By Geno McGahee
Dean Cain is really showing up in a lot of Christmas movies. He was in BROADCASTING CHRISTMAS, A DOG FOR CHRISTMAS, A BELLE FOR CHRISTMAS, THE CASE FOR CHRISTMAS, THE DOG WHO SAVED CHRISTMAS VACATION, A NANNY FOR CHRISTMAS, THE DOG WHO SAVED CHRISTMAS, A CHRISTMAS WEDDING, CHRISTMAS RUSH, A CHRISTMAS ADVENTURE, and the 2015 film “BEVERLY HILLS CHRISTMAS.” I have a theory why he does so many Xmas themed films.
I believe that Dean Cain probably a jerk at one time and was then visited by some sort of spirit and he learned the meaning of Christmas and now has made his vow to spread Christmas cheer through his acting. This is why he does so many of these films. Perhaps he just likes doing them. Perhaps he just looks like a Christmas sort of guy. Who knows the reason? Maybe we will never know, but whatever the case, the dude likes acting in these sorts of films.
Angelina (Donna Spangler) runs a big fashion business and is filthy rich. Unfortunately, she treats people like garbage and spoils her daughter rotten. On her way home one night, she gets hit by a drunk driver and awakens on the beach where she is met by Archangel Gabriel (Dean Cain). I was trying to think of where I knew Spangler from. Then it hit me. She was in SPACE GIRLS IN BEVERLY HILLS…a great movie, despite some negative reviews. Freaking stupid bloggers.
Gabriel informs Angelina that she has to make things right with her daughter, Ravin (Ravin Spangler). Her daughter has become a spoiled brat, treating people poorly and holding herself above everyone else. Gabriel brings Angelina to view her daughter’s behavior, which includes her getting a hair stylist fired for questioning her bitchiness. She is shocked by her daughter’s behavior and sees that something has to be done, but she cannot communicate with her directly. She has to find other ways and learns that she can become a small voice in her head and attempts to guide her but it’s not easy.
Ravin’s cousin, Yvonne (Simona Fusco), and her boyfriend, Tommy (Andy Cohen), show up, knowing that Angelina died and that Ravin is impressionable and can be taken advantage of. They get their way when Ravin takes them out and buys a chocolate shop for five million dollars and puts them in charge of it. Ravin’s father, James (Vincent De Paul), and his new wife, Carol (Kirsten Lea), are finally fed up and decide to send Ravin to boarding school, but she comes up with another option thanks to that little voice in her head. She agrees to work at the soup kitchen and help the homeless, but not without some derogatory comments about the homeless in general.
At the soup kitchen, a guy that looks like my brother-in-law walks up to Ravin and wishes her well. I think the guy stole the jacket I owned in 1995…I wondered what happened to that terrible leather bomber I had. While inside the soup kitchen, we see a crazy homeless person that knocks the food out of the hand of the girl bringing it over. If I ran that soup kitchen, that woman would be banned for life. Ungrateful jerk.
Ravin has a very hard time fitting in and isn’t trying too hard to do so, until she begins to click with Jerry (Brandon Tyler Russell), another teen with a heart condition. He also lost his parents and has great patience with Ravin’s nature. He breaks through the ice and the two start a romance until the heart condition kicks in and he ends up in the hospital. To save him and save her daughter’s relationship, Angelina gives up eternity to save Jerry’s life.
Through the experience, Ravin becomes a better person and Angelina earns her spot in heaven. Everything works out. I liked BEVERLY HILLS CHRISTMAS. It wasn’t your typical Xmas sort of movie, but it was entertaining and Ravin Spangler did a very good job in the role and so too did the rest of the cast. I recommend it, although the CGI special effects were some of the worst I’ve seen in a long time. Well, I think that Dean Cain would disagree because when Angelina saved Jerry and a bad CGI lighting effect was used, he put on his sunglasses and said “Cool.” Perhaps he has lower CGI standards or my standards are too high.
Rating: 7/10
