My Dad's Christmas Date

This has a Hallmark type movie title where you expect the misadventures of a teenager trying to set her dad up, misfire and then succeed. But it is, in fact, a story about a father and daughter experiencing grief. The individual stories take a path that develop each character and explore their own response to the Mother/wife's death. The father and daughter story is poignant and not candy-coated. The father's loss is hard for the daughter to understand and Piven does a great job of not cheesing up his reactions. The character is sad, at a loss, and feeling alone. The daughter is equally complex, alienating a friend b/c she can't contain her emotions.

Some motifs could have been more effectively used. The father loves dancing, but it doesn't show up enough (or the loss of it) to make the ending meaningful. The memories of his wife don't include them.

The daughter being spurned by the boyfriend was sadly cliche as a way of finding out more about herself.

Still, i recommend it for their relationship, for the examination of grief and loss, and for the lovely settings and locations.