Monday, December 9, 2013

Year Two. Day Nine: "A Valentine Carol" (2007)

So vast is the world of Christmas Carol adaptations the festive season alone is not big enough to withhold it. Meaning that other annual events have been given their own versions of Dickens' tale - and that this is merely the first odball version I shall be reviewing this year: (coming soon, ANOTHER Valentine's Day adaptation, a Halloween Carol and even a US Independence Day...)

Despite the change of calendar date, all the plot points of the original are intact. This time, our Scrooge is Emma Caulfield's
Ally Sims, a seemingly ruthless radio personality, who dishes out no-nonsense relationship advice while her own love life crumbles around her.

On the eve of her wedding (on Valentine's Day, no less) she is visited by the ghost of her friend (Jackie Marley) who guides her through a whistle stop tour of her past and present relationships, in hopes that she may reconsider her future.

While the chemistry between the two reunited friends is fun and lightly written, what really lets this movie down is the boyfriends she must revisit. Each is a blandly handsome white man with a reasonably well paid job, good teeth and thick hair - each is indistinguishable from the other.

More troubling is the overall message that the movie seems to be pushing by the time it comes to its conclusion - that if you want a happy marriage, women should allow their husbands to be themselves rather than nagging them away from following their dreams (the women of course, are required to sacrifice their careers altogether...)

Still, there are some fun subplots and supporting characters, particularly Barbara Niven as Marley and Jill Morrison as Gillian, Ally's long suffering work colleague (who I had to resist screaming "She doesn't even go here!" whenever she was on screen. Yes, it's the girl with lots of feelings from "Mean Girls"!)

As bad a taste in the mouth as a brussel sprout.

"A Valemtine Carol." (2007) 2/5

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