Christmas on the Square (DVD) Review

With Christmas on the Square, Dolly Parton’s cannily universal brand of country goes into holly jolly overdrive. The original holiday musical, which hits Netflix on Nov. 22, follows Regina Fuller (Christine Baranski), a Scrooge-esque town owner who returns to her hometown following her father’s death and sets out to evict everyone in order to sell the place to a mall developer. But the townspeople have a plan to save their homes and businesses, with help from a literal angel, played by Grammy winner Parton. Jenifer Lewis, Treat Williams, Josh Segarra and Jeanine Mason round out the consciously inclusive cast.

Featuring 14 songs penned by Parton, this film is all about music and dancing with a capital M-U-S-I-C. But the story itself is also about a more ecumenical message of forgiveness and community.

The film starts in a small town called Fullerville, where a homeless woman sits on the main square with a box asking for change and begins singing as the whole town sings around her. This is where the movie gets its name, which comes from the scene.

Soon, Regina Fuller (Christine Baranski) inherits her father’s home and moves in, where she promptly starts serving eviction notices to all the little businesses on the town square. This includes her own hair and nail salon, which her ex-boyfriend Carl owns and her former sweetheart’s general store that doubles as a memory thrift shop. But with the help of her co-angel Felicity (Dolly Parton), who shows up dripping in rhinestones and wearing a platform boots, Regina learns to appreciate the people and places she left behind.