51
Metascore
7 reviews · Provided by Metacritic.com
- 75Chicago Sun-TimesRichard RoeperChicago Sun-TimesRichard RoeperThis is an unabashedly sentimental, family-friendly mashup of “A Christmas Carol” with “It’s a Wonderful Life,” sure to leave you smiling and maybe even a little teary-eyed.
- Christmas on the Square lets the viewer kick back and indulge in all things Parton.
- 65PolygonPetrana RadulovicPolygonPetrana RadulovicPart cheesy Hallmark movie, part community-theater production, part A Christmas Carol meets It’s a Wonderful Life, the special is a mosaic of holiday tropes — and that’s a good thing. The acting is over-the-top, and the plotline has as much subtlety as Dolly’s bedazzled platform boots, but its larger-than-life theatrical nature makes it even more enjoyable.
- 50Movie NationRoger MooreMovie NationRoger MooreChristmas on the Square isn’t much, but what’s here is a pleasant enough time-killer, which is more than you can say about the vast majority of holiday-themed Hallmark/Hulu/Netflix et al fare this season.
- 50The New York TimesWesley MorrisThe New York TimesWesley MorrisIt’s bad, the sort of bad that knows what it is — campy rather than camp. “Campy” is camp with a diploma and a martini. And “Christmas on the Square” is a drunk.
- 40Arizona RepublicBill GoodykoontzArizona RepublicBill GoodykoontzSo sickeningly sweet dentists should show it in their waiting rooms to ensure business, the film just isn’t very good, even by treacly holiday film standards.
- 25The Associated PressLindsey BahrThe Associated PressLindsey BahrChristmas on the Square is pure, studio-lot fantasy and not really trying to be anything else.