Sugarplummed (2024)
Or even better, what it isn't. I'm seeing a number of sites list this as a romance, which is just plain wrong. Bizarrely wrong, in fact, to the point I find myself wondering if those categorizing it as such actually watched past the Hallmark logo. While the main character's relationship with her husband goes through a rough patch, it's all part of her strained relationship with her family, all of which is secondary to the central relationship at the core of this story: her friendship with a character magically transposed into her reality from a series of Christmas movies. Think Elf or Enchanted, with the caveat those movies actually had romcom storylines throughout.
Definitely think Enchanted, in fact. Janel Parrish, who plays the intentionally ridiculously named Sugarplum, seems to be channeling Amy Adams for her performance, both in voice and mannerisms. The character is comically over-the-top, which is absolutely the point. Sugarplum's world is a parody of Hallmark Christmas tropes (arguably more Netflix's these days, but let's not split hairs), with everything that entails. She's used to having flings with royal princes, she's been to the North Pole, and she carries around a massive book of rules governing Christmas magic (a reference to Hallmark's guidelines for how these movies have to operate).
And the movie actually plays with this stuff. Her dalliances with princes from made-up countries mean she's walking around with untold riches in jewelry in her purse. She has a magic snow globe Santa gave her that can summon snow indoors. Her rules work... until they don't. See, the magic Christmas tree star that summoned her starts running out of juice, because the rules of the TV movie world aren't compatible with those of reality.
Which is of course the theme, lesson, and character arc at the core of all this. The movie's other main character is Emily (actress Maggie Lawson), a Seattle lawyer obsessed with giving her family a perfect Christmas, which....
Okay, here's why I knew this thing was destined to derail from almost the start. That character flaw only exists in Hallmark movies, which instantly undercuts the premise of a Hallmark movie character coming into the real world. This is really more about a Netflix Christmas movie amalgamation character being transposed into a typical Hallmark Christmas movie world, which doesn't quite work as well conceptually. I understand Hallmark's guidelines still had to be in place, but I'm convinced there were ways they could have grounded this a bit more without falling afoul of the rules (or maybe Hallmark just needs to relax their damn rules... but that's a discussion for another time).
Initially, this just means a handful of cringeworthy moments in an otherwise solid first half. Characters have fun interactions and playful banter that's occasionally interrupted by a Emily giving a speech about wanting to make Christmas "perfect," a thing I don't believe any real person has ever seriously set as a goal in the real world (and if they did, I have to believe they were at least self-conscious enough to keep their aspirations to themselves).
Maybe I've just seen too many of these to empathize with a character who says lines like that. Or maybe I haven't seen enough to be completely desensitized to this specific motivation. Look, what I'm saying is if there's a number of these movies you need to see to accept this as a believable character trait, I haven't seen that precise number. I can accept the idea people get too caught up in the holidays - that's relatable. Likewise, I can believe people spend too much time trying to recreate childhood nostalgia. But as soon as a character phrases these ideas as wanting to give their family "perfect Christmas memories" I zone out. It's too obvious a cliche with an even more obvious lesson about taking the holidays in stride and allowing meaningful moments to occur in their own time - I've lost count of the number of times I've seen these movies lean on this, and I simply can't take it seriously. Maybe your mileage will vary.
It's mainly a shame because Lawson is doing good work here. She plays Emily as believably grounded and sells the idea she's part of the real world... at least until the script undermines everything she's doing.
Again, on its own this isn't a deal breaker. Particularly when it comes to comedy, more or less any structural problem can be overcome by the content. To put this another way, this wasn't going to be more than the sum of its parts, but that doesn't mean it had to be less.
And a lot of the jokes here are good. Things like this need to cut loose to work, and in my experience modern Hallmark productions tend not to get that. To its credit, Sugarplummed does... at least some of the time. When she's having a necklace appraised to pay back Emily for accidentally hiring a team of decorators, the movie exploits the disconnect between realities to its fullest. Same goes for that snow globe, which is actually magic (and behaves accordingly). And her book of rules, which seems to bend reality itself, is fun... as are the consequences when the real world reasserts itself.
The problem is the movie either doesn't understand or more likely isn't allowed to maintain this tone. Hallmark Christmas movies always take a turn for the melancholy at the start of the third act, and this is no exception. Like clockwork, the fun stuff is dropped for forced melodrama hinging on Emily's flaw and the various family responsibilities she's failed to maintain because of it.
And none of that stuff is believable. I don't buy this otherwise intelligent woman failed to see a lesson this obvious for the entire movie. I don't buy that she's tried to control her daughter's future, nor do I believe the jarring plot twists as her daughter goes from being angry at her parents to deciding they're right to immediately transforming her outlook the moment her mother gives a profoundly dumb pep talk.
I was also a little bothered by how self-serving the movie's ending felt. As Sugarplum vanishes into magic dust, she reminds Emily she'll always be close by. And of course she's proven right as one of her fictitious movies starts up on the Hallmark analog. I understand them making the subtext that Hallmark has a place in your family's Christmas tradition, but did it actually need to be the text? I found that beat a little too cloying to ignore.
In short, this is frustrating. This is a real step forward for Hallmark (at least among the genre mashups I've seen from them) in terms of embracing the wilder, fun aspects of a weird premise. I'm also thrilled to see one of these which isn't centered on romance, instead using those tropes mostly as punchlines (though she does kiss her husband right on cue at the end, as if checking that off a list). Hell, it's nice to see a Hallmark Christmas movie in Seattle, rather than the usual wintery locale (it would have nicer if they'd actually filmed it in Seattle, but still).
It's good enough that diehard fans of Hallmark Christmas are going to love it. Hell, I suspect the fun stuff is solid enough to win over at least some of the studio's detractors. But for my tastes this one came up just short of where I needed it to be. The are some good moments and even better signs that Hallmark's moving in the right direction... but I don't think they're there yet.
Comments
Post a Comment