Potential to be a Christmas classic

Rating: 8/10 (26 December 2014)

Hip, honest and heartwarming British Christmas comedy about the love-lives of the Prime Minister (Grant), his sister (Thompson), her husband's (Rickman) employees (Linney and Santoro), and other romantic plots to intertwine this ensemble cast. Unfortunately, what starts out as a modestly brilliant dialogue-driven script slowly becomes a little more theatrical than necessary, and if the viewer chooses to be a Grinch and dissect the plot, they'll probably find one or two unnecessary stories—after all, a 136 minute rom-com is indeed pushing the limits. Still, the viewing experience is wonderful during the Holiday season, and the movie has great potential to be a Christmas classic. While Knightley and Lincoln's story is just downright rubbish, Nighy and Fisher's takes the cake!
*** (out of four)