'Happiest Season' A Review

 Happiest Season is a holiday romcom about a couple- Abby(Kristen Stewart) and Harper(Mackenzie Davis) sharing their first Christmas together. Before leaving for Harper's familial home Abby pick's up an engagement ring as she plans to propose, on the drive there however Harper reveals that she has yet to come out to her family and has told them Abby is her hetero roommate. Despite this Abby agrees to play the weekend out.

Both Stewart and Davis both struggle, valiantly, to bring emotional reality to the retro, uncomfortable premise, it doesn't help that their chemistry is more miss than hit. The supporting cast fairs exceedingly better with Dan Levy, as Abby's best friend John, Aubrey Plaza, as Harper's high school girlfriend Riley, and Mary Holland as Jane, all giving charming, funny, and most importantly fully formed human performances. It's not that some of the characters are unbelievable but its that they are so conservative, cruel, and self involved their inclusion in a light holiday romcom strains credulity. Harper's family, and her coming out difficulties and complexity are tonally more appropriate for a gritty drama.

Writer/director Clea Duvall puts together a polished, somewhat predictable piece of entertainment but the plot machinations weigh it down and confuse to the point of exceeding frustration. And perhaps there is some reality to it, Duvall has said it is somewhat autobiographical in inspiration, however in 2020 with 30-something protagonists the situation Harper essentially tricks Abby into participating in is traumatic and unhealthy to the extreme, and we are seemingly asked to overlook it as it is the essential set up of the movie. And the behavior of Harper's family, again based on reality or not, doesn't come across as cringe comedy simply cringe. Perhaps if the characters were a decade younger and the movie was set minimum a decade back in time it would make more sense. There's a lot of promise here but it is overstuffed and the actors are held back by the protracted conflicts and the humor is constrained by the characters lack of compassion for each other.

Representation is wonderful and it is a sign of progress when a lesbian holiday romcom can come out that is as uneven as every other hetero holiday romcom.

Currently streaming on Hulu.

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