The Film Christmas, Again Film Review – A Laidback Tale of a Forlorn Christmas Tree Seller Has Genuine Charm
The constitutes a New York drama so laidback that it has taken a decade to arrive on the UK’s cinema screens. First released in the US in 2015, it’s a micro-budget first feature from debut filmmaker Charles Poekel, taking place largely on a 24-hour pop-up Christmas tree stall. Poekel’s style remains decidedly genuinely independent and unaffected to get slushy or sentimental about Christmas; through his lens Christmas tree lights blink like police lights. But in its own low-key way, he pitches his film just right for a modest dose of festive warmth.
The Jaded Seller Amid the Brooklyn Cold
Kentucker Audley stars as Noel (it took someone in the film to comment on his name for the connection to be made). Noel returns for his fifth year selling Christmas trees in Brooklyn, standing outside in the freezing cold and sleeping in a not-much-warmer caravan parked next to the trees. Several patrons ask about the girl working with him last year. But this year Noel is alone, heartbroken and working the night shift.
There’s an observational quality to a lot of the scenes, with customers posing pointless random questions. One woman requests the same Christmas tree as the Obamas (this is 2014). Noel looks frozen to the bone physically and emotionally; he’s exhausted and disenchanted, though Audley’s understated acting makes it clear that he wasn’t always like this.
Quiet Encounters and Flickers of Connection
Frankly, the plot is minimal. Noel rescues a woman, Lydia (Hannah Gross), who has collapsed drunk on a bench. She reappears later in truly poignant scenes as Noel travels through New York, delivering trees – and these moments could spark a little flicker of good cheer in the grinchiest of hearts. Poekel hasn’t made a feature since this, which is a shame – you can’t beat it for authenticity and fluidity, and it’s filmed on beautifully grainy 16mm film.
The film of quiet appeal and authentic mood, portraying the solitude and fleeting warmth of the season.
Christmas, Again opens in UK cinemas from 12 December.