Horrible acting by all except Hanna Barefoot, the female lead. She's great, as always. Male lead is an awful singer. Surely they could have cast a more talented singer/actor.
13 Reviews
Just a nice feel good movie for the holiday
ron-2624114 December 2023
Wow, some of the reviews on this movie are harsh. Some of you are really just mean people. Greatest movie ever made? Maybe not, but it's not the worst either. Evan Gamble is never going to be mistaken for Johnny Cash, but I really don't think that's his goal either. We liked the movie. Is there anything better than cheesy Christmas movies playing during this time of year. No, no there is not. Put the movie on, turn the oven on, bake some cookies, and enjoy the season. If your goal is take in the next great cinematic master piece then maybe, just maybe head to the nearest theater, grab some popcorn, one of those super duper sized soft drinks, sit back, and enjoy. The rest of us will enjoy the feel good stories that movies like Country Christmas Album provide.
Have a great day everyone and Merry Christmas!
Have a great day everyone and Merry Christmas!
Hard Pass
aclarkcountry31 December 2019
The female lead is really good as far as the singing and acting, but the male lead was a horrible singer and the rest of the casts' acting was sub-par. It's a good thing I rented this. Couldn't even finish it. Barely made it 15 into it before pressing the stop button.
Refreshing plot line
Jackbv1238 January 2020
This movie is a refreshing change from the other hundred or so Christmas movies I've watched this year. The story is different and I thought maybe a little rough. The ending is abrupt.
The role of the ex-husband is interesting. I expected him to be a villain, but that didn't happen.
Most of the acting wasn't great, but I didn't think it was horrible. Hannah Barefoot was winsome and has a girl next door kind of beautiful. I didn't see a lot of chemistry between her and Evan Gamble. The fencing between them continued a bit too long and I never really warmed to Derek. Taylor Bedford as Mazzy does a decent job also.
There is a fair amount of singing Christmas songs, but more in bits and pieces than full length songs. They do 12 Days of Christmas with updated lyrics up to the 4th day. I agree with those who weren't impressed with Evan Gamble's voice, especially on O Holy Night. Hannah Barefoot is enjoyable to listen to.
Was it just me, or maybe my TV, or did the live performance of Winter Wonderland (an original, not the classic) sound washed out like in a cavern?
After watching this again almost a year later, I raised my estimation of it by a star.
The role of the ex-husband is interesting. I expected him to be a villain, but that didn't happen.
Most of the acting wasn't great, but I didn't think it was horrible. Hannah Barefoot was winsome and has a girl next door kind of beautiful. I didn't see a lot of chemistry between her and Evan Gamble. The fencing between them continued a bit too long and I never really warmed to Derek. Taylor Bedford as Mazzy does a decent job also.
There is a fair amount of singing Christmas songs, but more in bits and pieces than full length songs. They do 12 Days of Christmas with updated lyrics up to the 4th day. I agree with those who weren't impressed with Evan Gamble's voice, especially on O Holy Night. Hannah Barefoot is enjoyable to listen to.
Was it just me, or maybe my TV, or did the live performance of Winter Wonderland (an original, not the classic) sound washed out like in a cavern?
After watching this again almost a year later, I raised my estimation of it by a star.
Enjoyable guilty pleasure Christmas movie
lauravbaar9 December 2021
I'd give it 6,5 stars but since you can't give it halfs and the other reviews were more negative than it deserved I rounded it up. I think it's pretty solid. It's not the best, it's predictable and fits perfectly in the guilty pleasure of bingwatching Christmas romances. I liked the cast the actress that played Tess was very likeable and real, not to overexaggerated like most leading ladies in Christmas romance movies. I do agree that in the beginning the romance felt a bit forced. Her tripping and him catching her and staring at eachother awkwardly for a few seconds, and the close friend side character telling them that they are in love(while you have hardly seen them interact yet) but the leads disregarding the notion. I do think they get there though starting at the thanksgiving dinner.
The best thing though by far in this movie has no to hardly any auto tuning and pitch correcting. Omg do I hate that in all the music (christmas) movies I've seen so far. They hire people that can't sing and then tune everything into oblivion till they all just sound like robots. So it's great that this movie leaves it real so that the songs and the emotion the actor puts in to it, fits in the moment it's filmed. Does that mean you can hear that Derek isn't as good as Tess, yes. But he isn't terrible by all means, we just aren't used to imperfections in recordings.
The best thing though by far in this movie has no to hardly any auto tuning and pitch correcting. Omg do I hate that in all the music (christmas) movies I've seen so far. They hire people that can't sing and then tune everything into oblivion till they all just sound like robots. So it's great that this movie leaves it real so that the songs and the emotion the actor puts in to it, fits in the moment it's filmed. Does that mean you can hear that Derek isn't as good as Tess, yes. But he isn't terrible by all means, we just aren't used to imperfections in recordings.
A Christmas album worth skipping
TheLittleSongbird24 December 2019
'Country Christmas Album' sounded like a film that would get marginal enjoyment value by me, even if it was formulaic. Christmas is my favourite time of year. Music is a big part of my life and very important to me. And while country is not my favourite type of music, that has not stopped me from having always appreciated it, the singers that revolutionised it and its importance. The concept sounded interesting.
While 'Country Christmas Album' is a long way from being among the worst Christmas films ever and it is not even among my very worst recent festive film viewings, it is in the lesser end and could have been much better considering the potential it had. My review summary does sound harsh, it is not a must skip though it is a long way from an essential and doesn't have enough to it to be worth playing more than once. Even getting through the whole thing is not entirely easy.
It does have good things. The soundtrack is a charmer and affectionately handled without being random in placement. Hannah Barefoot is a very likeable lead with a lot of personality that is easy to engage and identify with. Found her character a breath of fresh air amidst a film that was sore need of more of that.
The photography is also quite nice if exceptional, it doesn't look cheap at least.
However, the rest of the cast are poor. A mix of bland and annoying and the male lead is devoid of charisma and charm. He has no discernible chemistry with Barefoot, any attempts are stilted and like they actually did not get on, and does not have a voice strong enough to make the premise of his character being a former pop star halfway believable. Only Tess is worth liking or engaging with of the characters, one can care less for the others. The story is really dull in pace and has no personality of any kind let alone charm, which makes that one is at least two steps ahead of the film in knowing what is going to happen next the entire film impossible to forgive.
Likewise with the constantly forced and cheesy dialogue that has no flow or direction throughout. The direction is routine at best.
Concluding, very lacklustre apart from one good lead performance. 4/10
While 'Country Christmas Album' is a long way from being among the worst Christmas films ever and it is not even among my very worst recent festive film viewings, it is in the lesser end and could have been much better considering the potential it had. My review summary does sound harsh, it is not a must skip though it is a long way from an essential and doesn't have enough to it to be worth playing more than once. Even getting through the whole thing is not entirely easy.
It does have good things. The soundtrack is a charmer and affectionately handled without being random in placement. Hannah Barefoot is a very likeable lead with a lot of personality that is easy to engage and identify with. Found her character a breath of fresh air amidst a film that was sore need of more of that.
The photography is also quite nice if exceptional, it doesn't look cheap at least.
However, the rest of the cast are poor. A mix of bland and annoying and the male lead is devoid of charisma and charm. He has no discernible chemistry with Barefoot, any attempts are stilted and like they actually did not get on, and does not have a voice strong enough to make the premise of his character being a former pop star halfway believable. Only Tess is worth liking or engaging with of the characters, one can care less for the others. The story is really dull in pace and has no personality of any kind let alone charm, which makes that one is at least two steps ahead of the film in knowing what is going to happen next the entire film impossible to forgive.
Likewise with the constantly forced and cheesy dialogue that has no flow or direction throughout. The direction is routine at best.
Concluding, very lacklustre apart from one good lead performance. 4/10
Wouldn't buy their album
megan_chatterton18 December 2022
This movie is pretty normal quality for a Christmas movie in terms of storytelling, however the choice of singers left something to be desired.
The movie is about two singers who are partnered up for a holiday album to rejuvenate their careers. They navigate a budding romance while deciding whether to go on tour, leaving each other behind.
Neither of the characters seemed like they should have a career in music. Considering the musical talent a lot of these holiday movies manage to tap, it's embarrassing they didn't swing for the best they could get on this one. The actors did their best, but the songs were truly awful.
The movie is about two singers who are partnered up for a holiday album to rejuvenate their careers. They navigate a budding romance while deciding whether to go on tour, leaving each other behind.
Neither of the characters seemed like they should have a career in music. Considering the musical talent a lot of these holiday movies manage to tap, it's embarrassing they didn't swing for the best they could get on this one. The actors did their best, but the songs were truly awful.
Some of the worst acting I've seen
jimk-1982516 December 2022
Nothing about this movie I could ever recommend. Writers should be embarassed for really weak lines. The male lead could have been replaced by almost any karaoke singer I've heard. By far, the very worst performance came from Mickey Gooch Jr. I now rate him the worst actor ever (and yes, I'm including Shelly Duvall in The Shining.) He was trying so hard to become the leading character with his horrible antics. I don't care whatever the Director may have told you, I would be ashamed to have my name listed in the credits. The plot is weak and not believable. Characters are not very well developed and the roles are very weak.
Could have been better.
t-mccheyne20 October 2019
Terrible
moms-7652815 December 2021
Good Christmas film. I like the cast and music.
internetuser-0165716 December 2018
Contrived, mediocre all around
tdobrien-4858814 December 2020
I'm not sure what the other reviewers were watching, but the female lead is no better than the rest of the cast. The writing is mundane and so predictable. Telling the talent to take a break the rest of the day after trying to sing a couple of phases is no way gonna happen. Perhaps there are just too many Christmas love stories and at such low level that it becomes easy to be the same just to make a buck. Little real effort.
Poor Relationship Movie with Christmas Music Thrown in so it can be Listed as a Christmas Movie
joetjaden11 February 2024
Warning: Spoilers
When you make a movie about musicians, make sure the can sing at least a bit. I humbly disagree with many reviews, the lead actress cannot sing well. She is maybe average to just above, but not enough to sell as a major act. The male lead was awful.
This relationship movie was written for the female lead to demand everything she wanted and the male actor to play the weak half and give in to all her demands, and when he says or does anything that does not conform to her desires, she throws him away and throws a tantrum. Even though she was given an equal opportunity to his, neither of them actually accepted the opportunity, this was her breaking point. She wanted everything and wanted him to give up all for her choices and career. This movie just felt so lopsided it was hard to stomach.
Add to this the horrible overacting by the DJ. His performance was particularly cringeworthy.
The bright spots were the female lead's daughter, She delivered when she is on screen. Not trying to steal the spotlight, but is a power on screen.
And the girls father. He is the sole redeeming quality of the movie for me. He is a present father, loves his daughter, and shows it.
This relationship movie was written for the female lead to demand everything she wanted and the male actor to play the weak half and give in to all her demands, and when he says or does anything that does not conform to her desires, she throws him away and throws a tantrum. Even though she was given an equal opportunity to his, neither of them actually accepted the opportunity, this was her breaking point. She wanted everything and wanted him to give up all for her choices and career. This movie just felt so lopsided it was hard to stomach.
Add to this the horrible overacting by the DJ. His performance was particularly cringeworthy.
The bright spots were the female lead's daughter, She delivered when she is on screen. Not trying to steal the spotlight, but is a power on screen.
And the girls father. He is the sole redeeming quality of the movie for me. He is a present father, loves his daughter, and shows it.
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