While this film isn't groundbreaking in terms of its plot or story arc, it offers an enjoyable holiday romantic comedy and creates dynamic character relationships that aren't limited to stereotypical tropes.
The cinematography is great. The film makes excellent use of color saturation and contrast to create a bright Christmas cheer throughout. Oftentimes, films set in winter can end up with a bit of a grayed-out drab look, but the lighting and color in this film really accentuate the magic of the season.
I thought Lindsay Hicks was a capable lead, and showed good range, and Joe Piazza does a great job as a compassionate ex-husband who is now Jane's best friend. One of my favorite aspects of this story is that it presents a side of divorce that is underrepresented in media portrayals in which the couple separates amicably and maintains a good relationship raising a child after the divorce. Nearly every portrayal of divorce in films tends toward a nasty separation, so I thought this dynamic was refreshing. Despite the close friendship between the two of them, Jane and Mark's relationship is also fraught with complications and struggles as they both try to move on but also maintain a plutonic closeness.
Perhaps my favorite scene of the movie was the visit at the Givens family house, as Dale Dobson (Mr. Givens) steals the show as the quirky man of the house, telling a captivating story about Jane's father.
This isn't a perfect film, but I don't think a film has to be perfect to get a 10 out of 10--it just needs to set out what it was intended to do and be in the top 10% at doing so. The musical score is inconsistent and oftentimes inserts itself in too many places when the scene could use a bit more space to breathe. The character of Heather Adams (India Chappell), while acted well, was a bit too much of a stereotypical "bridezilla". The plot of losing the family farm to the greedy bank is also a bit hackneyed at this point.
That said, A Holiday I Do should tick all of the boxes for folks who like the genre, and offers enough above and beyond the average "Hallmark-style" Christmas film that it deserves to be seen by anyone who enjoys a bit of Christmas magic mixed with a romantic spark.
