Christmas, Again Film Review – This Relaxed Story of a Lonely Christmas Tree Seller Has Authentic Charm
This is a New York drama with such a relaxed pace that it required a decade to reach the UK’s cinema screens. Initially unveiled in the US in 2015, it’s an ultra-low-budget debut from first-time director Charles Poekel, taking place largely on a 24-hour pop-up Christmas tree stall. Poekel’s style remains decidedly genuinely independent and unaffected to become slushy or sentimental about Christmas; through his lens Christmas tree lights flash like police lights. But with its subtle approach, he positions the movie perfectly for a little squeeze of festive warmth.
A Jaded Seller Amid the Brooklyn Cold
Kentucker Audley portrays Noel (someone had in the film to joke about his name for the connection to be made). Noel returns for his fifth year peddling Christmas trees in Brooklyn, standing outside in the freezing cold and resting in a barely warmer caravan parked next to the trees. Several patrons ask about the girl working with him last year. But this year Noel works solo, heartbroken and on the night shift.
There’s an observational quality to a lot of the scenes, with customers posing idle and peculiar questions. A customer requests the same Christmas tree as the Obamas (the story is set in 2014). Noel looks numb with cold physically and emotionally; he’s exhausted and disenchanted, though Audley’s understated acting clearly indicates that he wasn’t always like this.
Quiet Moments and Glimmers of Hope
In truth, the plot is minimal. Noel comes to the aid of a woman, Lydia (Hannah Gross), who has passed out drunk on a bench. She reappears later in some genuinely moving scenes as Noel travels through New York, delivering trees – and these moments could ignite a small glimmer of good cheer in the grinchiest of hearts. Poekel hasn’t made a feature since this, which is regrettable – it is unmatched for authenticity and fluidity, and it’s filmed on gorgeously textured 16mm film.
A film of understated charm and real mood, portraying the loneliness and brief connection of the season.
Christmas, Again opens in UK cinemas from 12 December.
