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A Not So Royal Christmas
33 Plays7 months ago
Reviews of A Not So Royal Christmas
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Transcript
Charlotte's Quest for an Interview
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A not-so-royal Christmas.
00:00:08
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Tabloid journalist Charlotte attempts to land an interview with a reclusive count.
The Disguise of the Groundskeeper
00:00:20
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In response, the royal family has a groundskeeper pose as the count since the real one fled years ago.
00:00:39
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One out of ten stars. Crap movie.
00:00:49
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I love Will Kemp and he really doesn't disappoint. He is calm and clearly comfortable in his craft. he is caught in a lie because he has a love for his mother and his community.
00:01:20
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He wants to bring prosperity back to the town.
00:01:29
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Brooke D'Orsi is annoying as usual, but this time she is just not at all likable.
00:01:44
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She is rude and pushy and the epitome of what reporters are known to be.
00:01:57
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Oh, but on the side, she randomly knows the history of this random country.
00:02:11
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She is a self-righteous, lying, tabloid reporter.
00:02:22
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When I say unlikable, i mean i just really wanted them to toss her out with the rubbish.
00:02:38
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Hallmark, this would have been a good one where the happy ending would be him finding someone better.
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I
Critics' Mixed Reviews
00:02:54
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don't really understand the whole obsession with royal movies, but this is quite honestly the worst one.
00:03:13
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Also, I would like to point out the very creative way this person used to spell epitome rather than using the traditional E-P-I-T-O-M-E i t o m e They chose to spell it
00:03:52
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Three out of ten stars.
00:03:58
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Only good thing in it is Will Kemp.
00:04:07
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This was definitely one of Hallmark's worst holiday films this festive season.
00:04:19
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I wanted to like it because Royal Element does add nicely to the Christmas season.
00:04:31
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But the plot was just so ridiculous and implausible even for hallmark standards.
00:04:44
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Also, the supporting cast and the choice of supporting actors was not very natural and realistic.
00:04:59
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The
Will Kemp's Performance
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fling between the leads was also rushed and lacked in chemistry.
00:05:10
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Basically, the only thing that kept that film from fully falling apart is always wonderful Will Kemp.
00:05:27
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He is always magnificent, whether he stars in big movies, expensive shows, or just cheap little flicks like this one.
00:05:47
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And it shows.
00:05:52
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When he is on screen, he simply has that special radiance. And in this one, he added such a lovely comical thread to his character with lovely comedic timing.
00:06:21
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He is one of those actors that know what expression to put on in every scene, even when he is not in the focus of the camera.
00:06:42
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He and Julian Morris and Luke McFarlane do deserve better films at Hallmark.
00:06:56
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This movie also had lovely costumes, which is not always the case at Hallmark.
00:07:09
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Would I watch it ever again? no Would I not watch it if I knew it was this bad?
00:07:22
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No, I would not.
00:07:28
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Did I fall asleep a few times watching it? Yes, I did.
00:07:39
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Four out of ten stars could have been good.
00:07:48
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I've always said a great ending can fix a bad movie and vice versa.
00:08:02
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Sadly, the former is not true here.
00:08:10
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I love Brooke. I didn't used to, but she's really grown on me, especially from the Dickens one.
00:08:24
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And I like Will. He was great in Royal Matchmaker. And I thought they had chemistry.
00:08:39
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And the premise was good. The execution, on the other hand, da dot, dot, dot, dot.
00:08:55
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They get points for having her actually apologize, too. A rarity these days. but how it all played out wasn't good.
00:09:13
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She didn't miss a beat when confronted again with her own lie when accusing him and twice had the odd audacity to imply hers wasn't as bad, which almost made her apology moot.
00:09:50
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I gave it a shot and they moved the mark. So this one is a miss for everyone.
00:10:09
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Five out of 10 stars
00:10:15
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didn't work for me.
00:10:22
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I adore the leads.
00:10:27
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Will Kemp and Brooke D'Orsi just didn't think this one worked.
00:10:40
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I DVR'd this and unfortunately found myself fast-forwarding through many parts.
00:10:56
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It didn't delve into the community except for his mom's cafe.
00:11:08
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To be honest, Brooke's character really got on my nerves. Even Will behaved a bit like a moron.
00:11:28
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The scenery, in parts, was quite magnificent. And while the story seemed to be a little different, it was, in the end, boringly the same.
00:11:54
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It's not... the worst, but certainly not one of the best.
00:12:05
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Thankfully, no prerequisite snowball fights that erupt out of nowhere.
00:12:18
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Good for a watch if you haven't yet seen But not one. I'll watch again.
00:12:31
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Five out of ten stars. Mixed feelings.
00:12:41
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There were some parts of this that I liked, in that, with royalty stories, you can usually guess everything, and some things here I didn't.
00:13:04
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That said, while I enjoy Kemp and Diorsi, the movie overall was just okay.
00:13:20
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Adam being upset that Charlotte lied to him honestly makes no sense.
00:13:34
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and he even said why himself.
00:13:42
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Paraphrasing here, quote, If i was the actual count, I'd feel betrayed, unquote.
00:14:01
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Precisely. But since you're not, you actually being offended in some way just reads as odd.
00:14:21
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Sure, Charlotte shouldn't have lied. But his lie and everyone else's to keep the ruse going, was far more egregious in my opinion.
00:14:49
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That being the major conflict in the end sort of dampened my enjoyment because the more and more you think about it, the less it makes sense. Skip.
00:15:16
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Skip. Unless you like the lead actors. Because their chemistry is pretty good.
00:15:32
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Five out of ten stars. Royal Honesty.
00:15:43
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Brooke D'Orsaye. has been one of my favorites for a while now.
00:15:53
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I think part of the reason was her innocent appearance and characters that fit that innocence.
00:16:07
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Well, not this Charlotte. i do not like royal stories.
00:16:20
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I also do not like stories that involve one or both characters having a lie.
00:16:37
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I can usually tolerate a lie of omission where one character doesn't own a famous identity.
00:16:56
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This story is the opposite. One character falsely owns the identity of count.
00:17:13
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Another character owns the identity of a respected journalist. Both
Deceptive Identities and Honesty
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chose to maintain deception.
00:17:33
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So my rating reflects that.
00:17:40
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Hopefully, my observations are objective.
00:17:48
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The acting is good. Diorsé and Will Kemp are veterans of this type of movie.
00:18:02
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They have good chemistry. They reflect the discomfort of their lies and a growing desire to be honest.
00:18:22
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The dialogue is also good, as is the rest of the script.
00:18:34
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There are some interesting and sometimes funny situations.
00:18:46
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Once all the pieces are in place, the story is predictable.
00:18:57
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Some will say there is a twist at the end, but I saw it coming for a while.
00:19:11
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I think many viewers who do not have my discomfort over the deception in the story will find the movie enjoyable.
00:19:30
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Five out of ten stars.
00:19:36
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So looking forward to it and so disappointed.
00:19:45
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I always look forward to a Hallmark movie with Will Kemp, but I must say this one was disappointing.
00:20:06
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I think Will Kemp was great, but there is absolutely no chemistry between him and Brooke DiOrsay.
00:20:26
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who I must admit is not one of my favorite Hallmark actresses, although I have nothing against her.
00:20:45
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The story has nothing romantic to it. I don't get why Charlotte and Adam would actually fall in love.
00:21:04
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It makes no sense.
00:21:10
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They're just lying to each other all the time. They want different things and are not above using each other to get it.
00:21:32
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And yet, I actually found the story very flat.
00:21:45
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No great romantic moment. No great enmity either.
00:21:58
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I so wanted to like this movie.
00:22:08
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Six out of 10 stars.
00:22:14
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She
Mistaken Identity in a Fake Land
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falls for a royal who turns out not to be royal at all.
00:22:27
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Brooke de Orsay, Charlotte's green dress at the end was gorgeous and I thought she and Will Kemp, Adam, played off of each other very well.
00:22:58
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Adam has returned home for a short-term position as gardener at the home of the Count in the fake land of Surhajan nordin There he is mistaken by the royal gossip columnist Charlotte as the Count of Sorhajan.
00:23:37
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The royal advisors ask Adam to play along as the real count abdicated his title six months prior, and they haven't figured out what to do yet.
00:24:04
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and are worried about how it will hurt the local economy.
00:24:15
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Charlotte also lies, claiming to be from a more legitimate publication instead of her gossip rag.
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in order to secure an exclusive interview with the very reclusive count.
00:24:47
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Will both their lies come out? And will their burgeoning feelings hold up to the truth?
00:25:03
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I Will Kemp and thought he was great.
00:25:12
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Both he and Brooke d'Orsay played well off of each other.
00:25:24
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My only real complaint is that there are so many real places with real royalty.
00:25:42
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It is a shame that they are still using fake kingdoms and customs when the real ones are infinitely interesting.
00:26:04
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I liked it, but I think i would place it on a mid-tier of the Hallmark Holiday Films.
00:26:20
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A watch and delete.
00:26:26
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Six out of ten stars. not
Unique Plot and Character Chemistry
00:26:32
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your usual royal Christmas movie. If you like your royal movies a little different, a not-so-royal Christmas is for you.
00:26:53
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Every man groundskeeper mistaken for mysterious Duke who has actually abdicated a big royal secret by intrepid reporter looking for a big scoop to launch her career but who is actually from trashy tabloid, not the more respected media outlet she presents as working for?
00:27:40
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Yep, we're Definitely well removed from a royal Christmas and crown for Christmas with this one.
00:27:58
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Bravo! Once again, this holiday season, to Hallmark for Thinking Outside the Box.
00:28:15
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The plot of this Will Kemp, Brooke D'Orsay vehicle definitely gets high marks for originality.
00:28:33
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especially given that both characters have something to hide rather than just the one.
00:28:50
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There is some good chemistry between Kemp and D'Orsay.
00:29:01
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Both Hallmark veterans and good in everything they have starred in for the network, which is what carries the film along nicely.
00:29:22
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Probably not a film I'll watch a second time, but a fun way to pass festive minutes
00:29:42
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We would like to express our deepest regret to Brooke d'Orsay and her people for the various mispronunciations of her last name.
00:30:03
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Now, if you have not yet achieved your deepest slumber, What do you say we go together to check the chemistry in the next one?