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It’s tough to critique a film like Netflix’sThe Merry Gentlemen. This is Netflix’s take on the Hallmark-style holiday movie—a genre people eagerly consume during the festive season. Films like this are typically positive, warm, and unabashedly manipulative. In short, they go down like eggnog: light, comforting, and undeniably saccharine.
You can’t exactly tearThe Merry Gentlemento shreds because it’s not trying to compete with cinematic masterpieces likeOppenheimer. This movie is made for a specific audience: those who prefer their entertainment with minimal substance, filling a void during the holiday season.
While that doesn’t make this Chad Michael Murray-led film broadly recommendable, it certainly delivers for fans of the genre.
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The Merry GentlemenReview and Synopsis
I call this aChad Michael Murrayvehicle, even though he’s not the main character, because he spends the most time walking around and taking off his Brawny flannel shirt as a holiday gift for all to see. Frankly, since we are around the same age, I’d go to work without a shirt during a blizzard if I were that cut.
Murray plays Luke, a local handyman who meets Ashley (Britt Robertson), a laid-off Broadway dancer visiting her family for Christmas. Luke is helping with some odd jobs around the Rhythm Room, a local establishment that is a staple in town. However, like most service industry businesses, Ashley’s parents (Michael Gross and Beth Broderick) have fallen on tough times.
After Ashley notices the sex appeal of Luke, the previous job history of her sister Marie’s (Marla Sokoloff) husband Rodger (Marc Anthony Samuel), and theTom CruiseCocktail-like moves of part-time bartender Troy (Colt Prattes), she comes up with the idea of a local “male revue” to raise $30,000. Why? Because if they don’t, the town will lose the Rhythm Room forever!
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Netflix’sThe Merry GentlemenIs Exactly What You Think It’s Going to Be.
I mean, I think the town would probably prefer a nice Starbucks or a half-decent fast-food joint like McDonald’s, but everyone’s tastes are different.
The Merry Gentlemenfeels like a throwback as if someone dusted off an unpublished Hallmark script to cash in on a streaming payday. There’s no real need for dive bars with musical acts when any karaoke bar would suffice. That being said, it’s not necessarily bad thatThe Merry Gentlemenis precisely what you expect it to be.
This is a positive because many scripts try to be more than they are and fall short. Sokoloff, who wrote the script, allows the characters to poke fun at the genre without biting the hand that feeds them. The characters have excellent family chemistry, which is satisfying because they genuinely care about each other.
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Is Netflix’sThe Merry GentlemenWorth Watching?
However, while this is a vehicle forMurray, he and Robertson have very little chemistry. Frankly, their performances lack heat, which could have helped spice up the mundane holiday themes. Robertson does what she can in a role that is essentially the “straight woman,” but it’s primarily a thankless part.
That said, Murray has found a niche in a second career as a heartthrob and seems to excel in it. Like last year’s Brooke Shields vehicle, Mother of the Bride, Murray has a natural charisma that is hard to deny on screen. He also brings a much-needed vulnerability to the role, even if the subplot is dripping with melodrama.
For this reviewer,The Merry Gentlemenis not worth watching unless you’re a diehard fan of the genre or Chad Michael Murray—or if combining male strippers with some good old-fashioned holidayHallmarkgoodness is your thing. There is some humor, and you won’t be bored, but ultimately, the plot’s predictability and overall issues are too significant to overlook.
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you’re able to stream The Merry Gentlemen only on Netflix on November 20th.
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M.N. Miller
Film & Television Critic
Articles Published :336
M.N. Miller is a film and television critic and a proud member of the Las Vegas Film Critic Society, Critics Choice Association, and a 🍅 Rotten Tomatoes/Tomato meter approved. He holds a Bachelor’s Degree from Mansfield University and a Master’s from Chamberlain University. However, he still puts on his pants one leg at a time, and that’s when he usually stumbles over. When not writing about film or television, he patiently waits for the next Pearl Jam album and chooses to pass the time by scratching his wife’s back on Sunday afternoons while she watches endless reruns of California Dreams. M.N. Miller was proclaimed the smartest reviewer alive by actor Jason Isaacs but chose to ignore his obvious sarcasm. You can also find his work on Hidden Remote, InSession Film, Ready Steady Cut, Geek Vibes Nation, and Nerd Alert.
