Only Frances Conroy is able to somehow transcend the clichéd script and bring a palpable sense of personhood to her role.
Only Frances Conroy ("Six Feet Under") as the agent is able to somehow transcend the clichéd script and bring a palpable sense of personhood to her role. The rest just seem like actors in a Christmas tableau intended to make us all better people, while wringing our hearts along the way.
Rob's new agent comes all the way to St. Louis to see him, and is so "into" this family that she even babysits for them. But once the big book tour starts and Rob falls into the clutches of his publisher's attractive publicist (Rowena King)--yeah, you can see where this is headed--he starts to get full of himself and chases his own star, instead of that guiding metaphorical Christmas star.
"A Perfect Day" is based on a book by Richard Paul Evans which recounts the craziness that happened after his own first book became a runaway success. That book, ironically, was "The Christmas Box," which was also turned into a TV movie. With "A Perfect Day," you can't help but think that he went to the Christmas well too many times.
But, "A Perfect Day" has good intentions and it's family-friendly, even when it comes to that "other woman." If cheesiness doesn't bother you (and you can swallow the ending), you might just enjoy this.
Video:
The video quality is actually quite good, presented in 1.78:1 anamorphic widescreen. The colors are bold and strong, and there's not as much grain as we usually get from a TV movie. The surface is actually pretty slick, which, of course, matches the content.
Audio:
The audio is even better, with an unexpectedly clear and crisp English, French, or Portuguese Dolby Digital 5.1 or a Thai Dolby Surround bring a nice overall timbre and treble/bass balance, with no distortion.
Extras:
There are no extras.
Bottom Line:
Holiday movies that start with the premise that they're supposed to be heartwarming seem doomed to fail, because that deliberate dose of melodrama is enough to tip the whole production on its side. Once you let the cheesiness in, it seems to penetrate everything--the lines, the performances, and even those lingering camera shots. Though "A Perfect Day" is innocuous enough, there are certainly better holiday films out there.
Rob's new agent comes all the way to St. Louis to see him, and is so "into" this family that she even babysits for them. But once the big book tour starts and Rob falls into the clutches of his publisher's attractive publicist (Rowena King)--yeah, you can see where this is headed--he starts to get full of himself and chases his own star, instead of that guiding metaphorical Christmas star.
"A Perfect Day" is based on a book by Richard Paul Evans which recounts the craziness that happened after his own first book became a runaway success. That book, ironically, was "The Christmas Box," which was also turned into a TV movie. With "A Perfect Day," you can't help but think that he went to the Christmas well too many times.
But, "A Perfect Day" has good intentions and it's family-friendly, even when it comes to that "other woman." If cheesiness doesn't bother you (and you can swallow the ending), you might just enjoy this.
Video:
The video quality is actually quite good, presented in 1.78:1 anamorphic widescreen. The colors are bold and strong, and there's not as much grain as we usually get from a TV movie. The surface is actually pretty slick, which, of course, matches the content.
Audio:
The audio is even better, with an unexpectedly clear and crisp English, French, or Portuguese Dolby Digital 5.1 or a Thai Dolby Surround bring a nice overall timbre and treble/bass balance, with no distortion.
Extras:
There are no extras.
Bottom Line:
Holiday movies that start with the premise that they're supposed to be heartwarming seem doomed to fail, because that deliberate dose of melodrama is enough to tip the whole production on its side. Once you let the cheesiness in, it seems to penetrate everything--the lines, the performances, and even those lingering camera shots. Though "A Perfect Day" is innocuous enough, there are certainly better holiday films out there.
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[release]22633[/release]