Back to a Christmas Future
Christmas is just around the corner and nothing will get Lindsay (Eloise Mumford - Christmas with Holly) down, she loves living with her mum, and her grandpa Bob (Christopher Lloyd - The One I Wrote for You) lives nearby in Harborview. And then there is Jason (Michael Stahl-David) who she has been with forever and who is about to pop the question. But then out of the blue Lindsay gets offered an amazing job teaching at Yale University. Torn between the offer of a tenured job and her life at home with Jason, Lindsay is facing a tough decision this Christmas, one which weighs heavy on her. Fortunately Lindsay is the recipient of a very special and unique gift when she meets the Coachman (William Shatner - A Sunday Horse) who takes her on a magical coach ride which takes her three years in to the future.
"Just in Time for Christmas" is the sort of Christmas movie where people seem to go to bed and then wake up the next day in a different version of their life, a life which has taken an alternative path because of a decision they make to either go with their heart or their mind when it comes to their career. But in "Just in Time for Christmas" we don't get that, or the other cliche of a bump to the head, but instead a young lady, after getting an incredible job offer and a proposal of marriage in the space of one evening, is taken for a ride in to the future by William Shatner no less, this is William Shatner with a funny little beard which he plays with.
Anyway what we have with "Just in Time for Christmas" is in essence a play on the "What If" set up as Lindsay is transported in to the future and gets to see how her life plays out if she turns down Jason and takes the job in Yale, becoming a published author in the process. Having told you all that what I am not going to do is to go in to anymore detail for the simple reason in this sort of movie with the familiar "What If", "Look into the future" set up the detail is part of what makes the movie interesting. What I will say is that the detail is good and even if you recognize the familiar set up you will find yourself drawn in by the details.
What you also find yourself drawn in by is the likeability of Eloise Mumford who as Lindsay has the girl next door thing going on so well that she is very appealing. She is also a good actress because far too often these movies are ruined by over the top performances and she doesn't do that at all. What this movie also does is capitalize on its supporting cast and when you have a movie which takes you in to the future who better than Doc Brown, I mean Christopher Lloyd, to be there waiting for you. The thing is that "Just in Time for Christmas" doesn't do anything tacky with this it just makes you smile. It is the same with William Shatner's performance, just because of who he is and what he was in gives "Just in Time for Christmas" that extra smile element.
What this all boils down to is that "Just in Time for Christmas" is a nice Christmas movie which comes up with a creative new spin on the "What If" theme. But whilst it is a fun take and a fun Christmas movie I wouldn't say it was anything special.
Tags: TV Christmas Movies, Christmas Movies
