“Happiest Season” Film Review

201123-happiest-season-kristen-steward-mackenzie-davis-ac-833p_4fda1b18e3329866818ee60171f2469f.jpg — 80/100 “sweet”

By: Keaton Marcus

Is it just me or has Clea DuVall’s romantic comedy Happiest Season saved 2020? Streaming on Hulu now, this is definitely in my top 15 films of the year. It’s a charming, hilarious, uplifting and diverse comedy that uses its bland cliches to the movie’s ultimate benefit. Kristen Stewart and Mackenzie Davis have superb chemistry in the two leading roles, and Dan Levy steals the show as always. Although perhaps forgettable, the supporting cast had surprising depth, and I was especially entertained by Mary Holland, who gave a laugh-out-loud performance with vibrant energy. The film does an excellent job of showing the ups and downs of a growing relationship with a natural romance consisting of characters that don’t feel forced or contrived. What’s truly original about this is the fact that it isn’t just a throwaway flick that will be off minds in 24 hours, it sticks with you and it’s re-watchability factor is seemingly infinite. Sure, it will get you through another day in the countdown to Christmas with spirit that will bring joy into hearts, but it is also quite meaningful emotionally. Remember, I hate rom coms, so this was something rare in my film-watching career.

It’s almost Christmas time and we are introduced to Harper (Davis) and Abby (Stewart), a couple with no plans for the holidays. However, when Harper attempts to convince Abby to go to her parents’ house, she reluctantly agrees after Harper assures her that she has come out to her parents about their gay relationship. Abby, who enjoys watching people’s pets when they go off to travel during break more than celebrating Christmas, gets her friend John (Dan Levy) to watch the animals she was assigned to. Don’t forget about those fish, John! He does anyway. During their car ride there at the literal last minute, Harper confesses that she actually hasn’t told her parents about her relationship, and they still think she’s straight. She has told her mom and dad that Abby is a former roommate living with her, however. Real bold, Harper, real bold. This not only completely upends Abby’s plans to propose to Harper on Christmas morning, but it also means that the two will have to hide their love for each other the entire holiday. Considering what Harper’s sister Sloane (Alison Brie) is like, that will not be a simple task.

Despite the situation not being all too enjoyable for our main characters, it does make us audiences real entertained to watch it play out. Anyway, moving on to the cast. All of the actors do a phenomenal job. I didn’t have one complaint about the performances. Kristen Stewart has had a similar career to Robert Pattinson. They both started off in the garbage Twilight franchise, and since then, the two have been slowly climbing up the ranks in quality films. Let me be the first person to say this, but Stewart is one of the most underrated actresses in Hollywood at the moment. She’s critic-sized for being too unemotional and stern, but her chemistry with every single one of her fellow cast members seems fluid and three dimensional. Also, her occasional dry humor and blank facial expressions sometimes even work towards the film’s benefit, and particularly towards the end, I felt for Abby as a character. Unlike, say, Julia in The Wedding Singer, I have an authentic reason to care about what happens to Abby that isn’t just finding true love with Adam Sandler. It’s both heartfelt and funny as hell to see both her and Harper attempt to pretend not to be together.

Mackenzie Davis, who starred in Terminator: Dark Fate last year, is also slowly but surely working up towards her breakout performance. She wasn’t given the spotlight as much as Stewart, but when she was, the actress was both hilarious and emotionally effective at the right moments. In terms of standouts, I would really give props to the supporting cast, prominently Dan Levy and Mary Holland. As mentioned, Levy portrays Abby’s best friend who’s obsessed with tracking people on his iPhone, and is generally depicted as a childish cynic who hates the concept of marriage. He actually goes through a decent arc, though, and by the conclusion, he is a far more mature, caring friend. Holland is Harper’s other sister, Jane, is known for fixing the internet connection and being the odd one out in her family. Her family basically bullies her to their heart’s content, and she’s ruled as an immature third wheel of sorts before she finally breaks out at the end. This, combined with Holland’s energetic, vibrant performance truly brought it home for me. Otherwise, Victor Garber and Mary Steenburgen were also quite solid as Ted and Tipper, the parents.

I didn’t only have a terrific time with this movie, but it also looks surprisingly good. The costume design is absolutely spot-on for all of the leading cast of characters, and the soundtrack is full of great Christmas songs. Our ears had the treat of listening to Candy Cane Lane, Christmas Morning, Jingle Bells, O Holy Night and more that accentuated the feel of the film. Clea DuVall has also proved herself to be a capable romantic comedy filmmaker, rivaling, and even accomplishing a superior work to other leaders in the genre such as Notting Hill, Moonstruck and When Harry Met Sally. Yeah, Rob Reiner, you’ve been beaten. And no, don’t get me started about Four Weddings and a Funeral, the plot-less, amateurish, boring and unfunny follow-up to Notting Hill. Why does this beat the classics? It’s because Happiest Season is not only a fast-paced, enjoyable ride, but a thoughtful, emotionally resonant and thematically rich one too. You can have plenty of fun with it, but audiences cannot deny that this is a bold, diverse and relevant movie as well, which is unfortunately a rarity in a genre full of films content with settling for mediocrity.

The final opinion is: Happiest Season works as an uplifting romantic comedy to get your spirits up for Christmas, but is also a surprisingly bold, well-acted and smart movie full of charming, sometimes complex characters bolstered by a talented cast…$PLURGE IT

Rating: PG-13 (for sexual references and language)

Genre: Romance/Comedy

Runtime: 1 hour 42 minutes

Directed By: Clea DuVall