Coming out this week from Netflix is That Christmas, a film directed by Simon Otto and written by Richard Curtis, based on a trilogy of stories Curtis wrote. Starring Jodie Whittaker, Rhys Darby, Fiona Shaw with Bill Nighy and Brian Cox as Santa Claus, this festive film follows a village during a particularly heavy snowstorm and the adventures they all go on.
That Christmas is a charming film from Locksmith Animation. It has a soft and affable animation style to it that is welcoming. The colours are vibrant and warm and though it won’t break the mould, it actually looks like a high-quality episode of Postman Pat, this particular style works for the film.
Within this film is a village-sized cast of characters. There is the Beccles clan with twins Sam and Charlie Beccles. One straight-laced, the other chaotic. There is the new kid in town Danny, who is still trying to fit in and having a hard time doing so, especially with his workaholic mother always away and his father constantly disappointing him. Then there is the absolutely chaotic group of three families that have their annual Christmas tradition ruined by the weather.
That Christmas – An Emotional Magnifying Glass
Many of the characters within That Christmas are tried and true archetypes. The twins, who have vastly different personalities, The underappreciated kid, who is home alone on Christmas, and then there’s the family whoa are separated at the most inconvenient time. It follows the usual tropes of a Christmas film and it has a lot of cringey dialogue. Thankfully though it is elevated by some of its cast. A lot of the best parts of the film involve the young cast. Danny’s subplot with his teacher Miss Trapper (Shaw) is a particular highlight. Shaw is easily the MVP of this film, she brings with her an emotional weight that the rest of the film does not have.
The biggest problem with the film is that the three stories within it are fighting for your attention. This adaptation squeezes all these stories into a runtime of 92 minutes and it feels rushed. Not only that, the film ends with a beautifully touching moment. However, it then starts back up again to give a second more action-packed climax, roping in every cast member. In my opinion, the film should have been split into the three original stories, each maybe 50 minutes long. Then families would have the option of putting all three on for the full experience. It would have worked far better as a cohesive whole.
Though not a classic like films like Klaus, That Christmas is still one the kids will enjoy.
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