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Holiday Hallmark Review: Leah's Perfect Gift (2024)
Keywords
Hallmark movies, Leah's Perfect Gift, holiday films, character analysis, family dynamics, cultural representation, movie review, festive season, communication issues, production quality
Summary
In this conversation, Nick and Leslie review the Hallmark movie 'Leah's Perfect Gift,' discussing its themes, character dynamics, and production quality. They express disappointment in the lack of representation of Hanukkah and critique the communication issues between the main characters, Leah and Graham. The hosts also analyze the family dynamics portrayed in the film, highlighting the challenges Leah faces with Graham's family during the holiday season. Overall, they provide a humorous yet critical take on the film's execution and cultural implications.
Chain Assembly (Nick Ribera) (00:00.276)
Nick and Leslie, Nick and Leslie, talking holiday cheer Hallmark movies, cozy nights, and a festive review today Hey, grab a seat and a sweet treat, cozy up push play Movie cheers, what you'll hear this Hallmark movie day Happy holidays everyone and welcome to our review of Leah's Perfect Gift based on the book by
I just saw it in beginning of the credits, so was basically like... Yeah, I didn't look up in time. I was like, book! So let's play that trailer. It's a relic.
Chain Assembly (Nick Ribera) (00:44.27)
I am invited me to have Christmas with this family. you're finally going to meet the family. Is this even real? Yahoo! It's real. Is everyone's Christmas schedule? Leah may not be ready for Christmas. I said it was going to be fancy. I thought you meant fancy like this. But it's a holiday she will never forget. It is Christmas! Is it everything you wanted it to be? Perfect. Leah's Perfect Gift on Hallmark Channel.
Okay, what do you think of Leah's perfect gift? I didn't take a of notes. I mean, I felt like, you know, right off the bat, reading the one sentence description, I was kind of saddened that so this is not about Hanukkah. This is about someone wanting to experience Christmas, which I'm like, what? I'm like,
Just take out the manger and it's winter. It's everything of the winter season. You can make it. There's no reason you can't do that stuff and be drunk. Yeah, you can have mulled wine. can sit by the fireside. can go skiing and sledding. Well, can't throw a snowball for it. But you can still partake in these winter activities or even winter solstice.
So, okay. So how'd you feel? Anyway, I'm just like, it's quite the middle of road for me. So although I did enjoy her acting and her bit, so I'm not saying it's a, it's a must see it probably is going to be like in the top 15. So in my opinion, Leah carries the movie. She carries the movie. Yes. her, her boyfriend and fiance by the end of the movie, Graham Graham.
is the most wet blanket of a man. Yeah, talk about why I'm surprised he didn't have a guitar with him. It seems so this is just me. I thought you'd giggle from that. Well, I'm sorry. What? I said I'm surprised he didn't have a guitar with him. yeah. That's right. That was fun. So this is kind of my thinking. If your main character is a white guy, that's enough to be a character. That's default. So as a writer.
Chain Assembly (Nick Ribera) (03:09.741)
Sorry, I'm saying this is a problem. That just saying we're gonna have a handsome white guy and that means we don't have to develop any character or any personality. And he had both his parents. And he had both his parents. So like, it's almost like the fact that someone is not a white Anglo-Saxon Protestant, that is enough for them to be a character. I tell ya, especially what made him white man is that he thought of no one but himself. Yes. Did he forewarn?
his girlfriend of any of this which they had talked about days. the drama of this movie would not be drama if Graham had just said to Leah, hey, let me tell you about my family. These are things we're gonna do. These are things you're not gonna do. These are things you should do, things you shouldn't do. Instead, I guess who the fuck knows what this couple talks about?
but he invites her to enjoy Christmas with him and his family and gives her no warning on how his family acts. On how his mom is a perfectionist of a host, which those people are exhausting. And you know, we're going to decorate. She's going to have a written itinerary. She's going to cause you to have anxiety. Just go with the flow. you have her and Leah did not.
get Graham's opinion on what gifts she should give to the parents. I don't know who is not running every outfit by someone basically too. When packing, don't they live together? And they didn't pack together. Remember the scrapbook she gives Graham, Leah gives Graham a scrapbook detailing every date they've ever had. And it's like 10 pages.
Right, but they're eating food together in someone's apartment and it made it seem- cause she's like, look at what we've made. Like, I thought they were referencing like the life they made together and like they're living together. I don't- I really don't- in the photo of the scrapbook. No, in the beginning when he invites her to Christmas. He invited her- didn't he invite her when they're at the restaurant eating fish heads? That's when he invited her. Okay, well there's another scene in an apartment.
Chain Assembly (Nick Ribera) (05:27.213)
So there's a scene when he made latkes with her dad. Yes, but there's the scene with them in the apartment. There's the refrigerator, the fake brick. Don't recall. my God. I might have been in the kitchen. We're going to pause this. Seriously? Yes. No, I'm going to. You can't pause it, but I can edit it. And we're back. Right. Yes. So now you remember the scene where they both get the sweaters and she announced.
yeah, this is our fan- this is what we're dressing up for Christmas and he goes, fancy. So yes, he did warn her, at least in that situation, that we dress up for dinner as know, honestly, but also it's like check in with your partner and be like, alright, so to make sure on the same page you brought something fancy for my mom that will cry if Christmas is ruined. Yeah.
Failure communication white man one thing I do appreciate though is that led to the funniest moment in the movie I mean it when they are at the dinner and Graham says to Emily she's wearing a ridiculous Christmas sweater with like lights all over it It's beautiful and he says I thought you're put on something fancy and she's like is this not fancy She hits a button that makes the sweater light up. It was funny That's funny. she says I thought you fancy like this.
But they're the most like cartoonish waspy parents. Waspy. Yes. And so they're they're very, secretly condescending. Leslie instantly caught on that the mom hugged Graham, but not the daughter. Yep. Yep. She her son and Graham Lynn Grammy, whatever. Yeah, Grimlin. She wants to fuck her son. Correct. She wants to fuck her son wants to do. He does everything right.
And but the younger daughter does nothing, right? Yep. Yeah. I got to go get that done the second she got in. So now of all the Hallmark Hallmark movies I've seen this year, this one had the worst audio and the worst lighting. They must have filmed in an actual building like a home. Yeah, it was not a rented. Yeah, it was not a set because they no lights upright echoing in the bathroom. Why would they choose to have her in the bathroom when she has her own room?
Chain Assembly (Nick Ribera) (07:45.501)
go in a closet. That would have been the better thing. Yeah. So for that, I'm giving directing a two. The house was beautifully decorated. It was beautiful. Acting, I'm giving a four. Nobody was good except for Leah. Yeah. Yeah. Like if she does other movies, I'd be excited to see her. Yeah. She she's very funny. Great line delivery is very quippy, but everyone around her is stale as hell. Stale.
And I thought what was best for this movie was the writing. Maddie, the sister of the boyfriend's sister, she had beautiful hair. She did. The red hair. I think it might have been for me. Either way. So whoever styled it did a great job if it was extensions or whatever. Yeah, the mom, Barbara, is a nightmare. Yeah. Nightmare. I would not want to marry into that family whatsoever. That relationships like that disgust me.
Like that son or like, I the son's oblivious, basically. I don't know. But like people that live like, I can't. Kind of those people that have that lifestyle. I down an almond mom preach on that. that's right. She's an almond mom instantly. yeah. So the term Leslie taught me about. Yeah. So almond mom where like they basically just eat almonds. They're, you know, they're potentially, you know, they're calorie counting. They
Weight watcher people there. You're counting their points. They're almond moms. Like you can't have your protein what's gonna hold you over almond go drink some water almond like that's a cube of cheese So what did she have? What did Barbara have? seaweed That's what she's snack seaweed. That's what she tiny little squares of seaweed and I'm like, no wonder why you guys have digestive problems Cuz that's all you're eating. You're not sustaining an actual like
healthy gut biome. And so she's an almond mom. She's probably also on ozempic. I don't think we even talked anything about the plot, but Leah is Jewish. Very excited to have a traditional Christmas with Graham and his Connecticut waspie family. like the town they go to is beautifully decorated. And it's like Graham should have said, look, I know this is something you want.
Chain Assembly (Nick Ribera) (10:06.677)
my family is toxic, let's have our own Christmas together. Right. We will get a cabin in the Catskills. It's going to be decorated to the nines. We're going to be bringing eggnog and cookies and we'll get a suite with the kitchen so we can bake in there. I don't know. That would have been lovely. Yeah. Like, let me make it right. Like, let me make it the Christmas winter wonderland that I that I.
I know you want and I want to make for you because I know my mom is going to make it miserable and make it itinerary and have everything be a competition and have to be perfect. it's not a competition. Except when it's not a competition. And that snowman was terrifying. loved it. Yeah. There was something else I wanted to say. the ornaments. So Leah got Barbara an ornament for their very tall 15 foot Christmas tree.
Balsam Hill and it is a small terrarium. I loved it. I'm like, my God. That's going to be so heavy though for an ornament, but you know, got some heavy ornaments, but there's definitely even heavier. Excuse me. I am just burpee from this water. And I'm just doodling a little little demo guy on my notebook. We are anyway, so.
Final thoughts is, I should say it's a good. You'll be okay if you. Yeah, it'll be okay for me. I am disappointed in the representation of Hanukkah. And again, it's I really wish this actress had more to do. Yeah, she was good. She has a very large nose. I wonder if like that makes it harder for her to get rolls. I don't know.
I don't know that's appropriate to say. You don't think Hollywood is like superficial? Horrendous Hollywood. Horrendous. Well, I mean, yeah. Horrendous. She was great. I want to follow. She was great. I think she's her career very close. I think she's better than Dakota Johnson. That's not hard to do. I'm not an actor and I'm sure I'm better than Dakota Johnson.
Chain Assembly (Nick Ribera) (12:29.452)
Have a good night everyone, we'll see you next week! Good night! And happy holidays! Merry Christmas! Bye!
