Jingle Bell Heist Parent Guide

It’s days before Christmas and Sterling’s Department Store is bustling with holiday shoppers. Salesperson Sophia (Olivia Holt) is sick of dealing with rude customers and cleaning up after other people’s children, but she needs this job, along with her second job, to keep herself afloat while caring for her sick mother. After a minor incident involving a security camera, Sophia meets Nick (Connor Swindells), a computer repairman who used to install security systems until he was accused of robbing Sterling’s. Maintaining his innocence but looking for revenge, Nick recruits Sophia for a daring idea: robbing Sterling’s on Christmas Eve.

You know that feeling of excitement about a new restaurant that turns out to not be as good as you hoped? That’s exactly how I felt about Jingle Bell Heist. Between my love of heists and ironic enjoyment of bad holiday romances, this should have been a home run for me. I wonder if my expectations were too high because, unfortunately, this flick wasn’t as good as I wanted it to be. I kept hoping it would improve (and there are glimmers of greatness here and there) but the overall production just doesn’t quite hit the mark.

The heist itself is a lot of fun. Things go wrong in just the right amounts, there’s a surprise twist, and some clever problem solving. I think what really lets this story down is the romance aspect. Olivia Holt’s performance is wooden and unconvincing, and her chemistry with Connor Swindells is nonexistent. Better casting for the leads would have made a huge difference, but even then, the script fails to set them up properly, leading to their final kiss feeling unearned.

As the genre goes, Jingle Bell Heist isn’t a bad movie; it’s just not a great one. I enjoyed aspects of it and chuckled a few times, but I don’t expect to revisit it, or probably ever think of it again. However, I do appreciate a gun-free heist, and a romance flick without sex, so audiences with similar preferences will probably also enjoy the relative cleanliness (albeit with a bit of swearing). Though I wish it were better, Jingle Bell Heist isn’t the worst way to spend 90 minutes, especially if, like me, you have a fondness for British accents.

About author

Savannah Sillito

Savannah Sillito is a librarian with a master's in library science, a bachelor's degree in English, and a certificate in early childhood education. She enjoys nonfiction books, travel, and is a staunch proponent of the Oxford comma.