Christmas is the most wonderful time of the year. Needless to say, it's my undisputed favorite. I thought perhaps it would be different this year because, well... so much is different now, and I'll be on my own for Christmas for the first time ever. But no, it's still my favorite season. I am actually appreciating all the things that are different about it - all the new carols, the real Christmas trees, the weather... But one that has not changed is this: I've been watching a lot of Christmas movies.
Now, one of the highlights of this Christmas season has been watching to some of my favourite films - old Christmas films - at the movie theatre. There's a couple of street cinemas less than 10 minutes away from my flat, and in the past couple of weeks I had a chance to see Home Alone 1 and 2, It's a Wonderful Life and The Bishop's Wife on the big screen... I have to say... There's nothing like watching Cary Grant and Jimmy Stewart in a cinema. It's absolutely indescribable.
Those are some of my favourite movies of all time. But I also wanted to see what's new, so I have been watching to several Christmas movies on streaming. I mean, for the past few years I have more or less kept up to date with yearly launches, and I actually enjoyed Netflix's Christmas-Royalty multiverse (except for the third installment of the princess switch), and I was looking forward for 2022's addition to the series. But there wasn't one. I mean, there is a 2022 movie called "The Royal Treatment" which seems to be set in that continuum of movies (I'm pretty sure they mention Aldovia at some point) but this is NOT a Christmas movie! Can you believe that? I was halfway through and thought.. huh, there's something missing here. Turns out there was a lot missing: Christmas trees, carols, decorations, spirit...
But, after I dusted myself off I actually got around to watch some fresh-out-of-the-oven 2022 Christmas movies. My favourite was probably "Your Christmas or Mine?", featuring Asa Butterfield from Sex Education. The movie follows a young couple: James and Haley, two art students from a University in London. When the movie starts, they are in a train station, saying goodbye before parting ways for a few days while each goes to their own family homes for Christmas. They are very much in love and mourning the imminent separation, but eventually each makes the way to their respective trains. Except that when they get there they decide to come back. And in true Kevin McCallister fashion (like when he thinks he sees his dad in the plane in the beginning of movie 2) neither is aware that the person they are getting in the train for is no longer there.
 |
When both trains stop, James and Haley are stuck with each other's families. And although they are in love, they have only been together for a couple of months, and they don't really know anything about their families. And actually, about each other.
Both of the main characters have secrets. One of James' secrets has to do with his mum. As it turns out, she died a few years ago. She loved Christmas, and after she passed away Christmas was never the same for him, in no small reason because his father is so cold. But, of course, Haley is the catalyst that was needed for the old man to open up a bit, and when he does, he even tells his son that the girl reminds him of James' mum.
Now, this brings me to a trend I have observed in this year's batch of Christmas movies. Having a character who's dealing with grief is not necessarily an original idea, especially in Christmas movies. Here's how it goes: the main character lost a loved one - usually a parent or a spouse. This person loved Christmas, possibly died around Christmas and since then, the season was never the same. Eventually the main character rediscovers the magic through his/her acquaintance with the movie's love interest. A LOT of Christmas movies have this plot, and the formula itself is not a problem. The problem is that every single movie in this year's batch uses it.
In Falling For Christmas, Sierra Belmont, spoiled daughter of a wealthy businessman has an accident and finds herself in the care of Jack Russel, owner of a small ski lodge, a single dad and - of course - a widower - for whom Christmas was never the same since his wife passed away. In Christmas on Mistletoe Farm, single dad and also widower Matt Cunningham takes his five kids to a farm and rediscovers the meaning of Christmas by falling in love with an eligible young lady from the neighboring village. Christmas with you has pop star Angelina rediscover the magic of Christmas by falling in love with - surprise, surprise - single dad and widower Miguel. Having lost her mother already, Angelina also bonds with Miguel's teenage daughter, Cristina, over shared grief, and in The Noel diaries, main characters Jake and Rachel bond over loneliness and grief again!
 |
| 2022 batch of Christmas Movies on streaming... |
I have a high tolerance for repetition. I mean, just looking at the history of this blog you'll find three Christmas Marathons, and one of those (December, 2020), focused exclusively on Christmas movies that involved royalty and nobility! More than that, I understand that a plot does not have to be surprising to make a good movie. But I don't think the problem of this year's batch of Christmas movies is the plot - I think the problem is that they are all hitting the same emotional notes.
I understand why it can be tempting to write about a character struggling with grief. Grief is a powerful emotion, one that most people will be able to relate to and even those who can't should be able to understand it, and even feel for the characters in the story. But the characters have to be interesting. The setting should be compelling. In these movies, none of this is present. They don't even highlight a specific element of Christmas - a story, a decoration, a tradition or a song,... The characters are interchangeable. The story rests on this single emotional punch, and the same notes are played so often they don't even sound like music anymore. At some point instead of feeling for the characters your response is just: "Oh, not again."
When I look at my favourite Christmas movies, I realize that each of those stories stands on its own. Home alone is about rediscovering the love of family, and I bet most people - children and adults - can relate to Kevin, when he's in his parents' bed, holding a family photo and giving it a little kiss, after a quick look around to check that no one was there to witness him. That moment - the regret at the stupid thing he said before, the love for his family regardless of their problems, the need to seem tough and not let anyone see your vulnerable spots - that's what home alone is about. The traps and slapstick are just for fun - part of the setting, a setting that keeps things interesting. The Bishop's Wife is about the difference between what you think you want and what you actually need, and how easy it is to loose sight of the things that are truly important in life - things like family, charity and goodness. That scene where the angel pleads with Julia, not to send him away, the way he tells the Bishop of the dangers of an angel envying the mortal under his care, that's what The Bishop's wife is, beautifully delivered by Cary Grant's masterful performance. It's a Wonderful Life is about rediscovering one's own value, and being able to find success in an ending that is radically different from what one had originally envisioned. It's George begging to have his life back after seeing all the horrible things that happened without him, and feeling the friendship and love of people he had known his whole life, though he never knew how much they actually cared about him. I could keep going, but I guess I made my point... Each of these movies plays a symphony of different emotional notes. Yeah, Christmas is there, but even then, each of them highlights different aspects of it. Home Alone emphasizes the decorations - which are incorporated in Kevin's traps. The Bishop's Wife and It's a wonderful life veer towards the religious aspect of the holiday, bringing angels to the forefront, but even then the angels are unique - Duddley is very old, and experienced, Clarence is an angel second class in need of his wings. The characters are unforgettable.
 |
| Notice the cool Italian version of The Bishop's Wife on the right... |
I don't mean to say I only enjoy old Christmas movies. That is not so. It's true that I sometimes wish people still wrote scripts like they did in the old days, but Last Christmas came out in 2019, and I found it truly extraordinary. But this year's batch wasn't so strong... Fortunatelly, Christmas, like Carnaval, happens every year. Here's hoping that next year's batch fares a little better.
No comments:
Post a Comment