My Christmas Fiancé (2022 Hulu)
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Cast: Jack Parr, Denise Richards, Jennifer Freeman
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Synopsis (via Hulu)
Maya is working as a chef for a high-end resort restaurant in Italy when she is asked by her boss, Penn, to pretend to be his fiancé for the holidays so he can avoid being set up for marriage by his family. Things get complicated when the chef’s ex-girlfriend, Ashleigh, wants to take over the business by sabotaging the restaurant. It is up to Maya to try and save the restaurant while trying to hide her genuine feelings for Penn.
Recap/Wine Thoughts
It is four days until Christmas. The movie starts on the streets of Italy, with a girl in a floppy hat and a lot of eyeliner picking up baked goods (bomboloni or Italian donuts) from a grumpy bearded guy named Lorenzo. So far, this movie has been about 5 mins of establishing shots.
The woman’s name is Maya, and she is a fine-dining chef in a five-star hotel. Her chefs at the restaurant appreciate Maya bringing treats for them. All of them, except the head chef, who is like a hotter Gordon Ramsey. (Yes, I weirdly find Gordon Ramsey attractive, and I don’t know why.)
Some stock footage is shown to signify meal prep quickly without having the actors have to touch food. The hotter Gordon Ramsey guy screams and throws plates in the kitchen, so it is like Hell’s Kitchen! After dinner service, everyone sits down to eat together. Maya presents her dish, and everyone loves it except for Hotter Gordon Ramsey. He has a lot of critiques.
Hotter Gordon Ramsey, who hasn’t been named yet, asks Maya to join in a business arrangement with him. He will help her get a certificate to start her own restaurant if she comes with him this Christmas and pretends to be his fiance. Maya agrees but sets rules: No hugging, No Kissing or touching, and no yelling at her. They shake on it, and it is a done deal.
Maya facetimes her dad, but he is distracted with his BBQ business back in South Carolina.
Hotter Gordon Ramsey waits outside Maya’s apartment and gives her an engagement ring to make it official. Then they drive, so that means more establishing shots. (This movie should be called, My Christmas Establishing Shot.)
At around the 26 min mark, I learned that Hotter Gordon Ramsey’s name is Penn, and that is only from the subtitles. Penn is interested in Maya’s BBQ background and asks questions about her father. Maya tells Penn that her father would never approve of him because Penn has never had BBQ.
La Contessa arrives, and it is Denise Richards in a feather-lined coat looking fab as usual.
Penn takes Maya to a fancy dinner party, and they are quick to make Ashleigh (Penn’s ex) jealous. The dinner is awkward, and Ashleigh is ruthless. Maya isn’t trying to charm anyone and takes the rude comments in stride. They drag her for being from a divorced home; it is then that Maya speaks up to tell them that her mother died of breast cancer. The whole scene is giving Meghan Markel at a Royal dinner.
The hotel preps for Christmas Eve dinner and decorates.
Ashleigh comes to the kitchen and tells them that the hotel has been purchased by new owners considering turning the kitchen into a spa. Ashleigh walks around the kitchen and wipes dust off of surfaces, and is generally judgy. She then tries to swipe Maya’s engagement ring and threatens to replace everyone with robots.
Maya is pissed that Penn didn’t tell her that his parents are thinking about buying the hotel. Penn yells at Maya when she calls him spoiled. Maya yells back and tells him to just level with his parents. The deal is off.
It is one day till Christmas, and the final preparations for the dinner that I keep thinking is happening next, is actually happening. It is their last chance to save the hotel and Penn’s grandfather’s legacy or something.
Penn tries some cake and DRAMATICALLY has an allergic reaction. Ashleigh lied and told Maya that his favorite cake was an almond cake. Penn is allergic to almonds. The dinner is almost canceled, but Maya gets inspiration from the bearded pastry chef Lorenzo.
Lorenzo tells a story about the first pizza ever; it was made for a queen named Margarita because she requested it. Everyone forgets the queen, but the pizza is world-famous. Maya tells her fellow chefs to be the pizza, and they band together to make Penn’s dinner without him. (Actually, Maya does some BBQ. She calls her dad for the secret sauce.)
Penn is in the hospital and still looking hot. He has a heart-to-heart with his father and tells him that people just want to eat food made with love. His father leaves angrily and joins Denise Richards, Ashleigh, and Penn’s mother for dinner.
The dinner service starts off with a bang when Ashleigh inexplicably downs three glasses of wine in large gulps. Then she downs champagne.
Maya preps dinner and quickly changes into formal attire. She is surprised when the dinner service is awarded the diamond fork award. Preserving the grandfather’s legacy and saving the hotel. Penn’s parents angrily throw their napkins down on the table.
When Penn learns about Maya being responsible for the service, he leaves the hospital in his gown and rushes to apologize to Maya for everything. Maya reminds Penn of the rules, especially the no-kissing one. Then they kiss.
Side Note
Minority Report: Maya,
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Christmas Trees represent the Christmas vibes. *** I’ve updated the rating system. Wine is overall enjoyment (NOT a value judgment) on a 1-5 scale.
I will use the following tags for those who want to know if they should watch or skip: Pour it Up (Would Recommend) or Put A Cork In It (Would Not Recommend).
Overall rating
Christmas Feels
🎄🎄 (2 Christmas Trees)
Enjoyment Level: 🍷🍷 (2 glasses of wine.)
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*Photo Credit: © 2022 Hulu
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Oh my God this is 90 min of my life I’ll never get back. Absolutely the worst movie I’ve seen, anywhere, anytime. No redeeming qualities at all. Stupid plot, C-team acting, I can only imagine it was shot during the pandemic in 2 days and even then they ran out of money. This is a 5 glass wine movie- you need that many glasses to just get through it without banging yr head against a wall.
My Christmas Fiancé is one of the most terrible movies I’ve seen!! And I’ve seen my fair share. Horrendous acting, horrendous plot. What a waste of wasted time.