball on this one.