I thought this was a decent movie. Like most films in this genre, the story draws on several clichés to move the narrative forward. The writer also draws on a very popular plot device, which is the use of deception and mistaken identity. This year alone, we have seen make-believe relationships (in Holidate, Midnight at the Magnolia, and Happiest Season), princess switches (in The Princess Switch: Switched Again), and fake bed and breakfast staff (in Five Star Christmas). In this film, we have a wealthy Casanova posing as a ranch hand (played by Josh Swickard) to get a financially struggling farmer to sell her family's land before Christmas (played by Lauren Swickard). The storyline is predictable, of course, as is much of this genre of film (i.e., the romance Christmas movie). Yet, I found myself pulled in by it. The story has a comforting familiarity (again, why particular plot devices are repeatedly used in this genre), some scenic Californian landscape, a struggling family farm, and the appeal of watching the chemistry develop (between the two attractive leads) on screen. I admit it worked on me. I found the movie engaging; I did not, e.g., grab for my iPad during the film (which often happens while watching romance Christmas movies). What makes this work on screen, of course, is the acting. The acting overall was great. What stood out for me was the performance of Lauren Swickard (playing Callie). She had a strong, yet tender, vibe to her performance, which worked well, I felt. Josh Swickard also had a strong performance. The strength of this film was their chemistry (which makes sense, given they are married in real life). We could see this develop and grow on screen as the story/movie progressed, which was, again, one of the appealing aspects of the movie, I thought. The supporting cast had a good performance. David Del Rio (playing Manny) and Ali Afshar's (playing Leo) performances made me laugh a little, and Amanda Detmer had a convincing performance as a terminally ill mother. Finally, I thought the music and music editing was good. A couple good songs in this one. There was one element that was a bit lacking: the Christmas in A California Christmas. This is not a very Christmassy movie, I am afraid.
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toddsgraham14 December 2020
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rory-igo16 December 2020The real Manny is the star of the movie... he needs his own spinoff.
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CHTO7615 December 2020If you by some miracle have binge-watched every TV Christmas movie made for the year 2020, you will undoubtedly stumble upon A California Christmas.
While the cheesy title and cover-art suggest that it shouldn't be anything more than your typical Hallmark / Lifetime affair, this movie nevertheless managed to hold my attention throughout it's entire 2-hour run.
The story itself is nothing new (rich bad boy falls in love with farm girl etc.), but there is a substantial budget thrown into the production of this movie, so it is very visually pleasing. It is a little too long for my taste, and there were a few cringe-worthy montages to remind us that this movie may have been targeted for a much younger audience.
The best part of the movie is without a doubt the story between the mother and the daughters, but the movie took too long to get there. Netflix obviously tried to bank on the natural good looks of the two leads (there are plenty of suggestive, drawn out scenes in the beginning of the movie to convince the audience just how attractive the actors are), but I personally don't find either of them particularly memorable.
As a warning to parents hoping to add this movie to their viewing list this coming Christmas: this movie is not intended for children. On top of the suggestive scenes already mentioned above, there are also a handful of love scenes with one in particular that are best saved for after the children have gone to bed. -
jagfannn15 December 2020The first 1/3 of this movie is terrible so be forewarned. If you can stick it out however, it gets much much better. It may not top any lists but it has heart in the second half. Not much Christmas though
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JaeBianca20 December 2020If one is looking for originality or strong holiday themes, look elsewhere. I tuned in because I like Josh Swickard. To his credit, he has admitted that the script was written by his wife/co-star in a couple of weeks. And, was filmed on her family's property during General Hospital's Covid-hiatus. With that caveat, I think that California Christmas is very watchable. It does not suffer the stiff blandness of a Hallmark movie. Josh, David del Rio and Ali Ashfar provided a good amount of comic relief. Lauren Swickard successfully threaded the fine line of being a fiercely independent woman who can ask for help when she needs it, as well as acknowledge appreciation for help she might not have initially wanted. Amanda Detmer also rose above what could have been considered an overly sentimental character.
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MIssM1914 December 2020Joseph needs to convince the owner of this ranch to sell the property so that his company can develop a distribution center. Callie, the owner, doesn't want anything to do with that. So, in order to get close to her and convince her, Joseph poses a "ranch boy" (I think).
We all know how this is gonna to turn out since reading the premise. It's predictable. But it was a sweet movie. Reading the title you expect it to be all happy, Chrismassy, and joyful movie. It wasn't anything like that. Christmas isn't a big part of it, this could have happened in any time of they year and it's actually not relevant when it takes place. There are sad moments that are part of Callie's history, maybe unnecesary but still adds to the plot. My only major complaint, probably, is that we needed a few more laughs.
I like when actors are involved in the production so kudos to Lauren (and Josh) for writing, producing and acting in this. If you are fan of romance/"chick-flick" movies, you'll probably like it. -
laserwiz7722 December 2020This was a sweet unassuming movie that had a decent story, solid acting (the two leads are married in real life). In spite of some corny antics by the supporting cast I found it to be better than the critics have said. Some people complain that it isn't a Christmas movie but I don't agree. Check it out.
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yusufpiskin19 December 2020Well... To be fair I went into this movie fully expecting it to be a half star affair, but wow this was actually cute. Literally none of the main characters in this movie are unbearable which is unheard of in this genre.
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piacentinidionne16 December 2020This was a believable film with some nice moments and good acting from the leads. It definitely isn't a Christmas film though.
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matchincaddies20 December 2020Is number one here in sweden on netflix and such nice warm film like the weather also, has warmed up our cold Christmas! very nice and fun. american 'cow farms' different then europe
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christian-larsen119 December 2020If the acting skills were as good as their cuteness, this would be Oscar performances!! This will not bring you in a christmas mood, but it is very pleasant.
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fluffset19 December 2020I know everybody who watch this movie can easily predict what will happen next and next and next. But it is our human weakness to desire the two good looking people falling in love with each other, have some conflict, reconcile back bla bla bla. Enjoy the movie, dont think too much. Save it for Tenet.
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r96sk14 December 2020Predictable and has the usual festive cheese, but it actually works well by the end.
I wasn't convinced by the opening chunk of 'A California Christmas', with the obvious plot set-up and iffy cast performances. However, from about the midway point, the film gradually gets better. The onscreen talent slowly grow into their roles. That's no doubt helped by the barrage of heart it attempts, most of which comes off.
Lauren Swickard, who also wrote this, is good in the role of Callie. She stars alongside husband Josh Swickard. Given they are together in real life, it is little surprise they have nice chemistry. Ali Afshar, David Del Rio and Amanda Detmer support adequately.
It's sweet enough, all in all. It keeps to the right side of the line between enjoyment and boredom, at least in my opinion. Could've done with more Christmas vibes though, given the title and all that... -
SCUTAROPALMSPRINGS15 December 2020So we are trapped in a spiral of these rom-com Christmas movies. Pretty much all the same, pretty people over come non existent problems to live happy ever after. We seem to spend most of our time not watching to movie , but trying to figure out the locations . Don't think we were paying attention , but at some point we started really enjoying this one . Yes both leads are incredibly good looking , and some how, even the acting improves during show ..but bottom line , out of ALL OF THESE we've watched this year, CALIFORNIA CHRISTMAS was one on better ones The characters are interesting, the story line is somewhat believable, there's even some natural chemistry between the two leads . Guess that's a good thing when i realized they're married in real life. but all in all.. fun movie , with amazingly naturally good look people , beautiful scenery, and the side cast was very entertaining..think most will be very pleasantly surprised. Look forward to viewing more collaborations between this husband and wife
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williambrooks-2488416 December 2020I sat down with the family to watch a Christmas movie and what I got was a lemon. I guess netflix will put anything on their service now. I have seen better hallmark movies with better acting and storylines. This movie felt cheap, unoriginal, and lacked creativity. I would avoid any movie from these filmmakers going forward.
And it wasn't even really a Christmas movie! -
catopeblas19 December 2020Of the trailers and promos it looks like a hallmark movie. bland and predictable storyline. The actors do a phenomenal job however. Mostly all unknown but guaranteed these guys are gonna hit it big after.
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calvermc16 December 2020They literally hung one string of lights up and called this a Christmas movie. That being said it was alright. The gratuitous shirtlessness was appreciated.
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proffernandoalmeida20 December 2020Typicall Christmas movie but they haver some magical chemistry.
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mizjones-7689715 December 2020This movie was absolutely terrible. There were so many cliche tropes. The acting was awful. There was no natural flow of events. Truly terrible. The title is also very misleading. It seems like the title only serves to bait people into watching.
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AsburyRoad22 December 2020Lebanon sensation with at 1 and top global too. very fun. Much to see more, as well both mannys!!
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jonathandcooper-1916120 December 2020The movie isn't perfect, but it's still fun to watch. It's a pretty standard story of a guy going into something for one reason and coming out IN LOVE...but it works. There's definitely a lot of holes and jumping around, but again, typical for this type of movie, so it works. Plus, the Swickard's might just be the two most beautiful people on the planet, so that helps I'm sure too. I recommend to all the wonderful couples out there this Christmas!
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First off, like many people have already pointed out, this is NOT a Christmas movie. It's set around Christmas time, but that is pretty much it.
Second, I've seen a lot of movies in over 46 years, and this is easily one of the worst ones I've ever seen. And that includes a lot of Hallmark films and others. I doubt I was supposed to cringe and set my jaw throughout most of the painful scenes; painful in how poorly performed they were.
I've never seen Lauren Swickard in anything. And now I know why: because I can't figure out if she's worse as an actress or as a writer. That's a tough one to weigh.
The plot is about as cheesy and cornfed as anything I've ever seen. Someone stated that it took her a couple of weeks to write. It sure feels like it. Half-hashed and half-fleshed out story that, for the life of me, actually got made into a movie. Further proof, that in this industry, it's about who you know and not what you know.
Joseph is a spoiled rich boy sent by his rich mommy to convince a woman to sell her farm for the purpose of using it for shipping warehouses. Hmm...all of that land all over the place, and they decide to target ONE. I asked a friend who works in a large corporation about something like this. He laughed, and for good reason. He said, "whoever wrote this knows nothing about corporations, I guess!"
Callie is the lone woman on a dairy farm. I'm still trying to figure out how she did all of that work with all of those cows by herself, let alone doing it with ONE ranch-hand. Her moods and emotions also flip faster than a jackrabbit on a hot date. One second, she's cold and unsympathetic, and the next, she's suddenly smiling and cheerful. Perhaps she's bipolar.
Most of the acting performances feel forced and ungenuine, especially by Lauren Swickard. David Del Rio easily turns in the best and most natural job of the entire cast.
Oh, and I think I saw the worst bar-fight in history in this movie! So bad, I was laughing, and not in a "it's funny" way.
And we also have Callie in teeny-tiny shorts (that's what you wear on a dairy farm, right?) or super tight jeans, aiming her backside at Joseph. And not to be sexist, we also have Joseph shirtless, in a wet shirt, and taking off his shirt as well. All in slow-motion, of course!
And, of course, the story has all the typical cliches present: lying boy meets girl. Girl initially doesn't like boy. Girl suddenly decides she likes boy. Girl finds out truth about boy. Boy pulls off "miracle" to help girl. Girl forgives boy. Sound familiar?
Give me a Hallmark movie, or even a bad TV movie any day over this farce. If I were a studio exec, I'd be sure to put down Swickard's name as a, "never accept any of her material again." Being a bad actress is one thing. Being a bad writer on top of that...that's just criminal. -
mjanssens261 January 2021This reminds me of a Lifetime or Hallmark movie. I think it was a Netflix production if I'm not mistaken? Great looking cast and a frothy plot make for an easy watch. This is the type of escapism the world needs now after a tough 2020. Have fun watching.