2019
Director: Luke Snellin
Writers: Laura Solon, Victoria Strouse and Kay Cannon
Staring: Isabel Mersed, Shameik Moore, Odeya Rush, Liv Hewson, Mitchell Hope, Kieran Shipka, Jacob Batalon and Joan Cusak as “Tin Foil Woman”
Based on the Book by: John Green, Lauren Myracle and Maureen Johnson
See this movie if... you have ADHD and a story that is too focused for too long makes you SQUIRRELL!
Don't see this movie if... you want a movie that has lots of laughs or lots of romance or lots of just one genre. This movie has all the feels, but not a lot of any one...feel.
Ok everyone, gather ‘round and let grandpa tell you a few things. First off, based on my previous immature movie reviews you may have the impression that I am a young, hip dude who wears bomber jackets and aviators and likes to make fun of all the stuffy movies that the old cats like to watch. Well, the truth is that I’m much older physically than I am emotionally. Inside, I’m barely out of my teenage years, I like slurpees and fart jokes. On the outside, well, I just fart a lot and I should be drinking ensure.
What does this have to do with my movie reviews? Well, this review is about the movie, Let It Snow, a Netflix original released this year. The protagonists are all in their last year of high school so this movie is aimed at an audience slightly younger than me. That said, hopefully my mental immaturity will help me deliver a review that all you young ninjas can relate to.
Before I get into my review, I will be an old parent for a moment. Let It Snow is a teen movie and as you would expect from a teen movie, it has a few curse words and a couple of raunchy jokes. It’s no Beverly Hills Cop or Animal House, but if you are concerned about what your kids watch, and you definitely should be, then you may want to think twice about watching this movie. You’ll notice I compared this movie to two movies from the 80s. That’s because I haven’t watched “raunchy” movies since I was a teenager. Kind of ironic, isn’t it? Also, it is definitely not appropriate for pre-teens and little kids.
Let It Snow is one of those stories that happens all in one day with many protagonists who start off in different places, but their stories seem to be taking them to the same place. Kind of like The Avengers. Sure, The Avengers takes a decade and 21 movies to accomplish this plot line, but in the end it’s totally the same, except with super powers...and more villains...and less romance...and more Christmas. Yes, The Avengers has more Christmas, deal with it. If you’ve seen all the Marvel movies then you know what I’m talking about. If you haven’t then you’re dead to me, like soul stone dead to me.
Speaking of superpowers, the main characters in this movie of course do not have any superpowers, except perhaps the power to make nearly all the adults in a town disappear. Seriously, there are almost zero adults in this movie. I get why they don’t want adults, they are totes boring, but it still creeps me out. Maybe the kids have left the adults at home because the adults are so focused on their phones and they don't want to do anything fun. Have you ever noticed that while adults may complain about kids being on their phones all the time, whenever adults sit down they pull out their iPads and they're right on to the Facebook or Candy Crush? It's like they're a puppet or a robot or something else that is dead inside.
Let It Snow focuses on the relationships of our teenage protagonists as they navigate Christmas Eve in their little town...which apparently has no adults anywhere. Dang it, I just can’t get over the lack of adults. Maybe it’s my own fear of disappearing. Maybe the adults don't feel like going out because their skin has gone pale and they have to drag their dead limbs around. Sure, they shuffle along, but that doesn't mean the kids should leave them at home.
While this movie takes place on Christmas Eve and there is mention of Christmas and presents, it is NOT a Christmas movie. For a movie to be considered a Christmas movie it must have at least two of the following: Santa, elves, presents, snow, horrible relatives staying over, green tights, characters singing Christmas songs, a grumpy green fury villain who hates Christmas or baby Jesus. But I watched this movie so let's proceed with the review.
Let It Snow has at least six intertwining stories to follow. Buckle up, we're going to rip through them like a greased up snow disc on an icy hill of death. You know the one, it is wonderful and terrifying and no adult would ride it. So boring. We'll start with Tobin and The Duke who have been best friends for ever, but Tobin wants more. Will he man-up and just tell her already? I want to find out why she's called The Duke and why their parents don't give a rip where they are on Christmas Eve.
Tobin is also friends with Keon who just want to DJ a rockin' Christmas Eve party while his parents are away. Unfortunately their flight gets cancelled and they come back in time to shut him down. Will Keon find a place to kick his jams? Will Keon be grateful he is one of the only kids with real adults in his life at Christmas?
Julie meets pop-star Stuart while riding on a train. Stuart wants a taste of the simple life, but Julie is skeptical. Can Stuart's charm win her over? Stuart might need a map and a pet monkey to find Julie's heart. FYI, that's funny because Julie is played by Isabela Merced who also plays Dora the Explorer. OK, not that funny. We actually get to see Julie's Mom and Grandpa, it's kind of weird when we don't see anyone else's.
Addie and Dorie are besties, but Addie's boyfriend is ghosting her and it's making her all kinds of crazy jealous. So crazy it's starting to tear Addie and Dorie apart. Will they figure their their own stuff out so they can be friends again? Will they realize there is something wrong with their parents who are obviously also dealing with something which is why they never text or call them?
Just when you thought that was all, Dorie runs into an old flame, Kerry, while working at the Waffle Town. They had one amazing day together, but then lost touch with each other. Is this their second chance at love or has the spark been extinguished by the all the snow? Addie also ends up at the Waffle Town in a jealous rage looking for her man. Is he there? Is he with another girl? Will they duke it out or will Keon DJ their dance battle?
Should you invest 90 minutes of your life to get tangled up in this mess? I say yes. No, it’s not a Christmas movie and not, it isn’t full of laughs and yes, all the adults are AWOL, but it is sweet and sometimes funny and I think the characters and their stories are relatable. Even when they do stupid stuff, the movie does a good job explaining why. Instead of yelling at them “Why the heck are you doing that you immature brat” you say “Yup, been there and it sucks/rocks.”
I also enjoyed the story of this movie, actually to be more precise, I enjoyed the stories in this movie. While all the characters seem to be heading to the same place, the stories are very separate and individual, but all very enjoyable. This means you don’t get a full movie of Tobin and The Duke, but all combined these stories make a satisfying movie.
This movie isn’t perfect. For example, have I mentioned that the kids seems to have left the adults to fend for themselves, scrounging around like old geezers, looking for something to do or eat? Come on, you bratty kids, call your parents. I’m sure they’re worried sick. All they do is clothe and feed and take care of you and what do you do in return? You ghost them on Christmas Eve. Well I guess they’ll just have to return your Christmas gift, a box set of The Walking Dead DVDs, throw away the traditional Christmas Eve blood pudding and tell Aunt Susie to go home. She really wanted to eat you, I mean meet you. Holy Freudian slip Batman! I just realized that the adults are all zombies and the kids have given up on them and run away. I think it makes sense, most of us old people feel like zombies in some way or another. Kids, just come home. We miss you and we’re really hungry.
If you are looking for a Christmas movie with all the trimmings...you should look somewhere else.
If are looking for a teen movie set around Christmas with a bunch of different but interesting stories which alludes to adults being zombies...then you should watch Let It Snow.
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