Starring Rachel Boston and Neal Bledsoe, A Christmas Carousel follows Lila (Boston) who is hired by the Prince of Ancadia, Prince Whitaker (Bledsoe) to restore his family’s carousel as a Christmas gift for his niece. As Lila and Whitaker work together to get the carousel up and running, they begin to grow closer amid a mutual love for art and, of course, their feelings for one another. The only problem is that Lila is at a crossroads in terms of her career, which could lead her away from the restoration business with her father and Prince Whitaker who, by the way, is promised to someone else in marriage. With the Christmas season in full gear, both Lila and Whitaker are in need of a Christmas miracle. Luckily, each carousel comes with a "wishing" horse...
This movie was not what I was expecting it to be — and that’s a good thing. The trailer for it was somewhat vague and confusing in terms of what this movie was going to be about. All I could tell was that it involved a prince (with a really terrible British accent) and a carousel. How those two were connected was beyond me. However, this ended up being a semi-cute movie. The story was very different and unique from all the new Christmas films this year and the carousel itself was really beautiful. It made the whole movie so much more jubilant. So while this was not an all-time favorite for me, it definitely ended up being one to remember.
However, while the film looked festive, that’s where the enjoyment ended for me. Bledsoe’s accent was terrible and made watching him kind of hard because it was so painfully obvious. On top of that, the character of Whitaker wasn’t that great either. He can’t seem to make up his mind or stand up to his father about what he wants or what he's passionate about. In addition, while it’s bad enough to be indecisive when it comes to your own family issues, it's another thing entirely to string someone else along for this confusing ride — and I’m not just talking about Lila. He was confusing me as well when it came to his relationship with Margaret and his hot and cold demeanor towards Lila, which made me extremely annoyed. If I were Lila, I wouldn’t have shed a tear over him, but that’s just me. Hallmark likes to go the dramatic route, you know?
I should say that the only reason I was remotely excited for this movie to begin with was because of Boston. I’m a big fan of all her Hallmark movies. She’s a great actress and every performance she gives feels really grounded and real, which is what I look for when watching anything. Her performance in this movie was no different, especially when she’s interacting with Prince Whitaker. I really felt for her when she and Whitaker agree to be friends when she clearly wanted to be more. Her facial expression says it all and your heart just breaks for her. That makes the mark of good acting, does it not?
The only other thing I’d like to ask is why it’s referred to as the Christmas Carousel? Carousels are usually more of a summer thing because not many people are up for riding them when it’s freezing cold out, am I right? On top of that, Prince Whitaker seems to know a lot about restoring said carousel, so why hire someone — especially when they don’t even work or live in that country? I get that it was Lila's great, great grandfather who built the original, but are you seriously telling me that there are no other restoration companies in Ancadia?
Christmas Carousel was definitely one of the more festive Christmas movies Hallmark put out this year. Unfortunately, that’s where the allure ends. While it looks Christmassy and the story is one that feels new and fresh, the characters might put some people off. However, Boston’s performance is definitely one that you’ll enjoy and might just be the only saving grace to this movie, aside from the carousel itself.
What did you think of the film? Let me know in the comments below!
***I do not own this photo.
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