DESIGNING CHRISTMAS WITH YOU

DESIGNING CHRISTMAS WITH YOU is the story of an ambitious interior designer named Colbie, who takes on a commission to decorate the historic Chapman House for its annual Christmas fundraiser. In this capacity, she needs to work with Ben, the estate manager. Colbie’s innovative spirit and Ben’s commitment to tradition cause them to butt heads, even as they awkwardly develop an attachment to one another. Colbie and Ben rise above their differences to create a spectacular fundraiser, and they decide to become partners, both romantically and professionally.
DESIGNING CHRISTMAS WITH YOU aspires to deliver the quintessential “will they/won’t they” story. It puts two mutually attracted people into a difficult situation and relying on the audience’s suspension of disbelief to convince themselves that the outcome is not obvious from the program’s genre and style. However, this program in particular fails to assist the viewer in believing in the uncertainty of Colbie and Ben’s happy ending, since there’s insufficient reason for most of the story why they wouldn’t end up together. Their differences in vision for the design of the Chapman House are each resolved swiftly with hardly any grief, and their chemistry never ebbs, only flows. It’s impossible to believe in any potential outcome besides their becoming a happy couple by the end of the program.
That said, there are several attempts at narrative tension tossed into the movie’s second half. For example, Ben gets a spontaneous job offer in Italy. Also, a local newspaper accidentally gives credit to Ben for Colbie’s work to him by accident. However, these roadblocks are contrived at best and are inserted too little too late.
DESIGNING CHRISTMAS WITH YOU deserves commendation for its total cleanliness. It is free of foul language, sexual content, or worldview problems. It doesn’t address or engage with faith or the true meaning of Christmas, but it explicitly advocates for selfless love and acting for the good of one’s fellow man and woman.