“A Christmas Prince” is Netflix’s counterpunch to the Hallmark Channel for the heavyweight title of Best and Cheesiest Holiday Flicks. The 2017 release is also the perfect guilty pleasure movie, and a great watch in the days leading up to Christmas.
Managing to tug the heartstrings, evoke laughter, and capture the holiday festivities, “A Christmas Prince” stars Rose McIver as a cute and quirky reporter named Amber, dressed in casual attire and her trademark Converse sneaks, as she goes undercover to the kingdom of Aldovia to get the scoop on the fictional countries playboy Prince Richard (Ben Lamb).
The cast is what makes the film so enjoyable, with Rose McIver turning out a dazzling performance of the comically klutzy character, posing as a tutor for Prince Richard’s kid sister (Honor Kneafsey). The rapport between these two alone is great, with Amber helping the young girl cope with her disability (in a somewhat controversial aspect the real life actress is not confined to a wheelchair). The eventual chemistry between Amber and Prince Richard is quite authentic. Amber has a loving father and two best friends (Tahira Sharif and Joel McVeagh) who are across the pond and help with her clandestine mission. The ancillary characters that make up the inhabitants of the castle and country are great in their parts.
“A Christmas Prince” does what many other low budget holiday movies gloss over and that is having a unique and organic plot. There’s no forced conflict, in fact it’s the opposite. Its believable that Amber works for the tabloid paper and wants to become a real reported, and thus is dispatched to cover the story of the prince. Likewise, the conflict with Prince Richard and his ascension to the thrown is one we don’t see coming and it too manages to work.
Set amidst the snow covered castle, the holiday season is there in every scene. The countryside of Aldovia, while conjured for this movie, is one we can smile at when we witness its breadth.
“A Christmas Prince” is the first of three in a trilogy and we’ll cover each in the subsequent years. It may be fanboy gushing but I would love to see the cast return for a fourth or better yet – a Netflix television series. Either way, it’s a fun movie to watch and sets the mood for your Christmas movie viewings.
