How to Score a Yes from a Runaway Bride at Christmas
Three times Jessie (Arielle Kebbel - Four Christmases and a Wedding) has been engaged and three times she hasn't gone through with the wedding, running away right at the last minute at the third attempt. So after failing to seal the deal at the third time of asking she decides to quit men and focus on her career as an interior designer. Meanwhile, eligible bachelor Aiden (Andrew W. Walker - Snowed-Inn Christmas) is talked in to a bet by his married buddies to find a woman and get her to say yes to his proposal by Christmas day. Now with a deadline to keep Aiden is on the prowl and when he meets Jessie at an art gallery sets his sights on her.
What do they say "something borrowed, something blue", well there is nothing blue in the Hallmark Christmas movie "A Bride for Christmas" as it is peachy clean but there is certainly plenty borrowed, from a touch of "Runaway Bride" to every single movie where the guy accepts a bet from his mates which involves dating a certain woman only to genuinely fall in love with her. It is what really lets "A Bride for Christmas" down and not because it makes it predictable but it makes it feel like another made for TV movie ripping off ideas from big budget movies.
But "A Bride for Christmas" is a Hallmark Christmas movie and it has something about it which is different to other made for TV Christmas movies, it has energy and a look which makes me feel that maybe this was going to be a big screen movie for a while but got changed at the last second. It is hard to really put your finger on it but in some ways it comes down to look and as you watch Arielle Kebbel in a figure hugging dress knock off a bit of a statue you find yourself thinking Keri Russell combined with Katherine Heigl. It is the same with Andrew W. Walker as he has a touch of Matthew McConaughey about him but combined with some Chris Evans.
It is not just the actors as the locations in "A Bride for Christmas" look better than you normally get from a TV movie and rather than having that feel that the scenes were rushed and done in a single take they have that feel of being designed and worked on so they looked right and flowed. And whilst "A Bride for Christmas" really only uses Christmas as a setting and doesn?t have that Christmas magic it does use it with more authenticity than many a Christmas movie and it looks at times like it was shot at Christmas rather than at another time of the year using fake snow blankets.
What this all boils down to is that "A Bride for Christmas" does lack an original storyline because it clearly uses story ideas from big screen romantic comedies. But considering that this is a made for TV romantic comedy it has a better look and energy about it than most made for TV romantic comedies.
Tags: TV Christmas Movies, Christmas Movies
