Christmas, Again (2014) ***
I was certain before I hit play that I had watched this movie sometime in the past couple of years, but it isn't on any of my past holiday movie lists. A sad and lonely Christmas tree salesman is back another year at the same NYC tree lot, but this time with some emotional pain in tow. What I really like about this movie is how it presented the story arc of his heartbreak, the use of silence, expressions, and gestures to get emotion across. That's the result of good a acting-directing combo. By the way, this film is a rare positive result of the same writer and director. I have to also give props for the good use of Arabian Dance from The Nutcracker.It sets the perfect tone for this story.
- Production: It was a low-budget indie as opposed to a low-budget cheesy movie.
- Suspension of belief: Low
- Tropes/sub-genres: Character living through sadness from a pre-movie incident
- Diversity: None
- Production Co: Writer-director, Charles Poekel
- How'd you watch it: Kanopy
Although the poster belies a romantic couple, this film is a drama about a guy who is grieving the loss of his mother. He makes friend with a woman visiting from Kenya and their non-romantic relationship helps him with his grief.
- Production: Authentic non-sets. You know the home scenes were filmed in real homes and not a lot, if any of the exterior locations were designed for this film. I'm assuming everything was real NYC.
- Suspension of belief: Low. I could believe these relationships really exist.
- Tropes/sub-genres: Grieving person who pushes their close circle away; Enlightening stranger aka Powder
- Diversity: Almost everyone is a person of color, including international persons of color
- Production Co: Savi Creations
- How'd you watch it: Amazon
Santa feels irrelevant but he decides to deliver a present to one boy who believes. I really enjoyed this short Norwegian animation.
How'd you watch it: Kanopy
Rare Exports: A Christmas Tale (2010) ****
This movie is from Finland with subtitles and it’s about an archaeological dig that finds Santa’s grave. Santa is not dead, though, and he gets out, but he is not the jolly old man you expect! This a fun, action story along the lines of Home Alone. It’s a little scary but it gets really exciting and ends well.
How'd you watch it: Kanopy
The End
That's the end of the 2020 Holiday Movie Marathon. I watched a lot of movies, including the ones I've detailed in these three posts, plus the many films I've watched over and over on the Ion Channel's Saturday and Sunday marathons from Thanksgiving to Christmas Day. My favorite holiday romance still stands: The Spirit of Christmas (available on Hoopla). It has the perfect blend of cheesy romance, supernatural and historical tropes, with a great production. And, now that I think of it, the main character is an ambitious career woman, too.
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