Woohoo! It’s that time of year when your mom always insists upon watching the cliché rom-com. Watching “big city” girls become enamored with “small town" guys, falling in love and living happily ever after has gotten old.
“Jingle Bell Heist” breaks every overused trend in the cheesy, boy-meets-girl, chick-flick that finds its way onto every television screen the second everyone stops eating turkey.
Directed by Michael Fimognari and set in present-day England, “Jingle Bell Heist” centers around a high-end department store, Sterling’s, and its shady owner, Maxwell Sterling.
The film echoes what the holidays are really like: even alluding to consumerism and the overnight rise of the Labubu, a mini, monster toy, with the movie’s own version — the Mooshy Fox.
Sophia Martin, the leading lady, works two jobs — for Sterling’s and The Victory, a bar near her apartment — to support her mom, who’s battling bone marrow cancer.
Martin seems to know right from wrong, but she’s sly and smooth. Stealing wallets to support street performers or humbling a rude customer, she’s driven by her own moral compass.
Fimognari molds the character into something different than a typical corporate girl, who ventures into the countryside to find what makes her happy. Martin has modern struggles and doesn’t make “finding herself” the priority.
And the main guy, Nick O’Connor, isn’t some typical innocent Christmas tree farm owner. He works for a computer repair store. Oh, and he set up the security system at the department store where Martin works — then robbed the place.
After meeting each other at the department store, the two strike up a scheme to rob the stockroom. Sophia needs the money to pay for her mom’s stem cell therapy. Nick wants to get a new apartment so he can be there for his daughter.
With a plan to rob 500,000 pounds from the department store safe, Nick and Sophia navigate through halls decked with pine garlands and circular ornaments toward their getaway and their futures.
Filmognari shapes the setting with impeccable attention to detail. Even the town's local billboards had the fake department store logo.
The best part? He developed “Jingle Bell Heist” to mirror the viewing thrill you only see in action comedies. It felt like “Ocean's Eleven” meets “50 First Dates.”
IMDB describes it as "two strangers teaming up to rob one of London's most famous department stores while accidentally falling in love." But “Jingle Bell Heist” is more than just a cookie cutter romantic movie.
Despite ending with the same cliche “happily ever after,” “Jingle Bell Heist” took a hard look at what a romantic comedy should be. It doesn’t have to be some Hugh Grant, Julia Roberts, strolling in the park show that only your mother and sister would like.
Romantic comedy needs to be less confining. It should entertain everyone. “Jingle Bell Heist” did just that.
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