Movie: Destined At Christmas
Starring: Shae Robins, Casey Elliott
Network: Great American Family
Synopsis: Kim and Theo meet in the midst of Black Friday shopping madness but there’s a definite spark between them. When a power outage causes some panic at a store, the couple gets separated. With Christmas coming, there should be plenty of distractions but neither Kim nor Theo can forget the other. Both yearn to find each other but how with so little information to go on? It’ll take a little Christmas magic and destiny to bring them back together.
⚠🛑 Disclaimer: This review may contain movie spoilers
Rating (out of 5 stars): ⭐⭐⭐
Review:
This Saturday marked the first 2022 Christmas movie offering from the GAC Family network. I enjoyed a few of their movies last Christmas and will certainly try and watch and provide my thoughts on any that I am able to watch this year.
Destined At Christmas was an acceptable entrance to the Christmas movie season. It had a unique storyline, decent chemistry and great Christmas vibes. Having said that, I felt that it was slow at times, that the leads spent most time apart in the movie, and that the reconciliation/reunion at the end could have happened so much earlier than it did. Let's dive in.
Plot
The plot of "Destined at Christmas" did have some originality to it which was a welcome change from your typical Christmas movie. It didn't involve a city girl coming to a small town to save a family business or further her career. I liked this change. Instead we have two people who meet while standing in line for Black Friday shopping. They strike up a rapport, have a little spark as they spend most of their time together over breakfast and shopping, only to lose track of each other during an electrical issue at a store. As they didn't exchange phone numbers and are both intrigued by their time together, the rest of the movie finds them searching for each other. After some near misses they meet again and the rest is history.
I liked the mystery of trying to find each other but the constant near misses was a bit much for me. Mere second misses at the museum, theatre, gingerbread contest and more. Just a little too coincidental. I can get maybe one near miss but almost all of their leads led to near misses which was a bit far fetched for me.
What bothered me quite a bit was why they lost each other in the first place. They had shopped the entire time together and by chance when she decided to go off that one time, the lights turn off and then total "chaos" ensues and they don't find each other? The whole time I kept saying just go outside and wait at the front entrance. I didn't understand roaming aimlessly through the store looking in the dark and then going outside, standing there for a second and then leaving. A bit ridiculous in my opinion. A crisis that should have been avoided very easily with a little common sense.
The side story of the daughter meeting Kim at the museum and then at the park was actually quite interesting. I liked having that mysterious element to it all. I liked the interaction and common interest in dinosaurs that they had. And shout out for Jen's job!
I don't particularly think the little side stories of the old boyfriend resurfacing and the set-up of Theo with a family friend was even necessary as it did little to advance or enhance the plot at all.
Chemistry & Performances
The chemistry is interesting in this as unfortunately Casey Elliott and Shae Robins didn't have a ton of screen time together. When onscreen together they were great. I loved their little meet cute in the line over hot chocolate. Thought they had a mutual attraction and a good rapport and were natural with each other. Then 80% of the movie they weren't together so that kind of fizzled for me. They weren't reunited until about 2 minutes left in the movie so I didn't get that vibe back. I just wish they would have spent more time together.
Casey Elliott and Shae Robins were solid in their roles but I have to have a special shout out to Casey's real life daughter Eve Elliott who played his on screen daughter. I thought she did a great job. She was a natural.
Stand-outs or questions
Reunion - I kept watching the time as it dwindled in the movie and they still hadn't found each other. I felt that this could have been resolved a long time before it did and I thought it did the movie a disservice in waiting so long. They spent a few hours together on Black Friday, and then searched for most of December only to find each other 2 minutes before the movie. He then says he has wanted to do two things since he met her...get her number and kiss her? Dude...you knew her for a few seconds. I found that a bit presumptuous. For me I would have preferred they reunite much earlier and then continue where they left off getting to know each other. Not only that but flash forward 1 year later and did I see wedding rings on both of them?
Ex-wife - So what happened with the ex-wife? At the beginning Theo mentions he is divorced. Then the entire movie he has their daughter. What kind of custody arrangement do they have that she isn't even in the picture? I find it hard to believe that the daughter wasn't going to see her mom at all over the holidays. There really wasn't any mention at all outside of him saying he was divorced.
Ornaments - I have to admit I'm a bit disappointed in the ornament element in this movie. They made such a big deal about Christmas ornaments at the beginning and throughout that I thought it would have a bigger meaning at the end. They bought ornaments together, they both went back to the ornament stand while searching and he bought a new ornament, they showed the ornaments on the tree and then nothing. At the very end after they found each other and they did a one year flash forward, I thought for sure there would be an ornament in the gifts they gave to each other but nope...it was socks. Did I miss something here? I sure hope I did.
Christmas Play - Seriously...her niece is sick the moment she sits down at the performance and her parents stay to watch it while the aunt takes her home? Then the 2 free tickets just happen to be given to Theo and his daughter who came there to see if they could find Kim? Honest to goodness. Oh and don't forget that Kim and her niece walk out one door at the same time that Theo and his daughter walk into the theatre in another door.
Black Friday Store - What kind of store let's a stranger off the street watch surveillance footage to find a guy that she doesn't know but is interested in?
Ornament vendor - The employee needed to look on the screen to realize that she couldn't provide other customer names and private information to a stranger? Huh. I would have thought that was common sense.
Christmas Present/Doll - OK...who buys the "it" present on Black Friday and then just gives it to another person without taking money for it. You stood in line on Black Friday to get that and other presents...you don't then just give it away to some random guy without taking money for it.
So overall this movie was ok. It's not one that will bore you to tears but then again it's not one that you're going to want to watch every year. The story is good and has an interesting concept albeit it takes too much time to resolve. It definitely would have been better to have the leads find each other earlier on in the process and then develop their romance a little more than what was portrayed on screen.
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