For It Is Man's Number: 2021

Friday, 31 December 2021

A Boy Called Christmas (2021)

Here we are, with the last Christmas movie of 2021, but is it a good one to end on?

The latest attempt to deliver a nice bit of Christmas cheer to families is this tale of a boy seeking magic in a faraway land, and the cast and special effects work together to tell a familiar tale with a twist.

Maggie Smith is the relative visiting children who she then decides to entertain with a story. That story is all about Nikolas (Henry Lawfull), a boy who lives alone with his father (Joel, played by Michiel Huisman) in a kingdom that seems to have lost all sense of hope and joy. The King (Jim Broadbent) asks people to travel far and wide in an attempt to bring something that will lift the spirits of his citizens, and that is when Joel heads off on a long journey. He wants to keep his dad safe, but also wants to find the secret magical location where elves live, as described to him by his deceased mother.

Director Gil Kenan has mostly worked with material that has a healthy portion of the fantastical in it. Arguably best known for Monster House (an animated film loved by many, although I just found it decidedly okay), Kenan is a dependable pair of hands and he has certainly been given a cast capable of helping to lift the material.

Aside from Lawfull, who is perfectly fine as the wide-eyed boy with good intentions, and Broadbent, a lot of fun, you have a wide variety of roles for people like Kristen Wiig (gleefully playing an evil relative), Sally Hawkins (a powerful elf who resents the presence of any humans in the elf village), Toby Jones (a kind elf), Stephen Merchant (voicing a mouse named Miika), and Zoe Margaret Colletti (a pixie who cannot lie). Everyone is wonderfully earnest and happy to deliver a message all about Christmas spirit, and that is before I even mention the lovely, mischievous, turn from Maggie Smith, who gets to appear intermittently as her young audience question her about the tale they are being told.

Based on a book by Matt Haig, the script co-written by Kenan and Ol Parker plays out exactly as you expect it to, which is no bad thing when you are being comforted by archetypes and beautifully landscapes covered in snow, and this is a safe choice for those seeking some wholesome entertainment for all during the holiday season. It doesn't do enough to become an instant new favourite, mainly because the lead character is just a bit too bland, but it should be a welcome viewing option for the next year or two.

There are moments of magic, there are thrills, there's a helpful reindeer, you have children helping to fix a mess made by adults, and a talking mouse. What more do you need?

7/10

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Thursday, 30 December 2021

13 Slays Till Christmas (2020)

On the one hand, part of me wants to give a bit of credit to any independent horror movie that is set at Christmas and doesn't make use of the word "Krampus" in the title. I also generally want to give a bit of credit when I can to any independent horror. As much as I like a lot of the mainstream stuff, and I do, it's always great to see the variety on offer for horror fans. It saves us from being stuck with a hundred attempts to remake The Conjuring every year (although, yes, we also still get that happening). On the other hand, I still have to call out bad film-making when too many negatives outweigh the positives.

13 Slays Till Christmas, an anthology horror movie with plenty of blood-spattered Christmas decorations in each tale, is far from the worst film I have seen. It just feels exactly like what it is, a low-budget horror movie cramming together over a dozen different writers and directors. There's no cohesion, very little real inventiveness (almost every tale simply ends with someone being killed), and not enough attempts to hide the shortcomings of the meagre budget.

I'm not going to name the creative talent behind the camera here, nor am I going to name any of the individual cast members. That's not to be dismissive of their contributions to the film. It just means that I am not unwittingly being too mean to people who have given their time and energy to making something that didn't work for me.

Whether intentional or not, this feels quite lazily thrown together. I don't think that is actually the case, considering some of the fun little references to other horror movies woven throughout the script and the production design (although references shouldn't be used in place of material with a bit more substance), but the end result doesn't look great for anyone involved.

I cannot name one of the many underwhelming stories as a highlight, the special effects are pretty poor, and there isn't even a vein of enjoyable dark humour running through things to make it all more enjoyable. I am sure that some people will argue that last point, and humour is as subjective as many other elements we can love or hate in movies, but I didn't notice any appreciable "through line", even if one or two story endings were individually mirthful and macabre.

I was really hoping to enjoy this, especially as it seems to have been a bit of a lean time recently for Christmas horrors, but it wasn't to be. I didn't care about any of the characters, I barely got to know who some of the other characters were, and boredom started to set in early on, once I realised that many of the stories were working with very similar templates.

There are people who will undoubtedly love this, whether it is for the actual content or for the sake of supporting the creators, or both. More power to them. I sat through it once, and I'll never knowingly choose to sit through it again.

3/10

For those who may want to order this, or just check out Blood Moon Pictures, here is a link. Remember that my opinion is just that, MY opinion, and I certainly hope that some people still opt to check out the movie and decide whether to agree with me or not.

Wednesday, 29 December 2021

Prime Time: Christmas Is Canceled (2021)

It can be difficult to move on after the death of a loved one. Emma Lockhart (Hayley Orrantia) struggles for the two years after the death of her mother, distracting herself from the pain by turning her focus towards helping her father, Jack (Dermot Mulroney). Things get tough when Emma finds out that her father is now dating Brandy Barnes (Janel Parrish). Brandy is about the same age as Emma, the two were even briefly friends in high school. This cannot stand, and Emma determines to make use of the Christmas holiday time to break up her father and his new love interest. Her friend, Charlyne (Emilie Modaff) doesn’t approve, but at least there’s a handsome barman (Josh, played by Michael Naizu) who doesn’t mind being used to help cause a bit of friction.

While it may not be the most Christmassy movie of the many Christmassy movies you could choose to watch, Christmas Is Cancelled is a very enjoyable comedy that should make most viewers chuckle a few times. And there are enough trees and decorations to remind you that it is definitely still a Christmas movie, albeit one that has some more colourful language than most.

The script, by Sara Endsley, is full of gems, hilariously creative insults and phrases, mostly interspersed throughout the first half of the movie. It also works well by somehow showing the central relationship between Jack and Brandy as something that could work, despite the two seeming very mismatched in so many ways (not just in age). Endsley has previously written some more traditional holiday fare, including the poor Melissa Joan Hart vehicle Holiday In Handcuffs, but this is a big step up from her previous work.

Director Prarthana Mohan has only one previous feature to her credit, as well as some shorts, but she knows exactly what to do here, framing many shots to emphasise rivalry, resentment, and, most of all, the ridiculousness of the “competition”.

Parrish is an excellent lead, easy to like and stay inside with even as her behaviour gets worse and worse. Parrish is just as good, especially while being allowed to show that she is more than just a potential bit of eye candy/midlife-crisis. Mulroney helps things along with a performance that shows him still maintaining a twinkle in his eye as he deals with lower back pains. While Naizu is portraying the hip and hot young man who also has a bit of depth to him, the script helps him by acknowledging and playing with those expectations, which allows him to make a better impression than he perhaps otherwise would. Last, but by no means least, Modaff is very funny as the friend who won’t hesitate to be brutally honest about how she sees things.

So you have a witty script, decent direction, and a fun ensemble cast. You also have a finish to everything that doesn’t feel cheap and made-to-order (the only real obvious indicator of the lack of any cinematic ambition is the lacklustre soundtrack). This is an easy winner if you’re after some laughs with an adornment of tinsel and baubles.

7/10

P.S. Here is a huge list of every Christmas movie I have ever reviewed, either here or over at Flickfeast.

Monday, 27 December 2021

Kringle Time (2021)

The idea of a children's entertainer with a dark personal life is fertile ground that has been explored in film before, but nowhere near as often as it could have been. So I'm always pleasantly surprised when another film utilising that premise comes along, and Kringle Time is one of those films.

Benny Elledge plays Jerry, the manager of a small TV channel who spends a lot of his time trying to manage the star of the schedule, Kringle The Snowman (aka Herb, played by Vernon Wells). Kringle is a symbol of goodness and joy, but Herb is a bit more of a problem. Things get a lot worse, however, when Herb dies on the show, leaving Jerry to figure out the best way to move forward. He wants to ensure that Kringle can carry on, it's only a man in a suit, after all, but that doesn't take into account the legacy of darkness that Herb has left behind.

Directed by Matthew Lucas, who also came up with the main story idea alongside writer Zan Gillies, Kringle Time is a film that doesn't quite know the best way to approach the material, which is a great shame because there's a lot here of interest. Whether deliberate or not, the revelations discovered after the death of a beloved entertainer feels particularly relevant when considering some of the big news stories of the last 5-10 years. Not only that, one or two characters here eventually have to face up to the fact that they were complicit in the behaviour that should have been shut down as soon as it began. This is a film that feels as if it could showcase the turning tide in the world of entertainment, throughout all sectors, in the wake of the #metoo movement, but it decides instead to keep returning to a much tighter focus on the character of Jerry, his journey culminating in some major life lessons.

Elledge is excellent in his lead role, and Wells is equally good as the scummy Herb. Jeff Wincott is a lot of fun as a Mayor always looking to secure the goodwill of voters, Alyssa Keegan makes a strong impression as the strong-willed Daphne, also looking after the interests of the station. There are some other decent performances from the supporting cast, but nobody stands out, largely overshadowed (quite rightly) by the presence of Elledge and Wells as Jerry/Kringle/Herb.

Lucas has made the film he wanted to make, I am sure. It's just a shame that the film he wanted to make went on a very different path from the film that could have been. The first half of Kringle Time promises so much, a whole new world that has accountability and reparations for those who have been victims of someone who didn't even think they were really doing anything wrong. But the second half forgets all of those things, unironically choosing to have us watch the pain and outbursts of a wronged white man instead. That's a real shame, because it's a well-made film that just suffers from losing focus and heading off in the wrong direction.

6/10

Kringle Time will be showing as a part of the Sohoho Horror Fest - Christmas 2021 (an online event that is on a pay what you can basis).

Mubi Monday: A Winter's Tale (1992)

I've now seen about half a dozen movies from writer-director Éric Rohmer and I can categorically state that his filmography is certainly worth checking out. Not every film is great, but they're usually at least good enough to be worth your time (from the titles I have seen so far).

The story of A Winter's Tale concerns Félicie (played by Charlotte Véry), a young woman who enjoys a passionate romance with a man named Charles (Frédéric van den Driessche). They both have plans that will see them separated for a while, but disaster strikes when Félicie gives Charlie an incorrect address. The two then lose contact, although Félicie is pregnant. Five years later, Félicie is in a bit of a love triangle. She has something going on with her boss, Maxence (Michel Voletti), and is also trying to find a spark with the lovely, more intellectual, Loic (Hervé Furic). And the constant pining for her lost love, Charles, means that the love triangle is more like a love square, or whatever the more applicable word would be.

Although it could go in a number of different directions with the main theme, Rohmer uses the plight of Félicie to show both the lows AND the highs of a love that feels perfect. Many people may have gone through this very experience, for better or worse, and it can cast a huge shadow over your life, and relationships, for many years. Trying to recapture that feeling, measuring all other romances against that "one that got away", spending too much time thinking about what could have been.

Véry is excellent in the lead role, helped by the script and direction to portray a character who manages to be pining for what she views as her one great love without ever being completely hopeless and irritating. The gaping hole in her life is a problem, but it's not one that leads her to completely destroy herself and those around her (as can sometimes happen). Voletti is good at being the least romantic of the men in Félicie's life, Furic is someone to feel a bit more sympathy for, considering how seemingly sweet and good his character is, and Van Den Driessche is allowed to portray someone who informs the entire film without being onscreen for more than about ten minutes. His character has no obvious flaws, and no sneaky agenda, making it easier to see why Félicie regrets losing touch with him.

Despite how well this is all handled, it's hard to shake off the slight frustration at the main premise. Although it's a recognisable kind of heartbreak, so many people who have been there and moved on will want to pick up Félicie and "give her a good shake". I can see as many people hating this as loving it, and I have landed somewhere in the middle. It's massively helped by the fact that Rohmer decides to keep a rose-tinted filter over things, helping to offset the potential pain and frustration with a healthy dose of movie-world romance.

7/10

Sunday, 26 December 2021

Netflix And Chill: The Princess Switch 3: Romancing The Star (2021)

The third Princess Switch movie allows Vanessa Hudgens to once again take on multiple roles as her characters become embroiled in yet another scheme. She plays Stacy, Lady Margaret, and the scheming Fiona Pembroke, and everyone starts to swap identities this time around in order to try and retrieve a valuable item, the Star Of Peace, that has been stolen while in the care of the royal household. Stacy and Lady Margaret do their best to figure out who the culprit could be, but they soon realise that the person best-suited to help them is the person being punished for their criminal scheming in the last adventure, Fiona Pembroke.

Robin Bernheim is back on the writing duties, this time flying solo, and Mike Rohl is back to direct for a film that feels very much like an easy reunion for everyone involved. Every cast member slips into their role(s) with ease and it's as if there's a fine layer over the material that shows a printed statement of intent. You want predictable, comforting, silly, snow-dusted, entertainment? Here you go.

A return to form for the series/trilogy, this third Christmas identity-swap adventure benefits from the way it increases the silliness in just the right ways. Having all of the main characters played by Hudgens having to work together, and at various times impersonate one another, allows for much more fun than the premise that pushed them all together the first time around. It also helps that you have more comic relief from Florence Hall and Ricky Norwood, as Mindy and Reggie, the assistants to Fiona. And there's a very good cameo role for Amanda Donohoe, giving her a role that she seems perfect for.

Nick Sagar and Sam Palladio also return, playing Prince Kevin and Prince Edward, and Sagar is still the more enjoyable male, mainly because he still doesn't have to play things as reserved and mannered as Palladio, and newcomers include Remy Hii, playing Peter Maxwell (ex-boyfriend of Fiona and a security expert who may be able to help with the case), and Will Kemp, playing Hunter Cunard, who is almost definitely maybe probably the actual thief.

But all of this talk of who is behind the camera, and who else does good work in front of the camera, is just preamble to me, once again, singing the praises of Hudgens. Perhaps one day she will receive a bit more of the praise that she deserves for a variety of performances that have been brilliant since the first movie, but have also improved slightly with each instalment. Hudgens may wobble at times with the accents, but she's often playing someone who is playing someone else, so the wobbly accent is excusable in those instances, even if it wasn't intended. Here's the thing though, I think it IS often intended, and I think Hudgens is always doing a great job. She's also brilliantly versatile in her way of moving from the more dramatic scenes to the comedy, with the character of Fiona Pembroke allowing her to be entertainingly cocky and outrageous.

I know that few people like these movies as much as I do (despite my disappointment in the second film, I'd still choose these over so many others), and I know that they're not milestones of cinema, but I'll happily recommend them to people who want some easygoing seasonal fare, who don't mind Hudgens in a central role, and who would prefer something that pushes some potential romantic developments to the side in favour of comedy montages and silly set-pieces.

6/10

Saturday, 25 December 2021

Shudder Saturday: Screams Of A Winter Night (1979)

Be warned, despite the title, this isn't exactly prime Christmas movie material. It doesn't even feel very Wintery, more's the pity.

I'm not sure exactly what Screams Of A Winter Night was intended to be, other than a standard horror anthology, but it has ended up being something that people will remember for all the wrong reasons. It's pretty badly put together, with a real lack of visual style and some lacklustre audio work, and many scenes feel as if they have been done better in other films. Because they usually have.

I'll try to flesh out the plot slightly. A large group of friends head off on a trip to a lakeside cabin. The area around the cabin has been the scene of some mysterious deaths, which adds to the atmosphere. And John (Matt Borel) wants some decent atmosphere, especially when he starts to tell a tale of terror. Different people take turns to tell their stories, four in all (in THIS particular version of the film, although it was originally released with only the three tales intact).

None of the stories told here have a very effective ending, and one or two feel like they have no real ending at all, while the wraparound tale is as dull as the murky countryside that surrounds the cast of characters. Worst of all, most of the film is just dull. There are no good frights, no decent moments of bloodshed, and no wit to detract from the lack of originality.

Apparently the only film directed by James L. Wilson, as well as the only film written by Richard H. Wadsack, let me take a moment here to offer some genuine praise for the idea of Wilson and co. getting together and getting this film made. Although they were unable to effectively stretch the budget, the fact that they get this end result from such obviously limited resources is something worth giving them credit for. The lack of resources also makes for some creative choices, with one good idea being the use of certain cast members to play characters being depicted in the various tales.

"Recycling" the cast would work even better if the cast was full of talented thespians. Sadly, that is not the case. Nobody stands out for the right reasons, with Borel being one of the few that I'll mention because of his character being the nominal leader of the group. The other person of note is William Ragsdale, making his first feature film appearance over five years before he would get a much better role in the superb Fright Night.

In case you weren't sure, this is one to avoid. It also feels overlong with the fourth tale included, although I don't think the shorter version of the film would improve things enough (as a lot of the early scenes are a real chore to get through). It's certainly not a scream.

3/10

Friday, 24 December 2021

Red Snow (2021)

I have been a bit remiss this year when it comes to my usual helping of tinsel-adorned horror during the Christmas season, but Red Snow is one of the few newer titles that I was keen to see. It's worth noting that it doesn't feel very Christmassy though, despite being set during the festive period, and also, unsurprisingly, having a lot of snow onscreen.

Dennice Cisneros is Olivia, a woman who is busy trying to tweak and refine her first novel, a vampire tale. She's spending some time in an isolated cabin, focusing on her work, but the solitude doesn't seem to be helping her. Then a bat crashes against a window. Olivia takes the bat in, looking to help it recuperate, and is surprised to find that it has turned into a man named Luke (played by Nico Bellamy). Luke is obviously a vampire. After the initial fright of that realisation, Olivia and Luke start to get along. Olivia might be able to get information and feedback to help her with her novel, and Luke might be able to stay safe while he heals from an injury.

Written and directed by Sean Nichols Lynch, making his second full feature amongst his selection of shorts, Red Snow is a bit of fun that mixes the traditional with the unique, largely thanks to Olivia first being given a revision of vampire "facts" from Luke. It may not have any real tension throughout, and the moments of straightforward horror are few and far between, but you get enough blood splattered around to make the title accurate.

Cisneros is very good in the lead role, amusingly naive at times before she has to dig down into reserves of inner strength, and Bellamy is a cold and vicious vampire, which adds to the comedy when he has moments in which he is acting "tame" and harmless. Vernon Wells has an enjoyable cameo role, playing a vampire hunter named Julius King, and Laura Kennon is your typical vampire pack leader, named Jackie.

Although he doesn't quite do enough to cover up for his limitations, Lynch puts together a nice bit of entertainment that feels like it is made by someone who knows enough to mock some of the tropes without being outright disrespectful to them. The highlights of the film may be the conversations between Olivia and Luke, making up most of the first half, but the rest is certainly not dull, even if it never quite gets the horror aspect right to make this a successful comedy (if we HAVE to use genre labels, although nobody says that we must, then this is a comedy that just happens to have some vampire characters central to the action).

Cisneros, Bellamy, and Kennon give performances that mark them out as ones to watch, but the main one to keep your eyes peeled for is Lynch, who definitely writes and directs well enough to indicate that he's not far away from making a film in the next few years that could become a firm favourite for horror genre audiences.

7/10

Red Snow will be showing as a part of the Sohoho Horror Fest - Christmas 2021 (an online event that is on a pay what you can basis).

Thursday, 23 December 2021

One December Night (2021)

Steve Bedford (Bruce Campbell) and Mike Sullivan (Peter Gallagher) were once one of the biggest musical duos around, and "One December Night" was their biggest hit. But they eventually went their separate ways, breaking their relationship into smaller and smaller pieces with each little unresolvable issue. It's a surprise to everyone when they agree to a televised reunion show, but it turns out that Sullivan really needs the money. Does he need it enough to put up with his partner again though? Yes, but that won't stop him from potentially cancelling the whole show if he gets sick of everything, which is where his daughter (Quinn Allan, played by Eloise Mumford) and Bedford's son (Jason, played by Brett Dalton) come into the picture. They are hoping they can smooth things over enough for the show to go ahead, and that also involved getting the pair to agree to sing their biggest hit.

Written by Eric Brooks, One December Night is an enjoyable and easygoing Christmas TV movie that is elevated by the leads, but it’s a shame that the material wasn’t reworked to play to the strengths of what some might consider its most valuable asset, Bruce Campbell.

Director Clare Niederpruem keeps everything ticking along nicely, the generic music blends together to create the notion of a career with a few hits in it and the visuals are what you expect; snow, small town charm, and bland and appealing supporting characters.

Excelling in the moments that hint at his usual persona of cockiness and narcissism, Campbell is fun in his role, but is also allowed to settle into more straightforward drama in the third act. Fans may well want more from him though, and not without good reason (as letting him go even bigger could have provided an entertaining vein of comedy through something that feels more po-faced than it needs to be). Gallagher is a good choice alongside him, a decent actor who plays things with a more subtle approach. Mumford is cute and bubbly, as she has been in other movies for this season, and Dalton is fine, although the least of the four leads. The other person worth noting is Jasmine Forsberg, playing a lesser-known musical artist who may well get her big break supporting Bedford & Sullivan at their reunion show.

People after something typically full of the spirit of Christmas won’t be disappointed. This does the job. It’s just a shame that nobody decided to tap into the potential provided by the casting, which could have made this a genuinely amusing comedy drama. It almost succeeded anyway, especially when you see Campbell’s approach to fake guitar playing.

Serviceable. I just wish this one had reached for more.

5/10

Wednesday, 22 December 2021

Prime Time: This Christmas (2007)

As is evidenced by the many posters you can view and by almost every Hallmark TV movie you can choose to view, Christmas movies are largely populated by smiling, white, heterosexual characters all just waiting to kiss the right person under the mistletoe. You do get exceptions, and some of those exceptions have opened the gates for some better movies, but straight, white people still seem to be the norm. I watch many of those movies, some would say that I watch more of them than anyone should, but I do try to widen my viewing options sometimes. When I remember.

This Christmas is a traditional Christmas movie that features a superb cast portraying members of an African American family, the Whitfields (headed up by a matriarch, Ma’Dere, played by Loretta Devine). Everyone has their various problems and/or secrets, but the ones who get more screentime are Lisa (Regina King), a woman married to a man who is taking her for granted, Quentin (Idris Elba), a man home for the holidays while he also tries to evade some bad people he owes money to, and Claude (Columbus Short), a young soldier who has a partner he is reluctant to introduce to the whole family. Then there’s Joseph aka Big Joe (Delroy Lindo), a man living with Ma’Dere while they pretend otherwise in front of some visiting relatives. There’s more going on, a young woman has a good time with a man who is also playing the role of a Santa Claus and one young man is hiding a great singing voice, but those characters I have just named, and their issues, are kept to the fore.

Written and directed by Preston A. Whitmore II, This Christmas is an easy film to enjoy, and a typically sweet-natured and soft-centred seasonal treat. There are scenes that add a bit of grit and/or tension, but they don’t play out long enough to be too jarring in amongst the more standard family scenes.

I will praise the cast in a moment, but it’s worth praising the soundtrack while I remember. A few tunes are well-used throughout, as well as a fantastic number that plays out over the first part of the end credits while the cast get to shake their stuff in turn. It’s a good way to ensure that any residue of sour taste is washed away, and people should be smiling once the screen turns to black.

Short is just fine in his role, but both King and Elba are strong favourites of mine, and both shine in their roles here. They help to elevate the material, basically showing some of the younger cast members how it’s done. Devine is suited to her role, and she plays a character who also needs to learn a lesson on the way to the big finale, and Lindo is . . . well, look, point me to a film on which Lindo isn’t fantastic and I will hold up a mirror in front of your face and point you to a liar. I hope that clarifies how I always feel about Lindo. Everyone else does sterling work, and me not mentioning them by name isn’t to dismiss their performance entirely. It’s just that most of those I just named are big favourites of mine.

This gives you everything you could want from this type of film, and it feels like everything has been put together with a bit more care, and less of a view towards simply delivering a package of Christmas sweetness. The characters grow as the film unfolds, and the satisfying results feel earned. Well, they certainly feel more earned than your usual Christmas movie endings.

7/10

Tuesday, 21 December 2021

Next Stop, Christmas (2021)

Written by Kari Drake and Duane Poole, Next Stop, Christmas is another Christmas TV movie that makes use of a time travel element. Which also means that it's another Christmas TV movie that makes use of Christopher Lloyd. The fact that it also features Lea Thompson in a main role gives it bonus points though, and creates some extra familiarity with one or two of the plot details (such as someone aiming to recreate a first date for their parents so that a loving relationship can be maintained).

Lyndsy Fonseca plays Angie Reynolds, a young woman who feels a tinge of regret one Christmas when she starts to think of what might have been. She is doing well in her medical career, but that is offset by her thought that she should have said yes when her boyfriend, Tyler Grant (Eric Freeman), proposed to her a decade ago. They are no longer in contact, although she sees his face anywhere because of his successful career as a sports commentator/presenter. Angie has also been saddened by the fact that her parents drifted apart and ended up separating. A big chance to change things is given to her, unbeknownst to her, when a magical train station “worker” (Christopher Lloyd) gives her a round trip ticket that takes her to that crucial holiday with the family . . . ten years previously. Can Angie accept her proposal now? Can she help her parents find their spark again? And will she reconnect with her best friend from childhood, Ben (Chandler Massey)?

While hitting a lot of the Christmas TV movie tropes, Next Stop, Christmas also manages to be genuinely entertaining, and occasionally properly amusing, throughout. It counts on viewers buying into the inexplicable magic of the main premise, but viewers have to do that with every Christmas movie, to some degree, so that shouldn’t be a problem.

The script hits all of the expected beats, but you also get some enjoyable pop culture references, and things are helped by the fact that Angie outright explains her situation to Ben about a third of the way into the movie, providing proof that eventually convinced him that she is telling the truth. The fact that our lead has to fix a situation in order to make a faded train ticket become fully visible is also a fun nod to the casting of Lloyd and Thompson (every time it was shown, I couldn’t help but thinking of that family photo in Back To The Future).

Director Dustin Rikert isn’t new to this kind of stuff, although his filmography has a varied mix to it, and he does well with the material, simply allowing the lead characters to have much more fun when not attached to any of the main supporting characters.

Fonseca is a very likeable lead, one of the best I can think of when it comes to these movies, and she works well with an equally-likeable Massey. Freeman needs that big flaw that allows our lead to see where her heart may truly lie, but he’s not stuck with being a massive jerk. He’s not actually that bad, the main problem being his constant attachment to his phone as he is offered a major career opportunity. Lloyd is a fun presence, appearing every so often looking not entirely unlike Tom Hanks in The Polar Express, and the film is boosted by his role being more than just a point-scoring cameo. Thompson is also very much welcome, even if she is playing a woman who seems quite unhappy for most of the movie, and the rest of the cast does just fine, although the only other standout is Erika Slezak as Aunt Myrt (a woman famous for her wonderful Christmas parties).

Once again, I must remind people that Christmas TV movies are films I compare to a standard set by other Christmas TV movies. By that criteria, this is a great success. It’s still as predictable as you expect, but the journey of discovery is a lot more entertaining than the same kind of journey shown in so many other movies made to fill the schedules at this time of year.

7/10

Monday, 20 December 2021

Mubi Monday: The Trouble With Being Born (2020)

This is my first time viewing a film from director Sandra Wollner, who also co-wrote the script with Roderick Warich. Despite the interesting mix of ideas, I don’t think I will rush to explore the rest of her filmography, for one main reason I will detail soon enough.

What we see here is a man (Dominik Warta) who seems to be living with his daughter (Elli, played in this guise by Lena Watson, which is a pseudonym to protect the identity of the young actress). Two things soon become clear. One, Elli is actually an android. Two, the relationship between the man and young girl goes far beyond the acceptable limits of any relationship between an adult and child. That is the starting point, and things happen that eventually lead Elli on a journey to another household, where she is reconfigured to portray a young boy named Emil.

Described as something akin to an antithesis to Pinocchio, and touching on themes covered by the likes of A. I. Artificial Intelligence and Black Mirror, as well as many others (the Yorgos Lanthimos movie, Alps, also comes to mind), The Trouble With Being Born ends up sitting in an uncanny valley of its own making. While no viewer would want things to be shown more explicitly, the lack of any real context for the behaviour of the central character leaves the whole thing feeling hollow, with the interesting commentary overshadowed by a seemingly desperate desire to shock.

Performances are generally good overall, with Watson a real highlight as the innocent robot trying to piece together data/memories to create the best persona for her/his owner. Everyone else does well, especially Ingrid Burkhard, playing the woman who is given the robot as Emil, but the focus stays on Watson and the complexity of having them taking the place of a missing loved one.

The script is minimalistic for most of the first half, allowing a number of scenes to play out in discomforting quiet, emphasising the intimacy on display, but Wollner compounds the problems on the page with direction that stubbornly refuses to move away from an impartial and impassive position. A lack of any movie-set moral compass raises many more questions than the film can hope to answer, and very few of those questions are ones that should be given any airtime.

Nicely shot, well acted by the main cast, and with a third act that is a lot more intriguing and satisfying than the first 2/3 of the film, The Trouble With Being Born is ultimately a misjudged attempt to use sci-fi trappings to explore some aspects of human nature that require a much more incisive approach. The lack of focus damages what could have been a film worthy of your time, and I am sure many people will regret watching this within the first 15-20 minutes.

4/10

Sunday, 19 December 2021

Netflix And Chill: Robin Robin (2021)

I was really looking forward to seeing Robin Robin, and even the first announcement had me excited. A Christmas film from Aardman Animation dropping straight on to Netflix. Sign me up. Unfortunately, I failed to realise that this is a short film. It only lasts about 32 minutes, and I mention that here to help anyone else avoid my disappointment.

Robin Robin is, unsurprisingly, the tale of a robin (Bronte Carmichael). Unlike other robins, however, this little bird has been raised by a family of mice. The mice try to teach Robin how to stealthily pinch leftover nibbles from human households, but Robin is far from stealthy. That doesn’t stop her from trying again and again, which puts her in the path of a dangerous cat (Gillian Anderson) and has her befriending a magpie (Richard E. Grant).

Let’s get the disappointment out of the way first. No, I am not once again on about the short runtime. While the animation style and detailing here are still quite delightful, they don’t feel up to the usual high standard that we have come to expect from Aardman. That may well be due to my attachment to their other, well-known, creations, but it was a disappointment nonetheless.

The next disappointment was the realisation that this short film also features a few depressingly unenergetic songs interspersed throughout. I enjoy an animated film that also features some musical moments, as many of them do, but nothing here felt tuneful or worthwhile, sadly.

The voice cast works quite well, with highlights being Grant and Anderson, the latter adding an appropriate hint of her Thatcher portrayal to her vocal performance. Carmichael may not be a familiar personality, but her voice works perfectly for a central character who is typically innocent and optimistic for this kind of fare.

Co-directed by Daniel Ojari and Michael Please (who both co-wrote the film with Sam Morrison), I don't want people to think that my own negative comments outweigh the positives. Although not to my preferred taste, the animation is cute and fluffy, the pacing is as brisk as you'd expect, and the short runtime makes it a perfect choice if you're looking for something to keep younger viewers seasonally entertained for a short time.

The very best of Aardman Animation is up there with the very best of animation, full stop. The fact that Robin Robin doesn't rival their best output isn't really a big surprise. It's just a shame that it sometimes didn't feel even close to their usual high standard.

6/10

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Saturday, 18 December 2021

Shudder Saturday: Death Valley (2021)

Sometimes a movie ends and I wonder if I will even manage to craft a full review for it. This doesn’t happen with great movies. It doesn’t happen with awful movies. It happens with movies that are just consistently mediocre throughout, from conception to execution of the material. Death Valley is one of the most mediocre horror movies I have seen in some time.

The plot is simple. Some armed men are tasked with making their way into a secure facility, taking out enemies and rescuing any “assets” available. But the facility has one or two dark secrets, taking the men by surprise. Before you can say “Resident Evil”, one or two twists occur and things start to look bleak.

Written and directed by Matthew Ninaber, who also plays a monster in the film and has given the lead role to the suspiciously-named Jeremy Ninaber, this is a film that ends up playing out like some horror movie equivalent of a Hallmark monster movie. You get a hero with a partner at home just wanting him to stay safe during this one last mission, you get generic minor baddies (aka other people with guns), and the backstory/revelations delivered throughout the middle and third act contains zero surprises for anyone who has even a passing familiarity with this kind of material (either in movie or videogame form).

Ninaber is perfectly fine in the lead role, although I am sure there are many others who could also manage it easily enough, and Ethan Mitchell is given the role of the colleague/friend we don’t expect to see reach the end credits. Perhaps both actors could have done better with a better script, but it’s hard to say. They certainly hit their marks, and actually don’t do a bad job of delivering the kind of dialogue that blends action with exposition and friendly banter, but they never feel above average. Much like every other part of the film. Kristen Kaster is someone who could be rescued from the facility, it’s a shame that neither the direction nor script help her play her character in a way that would lean more into the potential fun of her stereotypical persona.

Technically competent throughout, and there’s decent creature design to help, Death Valley just can’t do enough to overcome its limitations. And it doesn’t seem to try hard enough. Even the “rules” we’re told about the creature don’t seem consistent, or interesting enough to help this stand out from a crowded field. This is basically just a low-grade zombie film trying to pretend it has something more to it. It doesn’t.

There are a lot worse movies out there, and at least this doesn’t run over about 90 minutes, but you will forget all about this one within days of seeing it.

5/10

Friday, 17 December 2021

Silent Night (2021)

If there's one thing we Brits can do it's exploit our civility and manners for entertainment purposes. And we have used that for many different movies, from classic murder mysteries to dark comedies, from the sci-fi horror of something like Prey (Norman J. Warren, 1977) to the unfolding dinner party with a big secret in Rope (Alfred Hitchcock, 1948). This material has been mined by many other countries throughout the decades of cinema, but I like to think that they all stem from observations of British people in their home environment.

Silent Night, the first feature from writer-director Camille Griffin (who also casts all three of her sons in roles of varying importance), shows a group of seemingly well-to-do British people gathering at an isolated home for an evening of dining, drinking, conversation, and probably more drinking. It's a dinner party with a difference, that difference being the looming end of the world.

While this is an interesting premise for a movie, and could have been a showpiece for any actor, Griffin stumbles due to a lack of tonal focus or consistency. She may have wanted to make something that weaves from comedy to drama to horror, but every one of the better moments just makes you wonder how many other ways the film could have played out in a much more satisfying way.

The main fault lies with Griffin’s script, especially when she doesn’t give anyone the kind of razor-sharp dialogue that the film craves. None of the main characters have the steel required to lift it up to a level of greatness. If this had been made fifty years ago with a main role for Bette Davis, THEN you have something closer to greatness.

Keira Knightley and Matthew Goode are the host couple, both doing well with what they are given (mainly being polite and attempting to put a brave face on things), and their three children (the characters played by Griffin’s children) include another star turn from Roman Griffin Davis, playing the most important person in the film. Lucy Punch, Annabelle Wallis, Kirby Howell-Baptiste and Lily-Rose Depp play the women, all with various approaches to their impending fates, and Sope Dirisu and Rufus Jones are the two male guests, supporting their partners as they deal with some unfinished business.

Things step up a notch in the third act, and the very end features a great little “punchline”, but the end result is more of an interesting, incomplete, almost-ran than an outright winner.

6/10

Thursday, 16 December 2021

A Kiss Before Christmas (2021)

It’s a very familiar tale. As Christmas approaches, someone starts to wish that they had made some different decisions to take his life to a better place. But what would that perceived betterment cost?

James Denton plays Ethan Holt, married to Joyce (Teri Hatcher). They have two older teenage children and a decent life, but Ethan feels as if he has been stuck at a career plateau for quite a few years now. Granted a standard Christmas wish by a Santa figure (aka SANTA, played by John B. Lowe), Ethan gets the career trajectory he feels that he missed out on, but no longer has his content family life.

Director Jeff Beesley has been churning out movies like this for a couple of years now, before that having delivered a greater variety of TV shows and non-seasonal fare. Writers Mark Amato and Tracy Andreen have a bigger list of little crackers to look over, a number of them that I have already seen and reviewed, and they are very comfortable with the general beats that these movies should hit. Although this has a male central character going through a major life lesson, as opposed to a successful businesswoman, there’s a lot of comforting familiarity here. You have good Christmas feeling throughout, at least one montage, and that bit of magic the whole plot turns on.

Denton is a decidedly okay lead, a character defined by the changes around him and his quest to ensure that all’s well that ends well, but Hatcher is the more obvious star. She still has a great presence onscreen, and does a fine job without ever giving the impression that she is just coasting through the whole thing. Marilu Henner is a good big boss figure, someone with great success who remembers that profit doesn’t always have to ruin the lives of others, and Rod Wilson plays the kind of manager who wants results at any cost, which leads to Denton’s character wrestling with his conscience as he tries to plot his best career path onwards and upwards. Lowe makes for a good Santa figure, as wise as he is mischievous (aren’t they always?), and other supporting players do just fine in their various roles.

Managing to somehow paradoxically be a bit different from the many other TV Christmas movies made this year and yet exactly the same, A Kiss Before Christmas is another safe and dependable choice to let play out on your TV while you either prepare for Christmas Day or relax with some calorie-loaded treats and hot chocolate.

5/10

Wednesday, 15 December 2021

Prime Time: Just In Time For Christmas (2015)

There seems to be an unwritten rule for TV movies nowadays that, if possible, anything with a plot utilising time travel should cast Christopher Lloyd in there somewhere. Main role, cameo, it doesn’t matter. Just have Doc available, letting viewers know that you know the best time travel expert in modern cinema.

Just In Time For Christmas has both an element of time travel and the presence of Christopher Lloyd (here playing a kindly grandfather). The plot revolves around Lindsay Rogers (Eloise Mumford), a psychology professor who may just get everything she ever dreamed of. She is offered a position at Yale, and is also proposed to by her boyfriend, Jason (Michael Stahl-David). But it seems that the two things may be incompatible, providing her with a potentially crucial, and life-changing, dilemma. Thankfully, an angelic type of figure, a coachman in the guise of William Shatner, offers Lindsay a chance to see what her life will look like three years down the line.

Magical and enjoyable, if unspectacular, Just In Time For Christmas works better than some thanks to the cast. Which is something I say a lot at this time of year, because it is usually just the different faces making these films distinguishable from one another.

Director Sean McNamara has a varied selection of TV and film to his credit, including a number of *shudder* Baby Geniuses sequels (or offshoots, I have not yet been brave enough to explore any of those movies), but he seems to respond fairly well to the script, written by Helen Frost and Don MacLeod. Frost and MacLeod have been a working writing team for only a few years now, still perhaps getting used to writing films with certain expectations to fulfil, but they do a good job here.

Mumford and Stahl-David are good leads, the former is pleasant company and the latter embodies all of those great qualities that the male leads in these movies need, but without being as bland as so many of them are. Lloyd keeps popping up just often enough to remind you that he's in the movie, which was a tactic I welcomed, and Laura Soltis plays the mother of Mumford's character, and ends up only used for a few scenes mainly bookending the main section. Tess Atkins plays Becca, someone who has grown a LOT closer to Jason over the course of the three years that have happened in the blink of an eye, and she does well for someone with arguably the most thankless role of the lot.

Interesting in the way that it's not JUST another tale of a successful business woman realising that her career and achievements mean nothing without the love of a good man to keep her warm and cosy in the evenings, Just In Time For Christmas walks a fine line throughout. It's easy to view the lead as someone being quite selfish and disruptive, considering the film is allowing her to see the consequences of her actions, but it's also enjoyable to see something like this that doesn't force a main character to deal only in absolutes. There's room for compromise, room for difficulties on the way to real happiness, and that's probably a better lesson than the messages delivered to viewers by hundreds and hundreds of other Christmas TV movies.

6/10

P.S. Here is a huge list of every Christmas movie I have ever reviewed, either here or over at Flickfeast.

Tuesday, 14 December 2021

Home Sweet Home Alone (2021)

I was very confident, very confident, waving everyone away who tried to warn me off this movie. Because it couldn't be any worse than some of the other Home Alone movies, could it? Could it?

The simple answer, which I can put at the start of this review, is no. Home Sweet Home Alone is not worse than some of the other Home Alone movies. It's also not very good though, and it's not very good in ways that are quite mind-boggling.

Here's the plot. Archie Yates plays Max Mercer, a child who ends up home alone while his family have headed to Tokyo. He is also the prime suspect when Jeff (Rob Delaney) and Pam McKenzie (Ellie Kemper) lose a valuable doll that could see the end of their current money woes. Jeff and Pam believe that Max has stolen the doll, and Max is under the impression that Jeff and Pam are looking to kidnap him. Excessive snacking, lessons about home being where the heart is, and booby-traps are very soon the order of the day.

Written by Streeter Seidell and Mikey Day, and directed by Dan Mazer, there's nothing inherently wrong with the people making this movie. Their backgrounds tend to be based more in content such as SNL, Ali G, and other non-kid-friendly fare, but I didn't see their names and immediately worry about the film they would deliver. Perhaps I should have. The direction isn't terrible, not really, but the script is poor, especially when you consider some of the plotting that makes the viewing experience a difficult and unrewarding one.

Never mind though, because I really like Delaney and Kemper. So that should be a plus, right? It is, but not enough of a plus to make up for the big negatives. Delaney and Kemper aren't used well here, although I hate to think how much I would have hated this film with other people in their roles. Aisling Bea could have been another good bit of casting, but playing the mother of the child left at home alone simply leads to her feeling like a very poor replacement for the superb Catherine O'Hara. There are some other people doing perfectly fine work here, but that work is overshadowed by the central performance from Yates. I don't want to spend much time ripping apart the performance of a young child, and Yates is definitely not helped by a script that makes his character almost completely unlikeable throughout (when he isn't recreating moments from the first Home Alone movie). All I will say is that his character is one of the most irritating youngsters I have seen onscreen in a very long time, and I spent most of the movie hoping that he would end up caught in one of his own traps.

There's an argument to be made for this movie being even less deserving of your time because of how it seems to invert so much of what made the original film a holiday classic, and there's absolutely nothing here that actually feels good enough to warrant this reworking of the concept, but a level of general technical competence, as well as the presence of both Delaney and Kemper, stop it from being among the worst of the worst. It's really bad though, and this is coming from someone who often tries to see the best in every movie I watch.

3/10

Monday, 13 December 2021

Mubi Monday: Sweet Thing (2020)

Written and directed by Alexandre Rockwell, and utilising a number of his family members in the main cast, Sweet Thing is a bittersweet tale of childhood, mischief, and horrible abuse. The fact that the soundtrack makes use of music familiar to those who have seen True Romance is no surprise really, considering both films feature rather naive central characters who end up running away after striking back at an abuser. But the main characters here are children, which means that the big world around them is all the more dangerous, and it is a lot less likely that we will see this little group maintain their complete freedom.

Lana Rockwell is Billie, a teenager who is also the big sister to Nico (Nico Rockwell). The kids have a problematic father (Will Patton), an alcoholic who can barely look after himself most days, and end up staying with their uncaring mother, Eve (Karyn Parsons). Eve is with a partner, Beaux (M. L. Josepher), who doesn’t really want to be in the company of children. Things keep getting worse until one act of violence leads to Billie and Nico running away, meeting up with another youngster, Malik (Jabari Watkins), who is seeking escape.

Shot mostly in black and white, a stylistic choice that seems to reflect the simple worldview of the young characters, Rockwell makes good choices with the material here, considering what viewers see and what they don’t, and helps himself immensely by having his talented children more than up to the task of carrying the film on their young shoulders.

Aside from all of the talented Rockwell family involved, which includes Parsons (who is Rockwell’s wife and real-life mother of the two children), a good amount of praise deserves to be heaped upon the ever-reliable Patton. I always like seeing him in movies, but he is rarely used as well as he is here. Patton delivers a lovely performance as a father who is incapable of doing the best by his children, his head turned and his mind addled by the alcohol that has enslaved him. Watkins also shines in his supporting role, although everyone benefits from the light being reflected back from the young stars leading this film like they were born to do so.

Rockwell has been crafting a decent-sized filmography for just over thirty years now, and fans of independent cinema will probably love at least one of his films. Sweet Thing shows that he not only still has a great eye and talent, but he also has a family who are just as worthwhile keeping an eye on. I hope they all, whether together or separately, keep working in cinema.

8/10

Sunday, 12 December 2021

Netflix And Chill: Single All The Way (2021)

Thanks to a gradual easing open of the gates over the past year or so, Christmas movies can now be tailored to include main characters representing the LGBTQ+ community. Because, as all of us were already aware, a love story between two people can play out in very similar ways, no matter what the genders or sexual preferences of those involved. In fact, the pleasant surprise is that these movies already seem to play out a bit funnier, a bit smarter, and with more resonance than some of the many other movies that retread the well-worn, and enjoyable, snow-covered paths that we visit every year at this time.

After another disastrous episode in his love life, Peter (Michael Urie) convinces his best friend, Nick (Philemon Chambers), to join him as he visits his family for the Christmas holidays. The plan is to pretend that the two have finally committed to a relationship with one another. Nick is already well-known to the family, and already well-liked. Things change quickly, however, when it turns out that Peter's mother, Carole (Kathy Najimy), has set up a blind date between her son and a handsome new resident of their small town (James, played by Luke Macfarlane). Peter and James actually get along very well, but everyone else can see that the real love story to root for is one between Peter and Nick. Everyone can see it apart from Peter and Nick themselves.

Although it can be comforting to see Christmas movies made by people who have long spent their time working under that seasonal umbrella, there are many films all the better for being made by people less inclined to feel beholden to every trope and story beat. That's the case here, with neither director Michael Mayer nor writer Chad Hodge having broken in their snow shoes throughout their careers. Both know exactly what is needed, because viewers watch these movies with certain expectations, but they fill the journey to the predictable ending with plenty of fun little surprises (from moments of humour that are genuinely funny, a great selection of references, and a cameo appearance from a singer known best for expletive-laden covers of popular hit songs).

It helps a lot that this is cast well, but that's not to undermine the great work done by Mayer and Hodge, with the latter treating almost every cast member to at least one great moment. Urie is a likeable lead, playing up his haplessness at times, and doing well with the comedic moments he has while being blindsided and frustrated by how things unfold around him. Chambers is really sweet, the kind of unselfish and good-natured soul that needs to eventually be seen for the great love he could be by our central character. Macfarlane is handsome and nice, and I have enjoyed seeing a few Christmas movies this year that have allowed other characters to become potential obstacles to true love without being complete douchebags. Najimy is a very cool and accepting mom, matched by Barry Bostwick as Peter's father, the latter happy to just say outright what others are thinking during the first half of the movie. Jennifer Coolidge is the overly dramatic Aunt Sandy, the role is perfect for her and she even gets to deliver a meta-statement about how gay people seem to love her, and Melanie Leishman and Jennifer Robertson portray sisters with different levels of nerviness. Madison Brydges and Alexandra Beaton also get to stand out, playing two teenagers who more actively plot to start pushing Peter and Nick to see what they actually have between them.

I often justify my ratings of Christmas movies by reminding people that I rate them AS Christmas movies. A good Christmas movie isn't necessarily the same as a good movie. I'm sure people are tired of me underlining that point. Single All The Way is a good Christmas movie, but it's also actually just a good movie. It may not be quite as good as Happiest Season, the film that came along last year to remind everyone that gay people also like some Christmas cheer, but it's very enjoyable.

7/10

P.S. Here is a huge list of every Christmas movie I have ever reviewed, either here or over at Flickfeast.

Saturday, 11 December 2021

Shudder Saturday: The Advent Calendar (2021)

It is very rare to dislike an advent calendar. What may once have been a rather sweet and religiously-minded way to mark the days on the run up to Christmas is now, for the most part, something that gives you an excuse to get a sweet or treat every day. The Advent Calendar is about that, with a magical calendar offering up a treat a day, but each treat comes with a price. And there are rules that have to be followed.

Eva (Eugénie Derouand) is a young paraplegic woman who is gifted the titular advent calendar by a friend, Sophie (Honorine Magnier). It's an ornate and magical thing, but the women don't immediately realise that it's literally magical. A message on the back should have been enough of a warning, stating that if anyone dumps the calendar then they will be killed, but Eva and Sophie just assume it's a fun way to create an air of mystery about the delightful creation. Then Eva starts to follow the rules that the calendar provides, starting with one that tells people they must eat every piece of candy if they eat one. Basically, once you start opening the windows of the calendar there's no going back. But it soon becomes clear that the calendar will hurt those around Eva while working to improve her own life. That can take the form of revenge, but it might also ultimately lead to a change in her physical abilities.

The second feature film from writer-director Patrick Ridremont, The Advent Calendar is an enjoyably nasty and twisted little horror movie, and it's one that is happy to drag characters into a realm of absolute dark fantasy. As things start, it can be a bit puzzling to figure out the real aim of the calendar, and the rules initially seem a bit arbitrary and inconsequential. That's the beauty of it. Viewers are, just like the central character, able to realise the full extent of the horror about to unfold when it's too late to turn back.

There's a nice visual style throughout, moving smoothly from the "calendar world" to our known reality, and vice versa, and Ridremont allows himself one or two standout moments that could easily be short films on their own. There's fun to be had while watching bad characters get their comeuppance, and things get tense when you realise how many people are left that you don't necessarily want to meet a bad end.

Derouand is a good lead, and it's easy to understand her character being tempted by the changes made by the calendar. Magnier does well, but her character deserved a bit more screentime, and the supporting cast also features good performances from Clément Olivieri, playing a nurse/suitor named William, and others, although everyone is defined by how they relate to Derouand's character.

It may have moments that will leave you feeling as if you missed something, but that's always a deliberate choice, and ultimately ends up being very effective, so I think many people will feel the way I did by the time The Advent Calendar ends. It was entertaining, it had some good full-on horror, it was a bit different from the norm, and it was well worth your time.

8/10

Friday, 10 December 2021

Christmas In Evergreen (2017)

Ashley Williams may not be a name familiar to many movie viewers, but she is probably know to those who enjoy Christmas TV movies. She's appeared in a good number of them, including Snow, Snow 2: Brain Freeze, and Christmas In The City. None of those movies were actually very good, yet all of them managed to benefit from the presence of Williams in a main role. They were completely passable, disposable, entertainment.

Christmas In Evergreen is also completely passable, disposable, entertainment. It's directed by Alex Zamm (who has a filmography made up of child-friendly films and other Christmas movies, including Snow and A Christmas Prince, which may well be the jewel in his crown - no pun intended) and written by Rick Garman, a man responsible for at least a dozen more films in this vein. In fact, checking out the filmography of Garman on Letterboxd is akin to viewing that list titled "Christmas movie posters with white heterosexual couples wearing red and green". Go ahead and check it out for yourself. I'll still be here when you come back.

The plot here revolves around a snowglobe that may well make your wish come true, which is handy when circumstances conspire to stop Allie Shaw (Williams) from leaving her smalltown home of Evergreen to spend Christmas with her long-distance boyfriend, Spencer (Marcus Rosner). Nobody really wants Allie to leave, she's beloved by pretty much everyone in the community, and she becomes even more valued when she helps Ryan (Teddy Sears) and his young daughter, Zoe (Jaeda Lily Miller), both of whom end up stuck in Evergreen on their way to an atypical Christmas holiday in Florida. Zoe wouldn't mind if they actually ended up spending Christmas in Evergreen, especially when Allie is so nice to them.

Williams has the perfect onscreen personality for this type of thing. She can seem cheery and kind without becoming too annoying, she is cute and wholesome, and she manages to stay enthusiastic for events unfolding around her without seeming too childish. Rosner has to play the man that we know isn’t right for our leading lady, but it’s nice that the script doesn’t make him an irredeemable asshole. He’s just focused on his career path, which requires him to keep his life in the big city. Sears is the standard bland and harmless male lead, although his dialogue is often punctuated by a slightly creepy laugh that is always disproportionate to anything said that may seem amusing, and Miller is the young girl who spends a lot of time pleading to make her Christmas everything she wants it to be. Holly Robinson Peete is the woman trying to organise the local Christmas festival, with all of the stress that entails, Chris Cope is a mayor who resents losing our lead to the lure of the big city, and Barbara Niven is the mother of the character played by Williams, as well as someone underlining the potential power of the snowglobe.

If you like this kind of stuff at this time of year, as I think we all know I do, this is distinctly average, but enjoyable enough. It helps if you like Williams onscreen, and everyone watching this should be able to call out every plot point at least three scenes before they actually happen. But you can say that about most of these movies.

I appreciate anyone who decided to read through this full review. Especially as I can end almost exactly where I began, by summarising this as completely passable, disposable, entertainment.

5/10

P.S. Here is a huge list of every Christmas movie I have ever reviewed, either here or over at Flickfeast.

Thursday, 9 December 2021

Christmas In Harmony (2021)

Ashleigh Murray plays Harmony Matthews, a young music exec who moves back home from New York for a Christmas holiday. Harmony has also just been “downgraded” in her employment status, although that situation could change when it is discovered by the singing star (Melo D, played by Michelle Williams) who views her as the best, and only, person she enjoys working with at the agency. Meanwhile, Harmony is roped in to helping whip a choir into shape for a local church. She is tasked to co-direct the show with Kyle Noah (Luke James), a nice guy who also happens to be an ex-boyfriend. Standard Christmas sparks start to fly, of course.

Writer Jessilene Berry only has a few credits to her name, and certainly doesn’t have the experience of writers who have basically made these TV movies their main source of income. She works well enough with the standard structure, but doesn’t do any more to lift the material. None of the supporting characters stand out, which is a shame when we have a choir full of potential stars available, and there isn’t any real chemistry between the leads.

At least part of the problem IS the cast, unfortunately. Murray just isn’t good in the main role, often looking bored or tired when she is supposed to be emoting. She is also terribly mismatched with the voice given to her during scenes in which she likes singing. James isn’t as bad, and seems to have a decent singing voice, but he spends most of his time stuck opposite Murray. Loretta Devine is the loving, and interfering, mother and she does fine in a role she could do in her sleep (although she will always be the security guard in Urban Legend to me), Michelle Williams is enjoyable, and surprisingly believable, as Melo D, and that covers the people worth commenting on.

Director Rusty Cundieff may be best known to film fans for his Tales From The Hood movies (I haven’t gone beyond the first movie, which I thoroughly disliked). He has been directing for decades now, but you wouldn’t ascertain that from his films. Unable to make the major decisions required to elevate something from poor to average, from casting to shot composition, from the music to set dressing, everything feels sadly underdone. You can work within budgetary limitations and still create a movie world that feels real, but Cundieff doesn’t manage that. Worse, it doesn’t feel as if he even tries. Some of the “crowd” scenes are embarrassingly amateurish in their execution.

If you are after even the most undemanding and flimsiest of Christmas movies then I would still not recommend this one. There are so many better options out there, all of them designed to make you feel the chill and joy of the season, and this one doesn’t deserve your time or attention.

3/10