A Christmas Prince Synopsis: When a reporter goes undercover as a tutor to get the inside scoop on a playboy prince, she gets tangled in some royal intrigue and ends up finding love – but will she be able to keep up her lie?
A reporter, desperate for her first big story, is sent to a kingdom called Aldovia over Christmas to try and get a story on Prince Richard (Ben Lamb), who is allegedly ready to abdicate the throne. The press has made Richard out to be an irresponsible playboy, and when he doesn’t show up for a press conference, it only seems to confirm the media’s perception of him.
Amber (Rose McIver) is aware that she can’t return to the States without a proper story, so she sneaks back into the castle to get some pictures when she’s mistaken for the Princess’s new tutor. Sensing a way to get closer to the royal family for her story, Amber lies and confirms that she is, in fact, the tutor. This allows Amber to get an inside track of Prince Richard, and she soon discovers some family secrets that may jeopardize Richard’s place on the throne.
A Christmas Prince is more or less exactly what I expected it to be. Along the same vein as The Holiday Calendar, it’s mindless, festive fluff. That’s not necessarily a bad thing. This movie was a bit middle-of-the-road for me in terms of a rom-com.
There are a lot of question marks and things that don’t make much sense – are those in charge of royal security going to take a young woman at her word that she’s a tutor and not even ask to see some form of ID? – but A Christmas Prince is not a movie that will delve too deep into the plot. If you’re watching this movie, you’re watching it for romance and fantasy.
Ben Lamb and Rose McIver were cute enough on-screen together, but their characters weren’t terribly interesting to me. Lamb’s Prince is seen as the “black sheep” of the royal family, which could have made for a relatively unique leading man, but sadly, the gossip and rumors about his deviant behavior are pretty much false.
Prince Richard is… well, a Prince, even if he’s slightly guarded from his friends and family. He has his reasons. Amber lies about her profession to write a news story, but that’s the extent of her flaws. She’s pretty, kind-hearted, understanding, and has a knack for winning over (almost) everyone, including Prince Richard’s younger, mischievous, and difficult sister, Princess Emily. Together, Prince Richard and Amber are perfectly compatible and a little boring.
I have to give A Christmas Prince some credit, though. The story has some legitimate conflict, stemming from Amber’s deception and Prince Richard’s ex-girlfriend, his cousin, and a family secret Amber uncovers. Considering this is a rom-com, a holiday rom-com, no less, there’s no doubt how the romance will end, but the rest felt a bit up in the air, which I appreciated. It was also lovely to look at, with its sprawling castle, snow, and holiday decorations. Not to mention the Christmas Eve Ball… swoon.
I can’t say A Christmas Prince is a good movie because it’s really not. But it wasn’t overly terrible, either. I think it was exactly what I was expecting, coming from Netflix. There are two sequels to this movie, which I will also be watching, simply because I really feel like I need to finish rom-com trilogies once I start them. We’ll see if things improve or get more ridiculous.
Watched: 12/10/2020
Notable Song: A Happy Holiday by Lori Lynner
