'Twas the Date Before Christmas

Countdown to Christmas starts off this year with a decent entry. The basic premise of fake date is pretty common, but this movie does it well and with a couple of things that give the premise a slightly different flavor.

At first I wanted to say Jessie was pathetic. Not only was her reason for the date a little lame, but her whole demeanor leading up to it was a little whiny. The viewer finds out later that there are deeper issues which has taken joy out of her life and that's why she really needs the fun and comfort of this crazy family Christmas.

I was expecting a lot more friction early in the date, but instead the two got off to a good start. Bryan is an interesting guy who slides right into the craziness of the Chamberlin Family Christmas Olympics. Bryan and Jessie start to find each other to be appealing. But soon Bryan discovers he has a secret that won't go over well with the family. He can't help it, but it's there. More than that, he starts to have a fondness not only for Jessie, but for the entire family.

The viewer knows in general terms what is going to happen from here, but that doesn't really matter. The antics of the contests are fun and there is definite chemistry between Groening and Buckley.

This is a movie I can watch again. Maybe if all the new Christmas premieres on more than a handful of channels aren't that good, I will even watch again this year.