DECEMBER 25, 2020, KEIZERTIMES, PAGE A3
Reviewer: Hulu chose charm over
quantity with Happiest Season
By TJ Reid
For the Keizertimes
Do you want to know
one of the most insane things
that I have ever read? That in
2020 alone, Hallmark released
40new Christmas movies.
Forty. In one year. I am 90%
sure that I couldn’t name
20 Christmas movies peri-
od without including fi lms that
aren’t really Christmas movies
(Die Hard, for instance) and
by cheating (go ahead an add
a random noun to the phrase
“The Christmas…” a movie
with that name already exists
somewhere, even if you’ve
never heard of it). The vast
majority of these are akin to
comfort food; nice to indulge
in every once in a while (es-
pecially during the holidays),
but also lacking substance and,
more often than not, full of
cheese. Thankfully, Happiest
Season on Hulu has the cast
and the charm to elevate what
could have
easily been
“just another
Chr istmas”
movie into
something
mildly nutritious.
The plot is far from com-
plicated; Kristen Stewart and
Mackenzie Davis play Abby
and Harper, a couple who,
while visiting Harper’s fami-
ly for the holidays, must deal
with the hijinks and genu-
ine problems that arise from
Harper’s fear and inability to
come out to her ultra-con-
servative parents. It feels like
a plot that should have hap-
pened a long time ago (and
didn’t necessarily have to hap-
Submitted
Kristen Stewart and Mackenzie Davis play Abby and Harper in Hulu’s Happiest Season.
pen during Christmas), yet it
doesn’t feel terribly original
all the same.
Perhaps it’s
because “in-
troducing the
significant
other to the
wacky family” plot has been
done to death already, or may-
review
be it’s because people return-
ing to their hometown for
Christmas in general is such
a well-worn staple of holiday
movies? Who knows. The dia-
logue is also not great at times;
characters occasionally throw
background information into
conversations where it doesn’t
really belong, for instance, and
there were a few word choices
here and there that raised my
eyebrows. But whenever the
script has a slight sag, the cast,
which also includes impressive
names such as Aubrey Plaza,
Dan Levy, and Alison Brie,
more than adequately prop it
up and keeps any fl aws from
being too noticeable.
And these saggy mo-
ments are, in reality, pretty
rare. I honestly only noticed
the above problems once or
twice, and the rest of the time
everything was just fi ne and
dandy. There is a lot of charm
in Happiest Season, and every-
one involved seems to have
brought their A-game. There
are no clear standouts in a
cast as good as this, although
I must say that Mary Holland
(who also co-wrote the script)
as Harper’s offbeat sister Jane
and Dan Levy as Abby’s loyal
best friend (and fi sh murder-
er) John were easily the most
fun. It is, all-in-all, a very well
put-together Christmas mov-
ie that would have been just as
comfortable on the big screen
as it is on the small one.
A cheery good time with a
couple of good messages and
a few more laughs… I guess
that’s all anyone can ask of
their holiday comfort food.
Eat up.
Happiest Season is now
available on Hulu.
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COMPOST,
continued from Page A1
proposing that the council and
Keizer Planning Commission
consider a text amendment
that would permit such
facilities.
The council approved
moving forward at its Dec.
7 meeting and the planning
commission will likely begin
its discussions at its Jan. 13
meeting.
There will eventually be
public hearings on the matter
in both venues, but nothing is
set in stone.
A
text
amendment
would permit a composting
development “but also to
determine what kind of
sideboards the city wants to
put in place such as design
standards,” said Shane Witham,
interim director of the Keizer
development department.
“As long as we can alleviate
the smell associated with
something like a mushroom
factory, then it’s something
we should look into,” said
Councilor Dan Kohler.
Councilor Kim Freeman
said she understood the
caution in bringing the matter
to the public arena, but that
doing so had other benefi ts.
“It is exciting to hear of
potential things that could
come to Keizer, and its also
good for residents to know
that the city staff is working to
bring businesses to the city. I
hope it comes to fruition,” she
said.
Mayor Cathy Clark noted
that having a facility near
Oregon’s wine country would
also reduce the transportation
emissions associated with
getting good soil to area
wineries.
City park
survey
closes
Dec. 31
The City of Keizer is up-
dating its Parks Master Plan
and residents are encouraged
to fi ll out an online survey
that will inform how local
parks are developed into the
future.
The survey can be found
at bit.ly/KeizerParks. Anyone
who completes the survey
will be entered to win a $50
gift card. The survey closes on
Dec. 31.
As much as what residents
would like to see in their lo-
cal park, Keizer Public Works
Director Bill Lawyer wants to
know what type of offerings
are desired in a recreation pro-
gram.
puzzle answers
REQUEST
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VISIT:
VISIT
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503-588-6349
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WorshipDirectory
These Salem-Keizer houses of worship invite you to visit. Call to list your church in our Worship Directory: (503) 390-1051
KEIZER COMMUNITY CHURCH
380 Churchdale Ave N (1 block West of Dutch Bros)
503 -393 - 0222 • KeizerCommunityChurch.com
SUNDAY:
Sermons can be found online at
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WEDNESDAY:
6:30 pm Awana; Youth Group; Adults
www.KeizerChristian.org