Cheesy romantic Holiday films can easily get stale. With safe and similar plots and formulaic delivery, it’s always refreshing to find something new.
“No Sleep ‘Til Christmas” challenges expectations with a fresh though absurd idea and funny performances. The film dropped in 2018 by the now defunct Freeform streamer.
Unique Plot
I was a bit confused when the movie opened. We’re introduced to the main character, Lizzie (Odette Annable). Lizzie is a fortnight from her New Year’s Day wedding. And she has developed incurable insomnia. Lizzie falls asleep at the dinner table in front of her fiancé (Charles Michael Davis) and his overbearing and protective mother (Sheryl Lee Ralph).
Across town we meet bartender Billy (Dave Annable), an immature slacker. Billy dreams of opening his own bar but doesn’t have the money or motivation to act. He’s summarily dumped by his girlfriend (an adorable Brittany Bristow) and is suffering from the same sleeplessness as Lizzie.
A chance meeting between the two illustrates that Lizzie and Billy can easily and soundly sleep in the presence of each other. What solves one problem quickly creates more as the pair forge an agreement in which Lizzie will invest in Billy’s bar in exchange for sleeping with him – literally.
Great Cast
I recognized Odette Annable from the found footage horror gem “Cloverfield.” Annable is perfect for a goofy Christmas film. Super cute and perfectly charming in a quirky fashion. On a side note, young Odette first appeared as a student in Mr. Kimble’s class in “Kindergarten Cop“.
I was jotting in my notes that the rapport between Lizzie and Billy was oddly good. Then I realized that Odette Annable and Dave Annable are real life husband and wife. This sort of chemistry can’t be acquired. As such, the bickering and bantering between the two is organic throughout, and the film is all the better for it.
Alphonso McAuley and Tina Jung lend support as friends of Billy and Lizzie. Each are afforded ample screen time and solid jokes of their own.
Nuance
Normally these films are overly cliché. One would expect Lizzie’s fiancé to be a jerk, or a cheater, or just a miserable Christmas hating SOB. But the character is well written as practically perfect for Lizzie. It creates an excellent conundrum that left me guessing as to what would happen at the end.
Don’t sleep on “No Sleep ‘Til Christmas”. Its an unheralded comedic holiday movie that deserves your fully awake attention.
