Dolly Parton's Christmas on the Square (2020)

Dolly Parton’s Christmas on the Square is the kind of holiday musical that knows exactly what it is: a big, bright, candy-cane spectacle where sincerity and a wink of camp hold hands and sing. With 14 original Dolly songs and Debbie Allen staging the town square like a festive theater set, the movie runs on pure good cheer, letting the choreography, color, and chorus-line spirit do the heavy lifting. Christine Baranski makes the Scrooge-ish role deliciously sharp, and Dolly glides in with that warm, twinkling presence that feels like Christmas itself showing up on cue. If you’re allergic to sentiment or prefer your holiday stories subtle, this may be too sugary—but if you want a joyful, self-aware Christmas comfort watch, it’s hard to resist.

Dolly Parton’s Christmas on the Square is clearly aiming to be a big, old-fashioned holiday musical with a simple message, loud costumes, and enough cheer to wallpaper your living room. The problem is the story is paper-thin and wildly predictable, and the pacing can feel like it’s sprinting from one sugary life lesson to the next without earning much emotion in between. If you’re not already on board with broad camp and constant musical numbers, this will likely come off as messy, exhausting, and aggressively sweet rather than charming. That said, Christine Baranski commits hard, Debbie Allen keeps the energy up, and Dolly’s songs and presence are the main reason to show up—just don’t expect subtlety or a fresh take on the holiday redemption formula.