Movie Review: A Royal Corgi Christmas (2022)
Synopsis: After a long absence and plenty of scandals, Prince Edmond tries to win his mother's approval by bringing her another corgi. However, the dog, Mistletoe, instead ruins a holiday event by getting into the food and videos of the incident go viral, embarrass the royal family and raise questions about Edmond's ability to take over as king. He ends up hiring an American dog trainer, Cecily, who is hoping to receive financial backing for a new charity but as they work together to train Mistletoe, sparks begin to fly.
Who's in it? The movie stars Hunter King, Jordan Renzo, Julie Lamberton, Frank Smith and Shane Lennon.
Review: My wife and I haven't had time to watch as many Hallmark Christmas movies as we normally would and with it now being Christmas, we are squeezing in the final couple before going back to regular films. I picked this one out last night, not really knowing what to expect from it, and it turned out to be an excellent choice.
Like some other movies we've watched this year, the whole Christmas theme seemed to be more of an afterthought since the film's primary plot would have worked without the trees, ornaments, etc. However, unlike those films, it still meshed nicely with the story and even created a couple memorable and heartwarming scenes, whether it was Prince Edmond (Renzo) choosing to help a home for foster kids or that family hike to a wishing tree. The "Corgi Derby" they arranged for charity was also a nice touch.
I also liked the subplot involving Edmond's sister, Princess Victoria (Lamberton), who seemed like an excellent choice to replace their mother (Susannah De Wrixon) on the throne. At first, it looked like she would be the only qualified candidate but, as Edmond reconnected with the people in his country and became more king-like, it did leave that up in the air a bit. The fact she was dating the royal corgi handler, Carrington (Lennon), and he seemed to be willing to do anything it took to make her queen only helped create a bit of drama with that.
I am also going to admit, I liked all the characters in this movie, something that doesn't happen very often. Cecily's (King) manager/friend, Jacob (Sam McGovern) seemed a little forced but still added something to the film, both because of his royal obsession and his business-like attitude. And I thought the main two characters had a great deal of believable chemistry, though I sometimes wondered if maybe Edmond was manipulating Cecily a bit. That part with them in the kitchen and him suddenly remembering he didn't know how to cook seemed like a (successful) attempt to get her to move a little closer so she could help.
My only real complaint about this movie is I kind of feel like Mistletoe was underused. Other than the incident with the food and another incident involving an old ornament, there was nothing about the corgi that screamed "troublemaker." The movie might have been slightly more memorable had there been a few more incidents and at least some threat of the dog ruining the holiday event.
Final Opinion: It probably could have used a bit more Mistletoe but overall was a better movie than I expected with a good (albeit predictable) holiday-themed love story. It's one that is worth watching, especially if you like dogs.
My Grade: B
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