Now, I’m a sucker for a Christmas movie, and at this time of year can happily sit through a cliché ridden, sentimental, made for TV film on Channel 5 or Movies 24 (retitled Christmas 24 I see). It is relatively rare, though, for a Christmas film to be released at the cinema. But this year we have three already…
Christmas with the Coopers
This was the one I had the highest expectations for. A large ensemble cast and interlinking storylines. Mixing comedy and drama, I thought it would go down a treat at this time of year. However, it turned out to be an uneven disappointment.
The biggest problem with the film is some of the story threads are not developed at all and feel redundant, and crucially that includes the central story of John Goodman and Diane Keaton’s troubled marriage. Goodman has been so good in supporting roles recently (see Inside Llewyn Davies and Argo in particular) but here he looks uncomfortable throughout the movie. There is zero chemistry with Keaton, who seems to have been delivering the same performance in all her films for the last 20 years now.
Marisa Tomei does her best in a very slight role as Keaton’s younger sister who has always lived in her shadow, and I’ve virtually forgotten Ed Helm’s storyline already. The unusual relationship between Alan Arkin and the waitress as his local diner (Amanda Seyfried) gave the film some life, and they share some of the better scenes. However, the film really comes alive when it concentrates on Olivia Wilde’s flaky daughter (Eleanor) and soldier Jake Lacy (Joe) who she meets at the airport. Despite their storyline being very hokey – she persuades him to pose as her boyfriend to please her parents – Wide is extremely charming, and the pair work extremely well together.
So, overall very patchy. A better film could have been made focusing mainly on Eleanor and Joe, but they keep it watchable nonetheless.
Rating: 5.5 out of 10
The Night Before
About five seconds into The Night Before, the film broke down. The next 15 minutes when I listened to my iPod whilst waiting for the problem to be resolved was, on the whole, more enjoyable than the film that followed!
Ethan (Joseph Gordon-Levitt), Isaac (Seth Rogen) and Chris (Anthony Mackie) are three old friends who have a tradition of meeting up and getting wasted on Christmas Eve. Now in their mid 30s and most of them with responsibilities they decide this year will be the last time they party on 24th December. The basic premise of one night that spirals out of control can be done very well, I’m thinking of Into the Night or Scorsese’s After Hours back in the 80s. Unfortunately, that is not the case here. Veering wildly in tone from very crude or druggy humour to overt sentimentality, the film is really a mess. Uneven characterisations abound, such as when Isaac’s wife supplies him with a load of drugs to take on the night, then is really uptight when he turns up stoned.
There are a couple of decent chuckles – their attempt to steal a horse and carriage and a scene in a church – and there is a good cameo role for Michael Shannon as a drug dealer, but the rest of it falls flat. Also just when you thought it couldn’t get any worse, Miley Cyrus turns up. It’s hard to decide whether her acting is worse than her singing, but it is a close run thing!
To make this even harder to watch, there is the most egregious product placement I have ever seen. The plugs for Samsung phones and iPhones are bad enough but the constant mentioning of Red Bull and the appearance of their logo regularly throughout the film is shockingly blatant and a signifier of how the film lacks any artistic merit.
Rating: 3 out of 10
Krampus
And finally, a Christmas movie I can recommend. This is a great combination of horror and comedy that pretty much works all the way through the film. A young boy who normally loves Christmas is having a bad festive season. As his family gathers for their annual celebrations, he unwittingly summons a centuries old demon.
Very well-paced, with the demons only fleetingly glimpsed for a quite a long time, which helps to build the tension, this is an extremely enjoyable tale. Peppered with humorous moments, particularly involving the excellent David Koechner, many people watching will recognise the simmering tensions that bubble under family relationships, thus giving a sense of realism and real jeopardy when the monsters appear. As well as Koechner, the rest of the cast are spot on – Adam Scott, Toni Collette, Allison Tolman and Conchata Ferrell all add a touch of class.
I found it hard to guess what characters would be disposed of next, and the ending is an intriguing one. In the space of a few minutes it turns from great to terrible and back to great again!
Sure to become a regular watch at this time of year for me.
Rating: 7.5 out of 10