Stephanie Nichols (Ellen Hoffman) has just inherited The Christmas Shop from her parents which is a business that they have run for the last 40 years or so. However, soon after she acquires the shop she learns that a real estate company has placed a compulsory purchase on her shop and has given her 30 days notice to find another premises. Determined not to be bullied into submission, Stephanie decides to fight against the eviction and receives help from an unlikely source namely Michael (Bobby Campo) whom works for the real estate company responsible for evicting Stephanie...
OK so criticising a Christmas film for being sappy is probably a bit like criticising a horror film for being too scary or too gory - I get it that's the point, but Sharing Christmas takes sappiness to a whole new level...
Everything is laid on way too thick; the score for example is probably one of the most manipulative and over-used scores that I think I've ever witnessed in any film. In fact, I'm struggling to think of a particular scene or moment where it wasn't blaring across the screen. Don't get me wrong a score can be good in a film, but it should be used sparingly and more importantly at appropriate times. In Sharing Christmas it's there all the time which strikes as desperation on the part of the director in order to wring out false emotion from the audience.
The basic/concept story is not a bad one in principle, but even when looking at it in its most basic form it's a hard film to get behind or care about; from an early stage, we're supposed to be against the capitalist giant and the billion dollar acquisition when in reality they are simply doing their job and trying to make some money (which to some may seem immoral, but it certainly isn't illegal). The film might have worked better if it would have shown McClaine properties doing something underhand or illegal to gain their advantage (which would have perhaps made the narrative slightly more involving).
The development of the story is dull and director Peter Sullivan seems to keep the film permanently in neutral; none of the characters come across as being believable and as a whole it is overly nice and cutesy and even towards the end of the film characters do not act and behave how you would expect normal people to behave which ultimately cheapens what message the film is trying to get across.
Even the acting isn't great with many of the actors being in permanent 'grin mode' although given the way that the writer and director smother the film in schmaltz this hardly comes as a surprise - avoid.
