Chasing Christmas
A clever twist on the classic storyA Christmas Carol,Chasing Christmasfinds its Scrooge in the bitter Jack Cameron (Tom Arnold,Happy Endings), whose wife cheated on him during their daughter's performance in a Christmas pageant and now he does mean things like throw Christmas decorations in the street. Naturally, he becomes the target for the Bureau of Yuletide affairs, who send the Ghost of Christmas Past (Leslie Jordan,Will & Grace) to take Cameron on a tour of his previous holidays. But when the ghost has a personal meltdown and abandons Cameron in 1965, the lovely Ghost of Christmas Present (Andrea Roth,Rescue Me) has to rescue the sourpuss--only to find that romantic sparks arise twixt ghost and man.Chasing Christmaswon't win any awards, but it's a modest, enjoyable movie with a theme everyone can agree on: Life must be embraced to be fully lived. Tom Arnold isn't the most charismatic actor, but he has his talents; Roth and Brittney Wilson (Dinosapien) as Cameron's daughter are charming; and the story clips along at a sprightly pace.--Bret Fetzer