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Christmastime Viewings: 2020 (17 movies items)

""Santa Claus: The Movie" is one of those I had on VHS as a kid and because of that ended up watching it at least once a season for a number of years, wearing out the sleeve. I haven't seen it as an ad"

First Viewing Viewing Date: December 21st Via: Stan. Plot: The legend of Santa Claus is put in jeopardy when an unscrupulous toy manufacturer attempts to take over Christmas. Rating: 6.9/10

First Viewing Plot: The legend of Santa Claus is put in jeopardy when an unscrupulous toy manufacturer attempts to take over Christmas.

Santa Claus: The Movie is yet another title which has been part of the to-watch list for years - in fact, I started watching it last year, but decided to take a nap instead and never resumed it. And now, finally, I've taken the time to watch this 1980s VFX-laden Christmas extravaganza, which goes over the origins of Santa Claus before flashing forward to our modern era where the meaty aspects of the story unfold. There is honest-to-goodness charm and magic to Santa Claus: The Movie, and I was greatly entertained by almost every frame. The ensemble cast is great across the board, and, even though the story is deliberately catered to the younger viewers in the crowd, it's surprisingly compelling. The production design is also bursting with creativity, and the movie is full of optical special effects and rear-projection shots which have dated horrendously, but there's an inherent charm to the old-fashioned cinematic techniques on show here. I could see myself watching this one every few years as Christmas approaches.

First Viewing Viewing Date: December 20th Via: iTunes Store Plot: A group of 12 teenagers from various backgrounds enroll at the American Ballet Academy in New York to make it as ballet dancers and each one deals with the problems and stress of training and getting ahead in the world of dance. Rating: 5.3/10

First Viewing Plot: A drama that focuses on the period in Mary and Joseph's life where they journeyed to Bethlehem for the birth of Jesus.

And now for something completely different... a dramatic recreation of the nativity story, which is a bit of a left-field choice for a Christmas movie since there are no trees or decorations or festive cheer. (What an eclectic selection of titles I've watched this year.) While I won't deny that this is a good-looking movie with exceptional period detail and slick cinematography, it is also a dry and often dull retelling of this religious tale which comes up drastically short in terms of substance and humanity. I rarely felt fully invested in the story or the characters, though the performances from Oscar Isaac and Keisha Castle-Hughes are great.

First Viewing Viewing Date: December 20th Via: iTunes Store Plot: A drama that focuses on the period in Mary and Joseph's life where they journeyed to Bethlehem for the birth of Jesus. Rating: 6.0/10

First Viewing Plot: When a weary and discouraged Santa Claus considers skipping his Christmas Eve run one year, Mrs. Claus and his Elves set out to change his mind.

Here we are with a Rankin and Bass stop-motion Christmas that has eluded me for so many years. Indeed, The Year Without a Santa Claus has been on my watchlist since I first started exploring the Rankin/Bass filmography many years ago, and it was nice to watch another of their beloved efforts. There is ample magic to this particular special, with catchy songs (the Snow and Heat Miser songs are fantastic) and colourful characters, though it is a little dated and stilted on the whole. Still, the thematic messages are worthwhile and I had fun watching this one.

First Viewing Viewing Date: December 19th Via: Blu-ray Plot: When a weary and discouraged Santa Claus considers skipping his Christmas Eve run one year, Mrs. Claus and his Elves set out to change his mind. Rating: 6.7/10

First Viewing Plot: Bill Murray worries no one will show up to his TV show due to a terrible snowstorm in New York City.

Well, this was...disappointing. After five years of this sitting in my Netflix watchlist, I finally sat down to watch this hourlong Bill Murray Christmas special, and I should not have bothered - I should have paid attention to the low ratings. It starts off with promise, as Murray's opening song is soulful, and there are some great actors here (including a Chris Rock cameo which made me laugh), but then it steadily goes off the rails. By the midway point, I was feeling bored, and I had to force myself to keep on watching. The plot, such as it is, is forgotten after the first twenty minutes, after which the movie becomes a plotless string of songs that aren't even that good. George Clooney and Miley Cyrus appearing briefly in a fantasy sequence is a missed opportunity, too. I wish this was funnier. I wish there was more to this. And, side note, it's confusing that half of the actors play themselves while the other half play characters. But at least Murray is fun to watch.

First Viewing Viewing Date: December 19th Via: Netflix Plot: Bill Murray worries no one will show up to his TV show due to a terrible snowstorm in New York City. Rating: 4.8/10

First Viewing Plot: In a small town on Christmas Eve, a snowstorm brings together a group of young people.

One of Netflix's seasonal offerings from 2019, Let It Snow is a surprisingly enjoyable and charming Christmas movie in the Love Actually mould. Adapted from the 2008 book of the same name (with a screenplay co-written by Pitch Perfect scribe Kay Cannon), this is a better-quality holiday movie than your usual Hallmark offering, with a great cast of recognisable young actors and some eye-catching Toronto scenery. I was surprised about how involved I found myself in the characters and their respective stories, even though there's a heavy smattering of cliche throughout, and it tends to be on the corny side. Nevertheless, the sincerity actually pays off, and I appreciated the tender LGBTQ+ subplot that manages to exist without preaching politics or propaganda. It's not perfect, but it's worth watching. I think this quote from the Los Angeles Times pretty much sums it up: "But like the formulaic Christmas movies that fill the Hallmark Channel this time of year, this film isn't exactly a timeless classic. It's more like something to put on in the background, while making cookies or wrapping presents."

First Viewing Viewing Date: December 19th Via: Netflix Plot: In a small town on Christmas Eve, a snowstorm brings together a group of young people. Rating: 6.6/10

First Viewing Viewing Date: December 18th Via: iTunes Store Plot: A leisurely Mexican holiday takes a turn for the worse when a group of friends and a fellow tourist embark on a remote archaeological dig in the jungle, where something evil lives among the ruins. Rating: 6.2/10

First Viewing Plot: The intertwined stories of four generations of Coopers unfold right before the annual family reunion on Christmas Eve.

And here we have a more "traditional" Christmas movie after a few left-field titles. Love the Coopers is another title I never knew about until stumbling across it on Netflix, and I enjoyed it more than I anticipated. The intermittent narration from Steve Martin is a huge win, giving the movie an instantaneous charm, and there's one hell of a cast at the centre of this flick - there isn't a single unfamiliar face in sight. This is actually Jessie Nelson's first feature film since I Am Sam all the way back in 2001, and there's some terrific gravitas to the material; this is very much a drama first and foremost, as opposed to a dysfunctional slapstick family comedy. It looks slick and attractive, the soundtrack is superb, and there are some really nice moments scattered throughout (see Olivia Wilde and Jake Lacy goofing around in the airport). Admittedly, the film isn't perfect, as there are some ludicrous moments which contradict the otherwise realistic vibe (a police officer just letting someone go after they're placed under arrest), but I had a good time watching this one, and I wouldn't be averse to revisiting it in the future.

First Viewing Viewing Date: December 18th Via: Netflix Plot: The intertwined stories of four generations of Coopers unfold right before the annual family reunion on Christmas Eve. Rating: 6.6/10

First Viewing Plot: When thieves steal horses from a family property in Australia, three children and an Indigenous bushman set out across the bush to track them down.

I wasn't aware that Bush Christmas even existed, especially as the list of Australian Christmas movies is shorter than a nun's body count, but this one popped up on Stan. and I decided to give it a whirl. This is Nicole Kidman's film debut (she was 15/16 at the time of filming), and it was helmed by Storm Boy director Henri Safran, but I can't say that this flick is entirely appealing or engaging. It works in fits and starts, such as a particularly intense scene as the main characters try to sneakily steal from the horse thieves, but it never comes together as well as it should. And even though it runs a brisk 90 minutes, I still feel that the movie outstayed its welcome. There isn't much in the way of festive cheer here, either, as the Christmas setting is pretty incidental to the plot. Bush Christmas isn't bad, but I can't recommend it too strongly, either.

First Viewing Viewing Date: December 17th Via: Stan. Plot: When thieves steal horses from a family property in Australia, three children and an Indigenous bushman set out across the bush to track them down. Rating: 5.2/10