Christmas For Keeps (2021) -
I never really felt this connected to any of my teachers, although I'm friends with one now. Most of them were horrible, so it was a struggle to connect with the plot of this film. I'm pretty sure that none of my teachers would have wanted me to come back to school either.
Overall the film was a bit dull and even the cheer felt quite depressing. There was a lot going on, which meant that there wasn't enough time for what I considered to be the main romance between Ryan Rottman as Ben and Christa B. Allen playing Avery. Although I did like the fact that other characters were explored in a bit more depth, it needed another 15-20 minutes to deliver everyone's story equally as an ensemble piece. Mia's (Marielle Scott) story seemed almost completely lost amid the rest.
I think by restricting themselves to the standard one hour, twenty something minutes, they make things far too contrived. As a result this one lost the joy and heart that it should have had in remembering their favourite teacher and mentor through various activities that meant a lot to him, because it focussed too much on the hardships in their lives and the issues with their relationships, having too little time to show the pleasure they enjoyed.
I'd probably skip this one in future unless there was a director's cut that showed a bit more to it, but I doubt that exists.
4.5/10.
