Common Sense Media Review
By Tom Cassidy
,
based on child development research. How do we rate?
Festive comedy has widowed parent, slapstick, potty humor.
Parents Need to Know
Why Age 7+?
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Where to Watch
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Christmas on Mistletoe Farm
Parent and Kid Reviews
Based on 13 parent reviews
Parents say the movie presents a charming and family-friendly experience, filled with cute moments and good messages about family and acceptance, making it enjoyable for young children. However, some reviews criticize the portrayal of characters and themes as overly simplistic or suggestive of inappropriate relationships, leading to mixed feelings about its suitability for kids.
- family values
- charming experience
- mixed reviews
- suggestive themes
- suitable for kids
Summarized with AI
Summarized with AI
Based on 4 kid reviews
What's the Story?
In CHRISTMAS ON MISTLETOE FARM, widowed father of five Matt (Scott Garnham) moves his family out to the countryside. There, he meets farmhand Beano (Scott Paige), who, with the help of the villagers, encourages Matt to focus less on work and embrace the community spirit.
Is It Any Good?
Setting up the story and getting to know the family in this festive family-comedy is a pleasant experience. Christmas on Mistletoe Farm's excellent cast of kids are charming and realistic, as their widowed dad rushes to get them to school before barrelling into work, flustered but getting by. At the same time as he's given the task to secure a big contract or get fired, he's told he's been given a farm by his estranged father. The charm continues at the farm, as the kids excitedly explore and the kitchen gets surprise guests of chickens and goats. However, the next surprise, in the form of the childlike adult Beano sleeping in the barn, brings the charm to a screeching halt.
Writer-director Debbie Isitt likes this kind of character -- Mr. Poppy from her Nativity series is a similar blend of sickeningly sweet naivety and nerve-grating silliness. Overacted by Paige, the character aims for midway between Jack Black in School of Rock and Robin Williams' Genie in Aladdin but wildly misses the mark. The movie soon falls apart in a shrieking, nonsensical mess of manic shouting and unearned grief exploitation. The story feels like chunks are missing. For a kids' movie that sidelines five excellent child performers for increasingly intense adults, and then throws in genuinely unsettling plot twists, this squandered opportunity is hard to recommend.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about the sense of community in Christmas on Mistletoe Farm. In what ways did the village come together? How did this compare with where you live?
What did Matt learn throughout the movie? How did this change him?
The kids in the film had to learn how to look after some animals. Have you ever looked after a baby animal? What are some of the things you need to do in order to care for them properly?
How did this movie compare to other movies set around the holidays? What were the similarities/differences?
Movie Details
- On DVD or streaming : November 23, 2022
- Cast : Scott Garnham , Scott Paige , Kathryn Drysdale
- Director : Debbie Isitt
- Inclusion Information : Female Movie Actor(s) , Black Movie Actor(s) , Multiracial Movie Actor(s)
- Studio : Netflix
- Genre : Comedy
- Topics : Holidays , Animals
- Run time : 102 minutes
- MPAA rating :
- Last updated : October 9, 2025
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