I was somewhat bemused when I saw that Netflix’s new #1 movie was not only a Christmas movie midway through November here, but also that it was called “Hot Frosty,” the story of, you guessed it, a snowman that comes to life and becomes…a hot guy. The synopsis:
“Two years after losing her husband, Kathy magically brings a handsome snowman to life! Through his naïveté, the snowman helps Kathy to laugh, feel and love again, as the two fall for each other just in time for the holidays… and before he melts.”
Well, it appears I may have been played.
Hot Frosty currently has a 100% on Rotten Tomatoes from critics, which is not exactly what you’d expect about a magically hot snowman seducing a widow. But I guess that the reason it’s so ridiculous is that it’s effectively a parody of all these sorts of ridiculous Christmas movies you might have previously seen on the Hallmark Channel (that still exists?) or Netflix itself, which cranks out a ton of these every year now.
The idea is that while this is played “sincerely,” it’s very self-aware in what it’s doing, and as a result, is sort of a charming watch. Granted, I suppose you could say that about a number of cheesy Christmas movies, as clearly they’re widely-viewed. But this seems to be one that very much knows how goofy it is but embraces it and as such, somehow makes a compelling Christmas film. A Christmas…classic, dare I say? We’ll see. Here are some of the reviews explaining why it’s actually good:
- Variety – “The narrative delivers some refreshing highlights for the benefit of Netflix’s Holiday Cinematic Universe, specifically acknowledging its target audience’s yearning for a sprinkling of cheeky, wanton lust alongside its gentle yet genuine dramatics.”
- The Wrap – “It’s cheap and it’s silly and it has a laughable premise that some people will mistake for terribleness. But it’s also winking and whimsical. It knows what it’s doing and it’s doing it on purpose. Somehow it actually kind of works.”
- IGN Movies – “A self-aware Christmas rom-com with calculated “shirtless moments,” Hot Frosty is frothy entertainment that isn’t supposed to be taken seriously.”
The film stars Lacey Chabert, who you likely know best from Mean Girls, but she’s starred in several films of this genre at this point, and has had a very busy career. I was interested to see she’s done a lot of voicework in recent DC projects like Harley Quinn, Kite Man and Batman: Caped Crusader. But yes a lot of these movies, Christmas in Rome, Time for Us to Come Home for Christmas, Christmas at Castle Hart, A Merry Scottish Christmas, you get the idea. You do you girl, get those Christmas paychecks and it’s cool (no pun intended) you’ve helped Hot Frosty actually work.
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