There is something undeniably appealing about the idea of a Christmas romantic comedy built around twelve dates. It offers plenty of opportunities for awkward encounters, amusing misunderstandings and, naturally, a predictable journey towards true love. Unfortunately, The 12 Dates of Christmas (2026) struggles to turn that concept into an entertaining movie. What should have been a charming and heartwarming holiday romance instead becomes a rather tedious experience, with a slow-moving love story, uninspired humour and surprisingly little Christmas spirit.
A Christmas Romance That Takes Too Long to Get Going
Romantic comedies generally know how to get their central romance going fairly quickly. Even when the destination is obvious, there is usually enough charm and chemistry to make the journey enjoyable. The 12 Dates of Christmas, however, takes an awfully long time to get there. In the meantime, it does remarkably little to properly develop its story or characters.
Of course, part of the problem lies in the concept itself. Twelve dates are simply a lot to get through, especially when the audience can already anticipate how most of these encounters are going to unfold. After all, it is hardly a mystery whose heart the protagonist is ultimately going to end up with. This makes several of the dates feel like unnecessary detours rather than meaningful steps in the development of the story.
Instead of building towards something genuinely engaging, the movie spends far too much time going through the motions. There is little suspense, very little emotional investment and not nearly enough character development to make the journey worthwhile.
The 12 Dates of Christmas Feels More Like a Made-for-TV Movie
One of the most noticeable things about The 12 Dates of Christmas is its enormous made-for-TV movie quality. And that applies to practically every aspect of the production. From the way it looks to the performances and the overall construction of the screenplay, everything feels rather cheap and conventional.
Now, having a television-movie aesthetic is not necessarily a bad thing. There is certainly an audience for these kinds of productions, particularly when it comes to Christmas romantic comedies. However, considering this is a movie made for a major streaming platform like Disney+, it is still rather disappointing and, quite frankly, surprising.
There is very little here that makes the movie feel particularly cinematic or even remotely distinctive. It has the look and feel of something you might stumble upon while browsing through a random television channel during the holiday season. And while that might be perfectly acceptable for some viewers, it does little to make this particular production stand out.
Simplistic Humour and Rather Annoying Characters
The comedy is another considerable problem. Much of the humour is incredibly simplistic and rather silly, relying heavily on situations that are supposed to be funny simply because the characters behave in increasingly ridiculous ways.
There is a particular kind of comedy that involves grown adults acting like complete children, apparently just for the sake of getting a laugh. Unfortunately, The 12 Dates of Christmas leans into this far too often. Instead of creating genuinely funny situations or entertaining character interactions, it frequently settles for rather childish behaviour and predictable comedic moments.
Equally irritating is the way practically everyone seems determined to push the protagonist into finding love. It becomes quite exhausting to watch how much pressure is constantly being put on her to start dating and find someone. Apparently, being single is such a terrible fate that everyone around her feels the need to get involved. It is an unnecessarily frustrating aspect of the story, particularly when the movie itself seems to have so little understanding of how to make its central romance interesting.
Where Is the Christmas Spirit?
Perhaps one of the biggest disappointments is how little Christmas actually matters in The 12 Dates of Christmas. Despite its title and the fact that it is marketed as a Christmas romantic comedy, a surprisingly large portion of the movie does not even take place during the Christmas period.
As a result, it becomes rather difficult to get into the festive spirit while watching it. Sure, there are occasional reminders that the holidays are approaching, but that is about as far as the Christmas atmosphere goes. The holiday setting rarely feels like an essential part of the story, and you could easily imagine much of this movie taking place at practically any other time of the year.
For a movie that is clearly intended to be part of the Christmas entertainment lineup, that is a rather significant missed opportunity. There is very little warmth, festive charm or genuine holiday magic to be found here.
Kahyun Kim Is the One Bright Spot
When it comes to the performances, there is unfortunately not a whole lot to get excited about either. The cast does little to elevate the rather uninspired material, and most of the characters simply fail to leave much of an impression.
In fact, Kahyun Kim is arguably the only genuinely enjoyable performer in the entire movie. She brings a welcome amount of energy and personality to her role, making her character one of the few elements that actually manages to entertain. She is easily the most likable and convincing presence in the movie, which is quite telling considering how little the rest of the cast manages to accomplish.
It is a shame that the screenplay does not give her more opportunities to shine, as she is one of the few reasons why the movie remains even remotely watchable.
Final Verdict: The 12 Dates of Christmas Is a Rather Forgettable Holiday Rom-Com
Ultimately, The 12 Dates of Christmas is a rather disappointing Christmas romantic comedy that never quite manages to make its central concept work. Its romance takes far too long to develop, its twelve-date structure quickly becomes repetitive, and its simplistic humour rarely manages to generate genuine laughs. Add to that the lack of Christmas atmosphere, the irritating pressure placed on the protagonist to find love and the overall made-for-TV quality, and there is very little left to recommend.
Most importantly, this is simply not a particularly fun, warm or sweet movie. Those are precisely the qualities you would hope to find in a Christmas romantic comedy, but somehow this production manages to come up short on all three.
Kahyun Kim provides the one genuinely enjoyable performance, but even she cannot save a movie that feels considerably longer and less entertaining than it actually is.
There are plenty of better Christmas romantic comedies out there, and The 12 Dates of Christmas is certainly not one you need to add to your holiday watchlist.
Rating: 4/10
