The Film Christmas, Again Review – This Laidback Story of a Lonely Christmas Tree Seller Has Genuine Charm
This is a New York drama with such a relaxed pace that it required a decade to reach the UK’s cinema screens. First released in the US in 2015, it’s a micro-budget first feature from debut filmmaker Charles Poekel, set almost entirely on a 24-hour pop-up Christmas tree stall. Poekel’s style remains decidedly authentic-indie and unaffected to get slushy or sentimental about Christmas; through his lens Christmas tree lights blink like police lights. But with its subtle approach, he pitches his film perfectly for a little squeeze 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 before I twigged). Noel is back 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. A few customers inquire after the girl assisting him last year. But this year Noel works solo, heartbroken and working the night shift.
There’s an observational quality to many of the scenes, with customers asking idle and peculiar questions. One woman wants the same Christmas tree as the Obamas (this is 2014). Noel looks numb with cold 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 Hope
Frankly, not much happens. Noel comes to the aid of a woman, Lydia (Hannah Gross), who has collapsed drunk on a bench. She reappears later in some genuinely moving scenes as Noel travels through New York, delivering trees – and these sequences could spark a small glimmer of good cheer in the grinchiest of hearts. Poekel has not directed a feature since this, which is regrettable – you can’t beat it for authenticity and fluidity, and it’s shot on beautifully grainy 16mm film.
A film of quiet appeal and real mood, portraying the loneliness and fleeting warmth of the holidays.
Christmas, Again arrives in UK cinemas from 12 December.
