‘People Presents: Once Upon a Main Street’: Vannesa Lachey and Ryan McPartlin shine in Christmassy comedy
Spoilers for ‘People Presents: Once Upon a Main Street’
Amelia Lewis is a sucker for Christmas. She simply hates that the celebrations only last for a few weeks and to feel the festivity throughout the year, she decides to purchase a shop, that she plans to make into a year-round Christmas store. ‘People Presents: Once Upon a Main Street’ opens to a scene showing Amelia celebrating her new shop with her best friend. Much-excited about her new venture, Amelia begins to plan the interior of the shop and every other detail that she wishes to be perfect when she gets a call from her real estate agent asking her to meet him first thing in the morning.
The next day, Amelia learns from her agent that another buyer has overbid her, and now it’s up to the owner of the property to choose who they want to sell the shop to. An already bummed-out feels worse when she realizes that the man who is competing with her for the shop is Vic, with who she had a tiff the day earlier at the parking lot. Their little arguments and disagreements jangle nerves and they start to resent each other’s presence. But, certain circumstances force them to be with each other and that’s the aspect of their roles that keeps you going. Amelia and Vic’s constant bickering is eerily fun to watch as they leave no stone unturned to overshadow each other.
To seal the deal with the owner Elder Dubois, Amelia and Vic plan to meet him at the earliest, before the other can use the opportunity. However, poor weather conditions force them to make a stop en route to Dubois’s house, which lands them in the same motel, leaving the duo with no choice but to share a room to survive the night. Their awkward time together in the motel room makes for one of the funniest scenes in the movie! As the film progresses, we get to see Amelia and Vic go great lengths to impress Dubois. But, in the chase to win over Dubois’s property, they grow closer to each other. The movie has a bigger message to offer towards the end and that’s one of the reasons you must catch up on ‘People Presents: Once Upon a Main Street’.
The Lifetime film undeniably warms your heart, but what according to us headlined it was the comical chops of the individual characters, aced by Vanessa Lachey and McRyan Partlin. The dialogues are on point and don’t feel overdone even once in the movie. Even though the actors shine through their respective roles, the chemistry between them unfolds well with the plotline. The romance in the later stages may slow down the movie, but it stops you from relapsing into boredom with its Christmassy feel. The snow, Santa, decor and the lights make a delightful experience and manage to put you in the Christmas spirit ahead of the holidays.
‘People Presents: Once Upon a Main Street’ premieres on Sunday, November 29, on Lifetime at 8 pm ET.