On Strike for Christmas (2010) Movie Review

On Strike for Christmas (2010)   3/53/53/53/53/5


Daphne Zuniga in On Strike for Christmas (2010)

The Mum Strikes Back

Christmas is coming and Joy Robertson (Daphne Zuniga - A Family Thanksgiving) wants to make this one special as both her boys, Jeremy (Victor Zinck Jr.) and Mark (Evan Williams), will be leaving home for college next year. But with the boys focused on their own lives whilst their father, Stephen (David Sutcliffe - Charming Christmas), is focused on work Joy is doing it all. On top of organizing Christmas at home Stephen and the boys also want her help with organising their various Christmas parties. Starting to feel like her family are not pulling their weight Joy decides to take inspiration from the grocery workers in town who have gone out on strike and she decides to down tools herself leading to other mums doing the same.

One thing I love about made for TV Christmas movies is the hysterically negative reviews I stumble across which seem to slam these movies for being cheesy, false and basically light entertainment. The thing is that it is the lightness of these Christmas movies which not only appeals to me but many others, who find the sweetness and comedy a pleasant distraction when the festive season rolls around. And that is what you get plenty of in "On Strike for Christmas", a light and fun made for TV Christmas movie all about a mum striking back by going on strike after her husband and sons take her for granted and are not pulling their weight.

Victor Zinck Jr., David Sutcliffe, Evan Williams in On Strike for Christmas (2010)

Now one of the things I read about "On Strike for Christmas" was that it was a feminist chick flick which frankly is a laugh. What "On Strike for Christmas" does is bring to the screen in an amusing way a scenario which is happening in many homes all the time and not just at Christmas. It also made me think about how things were in my family when I was growing up and other than setting the table and washing the dishes afterwards it was mum who sorted out Christmas from the decorating to the cooking, making sure food was in for guests and of course getting the presents as Dad was not only too busy but never knew what to get.

So what you get in "On Strike for Christmas" is watching Stephen and his grown up sons suddenly having to do house hold chores and of course finding it difficult. And of course it is entirely stupid when you have the three of them unable to separate eggs or follow simple baking instructions but there is also a touch of truth to this, I have seen this sort of incompetence in the kitchen first hand. And that is what we get a lot of as not only does Joy go out on strike but so do other mothers and wives. Without telling you too much, this of course leads to some very unhappy husbands and much more.

What this all boils down to is that "On Strike for Christmas" is in truth a typical made for TV Christmas movie which like so many movies is played over the top and as such some will see that as an excuse to pick holes in it, such as actor ages. But whilst it is another easy to watch Christmas movie it does have a point to make about Christmas and how mums often end up doing it all.

Tags: TV Christmas Movies, Christmas Movies


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