As Jude Law in The Holiday proves, many of us watch these holiday rom-coms for the eye candy. As much as the holidays are about family, there’s also a certain loneliness attached, which is why we gravitate towards these holiday romances, as cheesy as they are. After A Christmas Prince got so much attention, Netflix has gone all in with their low-budget holiday romances every year since. They know we tune in to watch two good looking individuals find love, and usually with these kind of films, the campier they are, the better. It’s when they try to take themselves too seriously that things fall apart.
Hot Frosty is a film very aware of the lane it’s playing in, and embraces the absurdity inherent to Christmas rom-coms. At the centre of the film is widow Kathy, played by Hallmark queen Lacey Chabert. Kathy’s been alone since her husband Paul died, pouring all her time into the diner she runs and not enough on the upkeep of her own house. A well-meaning member of the community passes Kathy a scarf to give her some luck in the game of love, but Kathy isn’t ready, so she wraps the scarf around a beefy snowman.
Through the magic of Christmas – or maybe the scarf – the snowman comes to life. Jack’s (Dustin Milligan) his name, and he cavorts about naked in the snow for a bit before he realises that he’s frightened – and maybe aroused – the elderly with his nakedness, leading him to break into a store to get some clothes. The next morning, he presents himself to Kathy, declaring his gratitude and love for her. She’s still mourning her husband, but he’s so hot and into her and a total sweetheart that she starts to melt under the heat of his charms. I think you know how the rest of it goes at this point. It’s basically A Knight Before Christmas, but instead of a hot knight we get a hot snowman.
Milligan brings the same charm he brought to Schitt’s Creek, and Hot Frosty kind of works mainly because of him. He commits wholeheartedly to all the campy bits, so much so that I got second hand embarrassment watching him, so complete kudos to him. He and Chabert have decent chemistry with each other, though it does feel more platonic than romantic, since Kathy spends so much of the movie taking care of Jack, though in fairness he does reciprocate through acts of service. Chabert does great work by bringing much-needed poignancy amidst the shenanigans. Kathy’s loneliness is palpable in the earlier parts of the film, and even when Jack comes into her life, she’s hesitant about opening her heart to someone lest she get hurt again.
There’s some tongue-in-cheek references that had me chuckling at my TV, and with actors like Joe Lo Truglio and Craig Robinson onboard, you know you’re gonna laugh at least a little. It’s all very cringey and campy, but that’s part of Hot Frosty’s charm. I also appreciate the film’s practical effects when it comes to snowfall. I loathe CGI snow in holiday movies, especially when it’s so obvious – it takes away from the experience.
Hot Frosty isn’t for the lactose-intolerant, but it’ll do if you’re just searching for something decent enough to scratch that holiday romance bite.
REVIEW SCORE – 3/5
