The Spirit of Christmas (2015)

Title: The Spirit of Christmas.
Year of Release: 2015.
Available On: Netflix, September 2017.
Rating: 4.5 out of 5 Jingle Bells.

Most Christmas movies don’t start with a murder, but this one does. Then it gets more familiar. Enter Kate Jordan, workaholic lawyer and apparently a frigid, unfeeling woman (because we all know if you care about your job, you can’t care about a man). Kate has to sell a Vermont Inn after the death of its proprietress. It’s the only way she’ll make partner. Small problem – the inn is haunted. And the ghost, Daniel, has other ideas about the sale of his precious inn. We don’t know why it matters to him, but lemme guess: it’s about a girl, right?

Feminist problems:
– the Sheriff gaslights Kate
– the old-fashioned ghost is kiiiinda misogynistic and she still falls for him (duh)

We-live-in-the-real-world-everything-is-problematic plusses:
+ Daniel (Thomas Beaudoin) is very cute
+ I love time traveling / cross-time romances
+ I love old school “mens” clothing, though I don’t know that Daniel’s is accurate to any time period; he just dresses like my grandpa
+ somewhat realistic time line and pacing
+ no religious overtones / undertones whatsoever!

There is some seriously, seriously awkward dancing, but I can’t judge too harshly because I would also be a horrible dancer. But they could do better. I am sure there are challenges to filming a dancing couple… Figure it out.

The ending was ridiculous, but I still ended up crying. As you do.

I have returned several years later to give this another half Jingle Bell because my fondness for this masterpiece continues to grow. What a terrifically bad movie.