Vanessa Hudgens' Christmas movies are becoming an annual tradition on Netflix, but The Princess Switch surpasses both The Knight Before Christmas and Hudgens' latest yuletide outing, The Princess Switch: Switched Again. The Hallmark Channel has had the feel-good holiday movie market cornered for years, but Netflix is gaining ground by releasing a slew of new titles, original movies, and series in 2020. The timing couldn't be better following a year that has seen the devastating effects of a worldwide pandemic that has stalled Hollywood films and pushed back production dates on many new and returning television shows. Hudgens has found her niche starring in movies that provide viewers with much-needed holiday cheer.
The Princess Switch (2018) stars Hudgens (High School Musical), who plays the dual roles of Chicago pastry chef Stacy De Novo and Lady Margaret Delacourt, Duchess of Montenaro: identical and distant relations who decide to switch places. Lady Margaret relishes life as a commoner while Stacy steps into Margaret's royal shoes. The Princess Switch: Switched Again (2020) picks up two years later and adds another lookalike, Fiona, into the mix. The Knight Before Christmas (2019) exceeds the outlandish storylines of The Princess Switch and its sequel with a story about a medieval British knight Sir Cole Lyons, who is transported to present-day Ohio. There, he encounters Hudgens' schoolteacher Brooke Winters, who desperately needs some chivalry in her life.
All three Netflix originals are easily digested comfort food for the soul: consumed, enjoyed, and quickly forgotten (Even if audiences may feel slightly guilty for indulging.) Viewers love a good fairytale, and The Princess Switch has all the components: a handsome prince, a charming country made even more enchanting dressed up in twinkly lights, snow, and Christmas decorations, along with a strong-willed, independent American whose progressive thinking baffles but ultimately delights the stodgy royals. The Knight Before Christmas shares the fish-out-of-water storyline, providing Brooke with a literal white knight who swoops in and saves Brooke from her cynism. What the twosome lacks is a spark. Cole, played by Josh Whitehouse, is utterly bland. He's less of a knight in shining armor than a guy who is really into cosplay. The concept works much better in 2001's Kate and Leopold with Hugh Jackman's 19th-century aristocrat sparring with Meg Ryan's no-nonsense advertising executive, modern city dweller, Kate.
The Princess Switch gives viewers two love stories. Lady Margaret falls for Stacy's best friend and single dad, Kevin (Nick Sagar), and Stacy is swept off her feet by Belgravia's Crowned Prince Edward (Sam Palladio). Hudgens manages to create on-screen chemistry with each actor, whereas Cole and Brooke skip the courtship phase and slide right into conflict-free cohabitation. Trading lives with an identical distant relative you've just met is far-fetched. A woman inviting a possibly mentally-unhinged stranger into her home because she hit him with her car and thinks he's cute isn't fantasy: it's the makings of a true-crime special. The Knight Before Christmas is a series of squandered comic opportunities. Everyone involved in the fantasy doesn't acknowledge with any conviction how absurd it is (Think Elf with chain mail).
The Princess Switch: Switched Again revisits the characters from the first film. The movie ups the ante by giving Hudgens a third role as Lady Margaret's villainous first cousin, Fiona. The inclusion of the Montenaro royal family's black sheep and a ridiculous kidnapping subplot proves the adage that sometimes less is more. However, Hudgens seems to have the most fun playing Fiona, the Montenaro's version of a lost Kardashian sibling. The movie would be a more worthy follow up if it focused on Stacy playing matchmaker for Kevin and Lady Margaret and exploring the growing pains experienced by Stacy and Edward, who are no longer newlyweds. All three Hudgens' Christmas movies are entertaining, but The Princess Switch comes out on top.