The story follows the Cooper family of four different generations as they all battle personal problems in the build up to Christmas and the annual family gathering.
I will admit that I did want to see this film last year when it was released at the cinema but for some reason I missed it. Not entirely sure how I managed that in all honesty but happily caught up with it thanks to Amazon Prime. It turned out to be a slightly different film to what I expected and remember from seeing the trailers.
I actually found it to be a lot deeper than it first appears and that makes it feel a lot more real than a lot of Christmas comedies that we get. But I have a feeling that a lot of people will find at least one of the characters to relate to or maybe it could actually be one of those films that as you get older you will identify with the different characters?
We get to see different types of love as well. How a marriage can make or break after 40 years and if people really do grow apart instead of growing together or accepting each other. The best thing about that part of the story? It involves John Goodman and Diane Keaton who work very well together. Spearheading the family and trying to keep everything together with all of the chaos that has been going on.
It does take a little bit of time to work out how exactly everyone is related, but I think it’s ok not to be so sure to begin with. The character development is pretty good and this gives the viewer a chance to pick a favorite character, you know the one they can really relate to and a rooting for to have a happy ending. Well, just because you feel like it is you and you want a happy ending. I won’t go too deep into the different sub plots going on as the family are all working their way towards the Christmas Eve gathering as that is a good thing about the film.
The cast is very strong and I always think it is a very good thing to see them all working together on a project like this. As surely a Christmas time film is a pretty big deal, people are going to want to see them at the cinema or then watch them on TV as they want to get into the Christmas spirit and a film can help. Although I think that very reason could be a downfall for this film as with it being about a family and the troubles they are going through it therefore may feel a little bit too real. If you want the Christmas feel then something that is similar to your life just might not work out.
It does still manage to capture some good moments as well though as looking closer into someones life who you see everyday and talk to but don’t know fully. Are they actually struggling with life and can you help them? A first love and young love trying to work all of that out. I am not saying this is a brilliant Christmas film but a certain part of it really did speak to me and made me think about my life. I am curious if you have seen this film did any part make you think of your own life?
