A Boy Called Christmas
Summary:
A Boy Called Christmas follows the story of a young boy named Nikolas. After the king revealed that he would pay handsomely for someone to bring a spark back to his kingdom, Nikolas’ father joined up with a group of men to find proof of the magical land of Elfhelm. After weeks of the father’s disappearance, Nikolas then embarks on a journey to find both his father and Elfhelm.
Characters:
A Boy Called Christmas is about Nikolas, a young boy with goodness in his heart. With the ability to see good in all beings, Nikolas befriends a small mouse, who he named Miika, and taught him how to talk. After setting off on his journey, Nikolas also befriends a reindeer, named Blitzen, a few elves, and a Truth Pixie.
Review:
Now I’m going, to be honest, I went into this film with quite low expectations and the description didn’t blow me away so I wasn’t sure what I was getting into. Upon viewing I must say that this was a cute and charming film that was overall enjoyable. This hasn’t become like a new Christmas favourite or anything but I must say this movie did charm me. To start off, this film has a really likeable main character in Nikolas who is really the heart of this movie. Like many Christmas protagonists, he has an optimism that does not cease. We as an audience watch him overcome many obstacles and difficult moments in his life. The other thing I liked about this film is its atmosphere. It takes place in Finland and it really does feel very Christmas like and it has a cozy feel to the whole thing. The film is a version of the story of father Christmas and the origins of Christmas so there are a lot of clues where the story will go and nice little references. My only real problem with the film is that it can be quite slow at points and when those times happen it can be a bit boring and I felt myself not paying attention.
All in all, this is a good Christmas film but I wouldn’t call it a great one. I did find it charming and cute with some magical moments so I would still recommend it. So hop on Netflix and check it out.
Favourite Moment (Spoilers):
My favourite moment is when Nikolas decides to give away the toys and basically comes up with the idea of Christmas. It was just fun to see this story’s version of how “Santa” started.
Review:
Netflix is back with another Christmas movie, A Boy Called Christmas. The pre-watch consensus was that this looked very underwhelming, and I was happily surprised. A Boy Called Christmas is funny, it’s a little bit tacky, and it is a feel good story. It doesn’t take itself too seriously, and the plot doesn’t have a ton to it. It’s a pretty darn simple movie, and an easy watch.
I really like that this feels like a stereotypical Christmas movie. The plot is solid, but it is very simple and you can see what’s coming. The writers don’t try to hide anything either. They are content to follow the line, and create some pretty great characters instead. The kind-of original telling of the beginning of Christmas is a dangerous thing to take on, but I thought it was well done. The storyteller angle also works wonders in Christmas movies, and I really enjoyed the old lady leading us through the story. Now does the dialogue feel choppy, and does the story venture down cringey for a few minutes, absolutely. It’s a children’s Christmas movie, so those things don’t really affect the movie as a whole, but it does make it a little less smooth to watch as an adult. I think kids are going to enjoy this movie in a totally different way, and not pick up on as many of the little oddities.
The characters are decent, but pretty hollow. Outside of Nicholas, we don’t know a ton about our human characters. The backstories are quite lacking, and it adds some unneeded mystery. It would have created some deep characters, and potentially made the plot even more compelling. I don’t think deep characters is something this movie set out to accomplish, but it would have been a nice touch regardless.
Overall, this is a good start to the holiday season. I wouldn’t consider it a yearly watch, but it should crack your list of Christmas movies this year around. The characters are decent, the plot is warm and gooey, and it has that kind of Christmas magic that keeps you hooked.
My favourite moment (Spoilers):
My favourite scene was when the mouse began to talk. It solved some many questions I had about where we were going next and how this wasn’t going to end up being 15 minutes of walking in silence. It was also pretty funny.
Review:
A Boy Called Christmas was an alright Christmas movie. From a simple, predictable plot, to some decent characters, this was a Christmas movie that was more aimed towards children and lacks any intrigue for an older audience.
I think my main gripe with this movie was that it was quite simple. To me, every plot point that happened was really predictable, and the movie got quite boring after that. Another thing I didn’t like so much was that certain characters felt a bit off. Some characters were given redemption opportunities, but these opportunities seemed too forced. It wasn’t naturally integrated into the movie, and it left a weird aftertaste.
On the positive side, I did enjoy the first half of the movie. I’m not exactly sure why, but the first half of the movie was quite fun to watch, but the second half lost me. I also enjoyed the lead character. Although I think he’s too kind for his own good, I do appreciate learning of a potential backstory for Santa Claus.
Overall, A Boy Called Christmas was an alright Christmas movie. As a children’s movie, I’m sure it is quite enjoyable, but from an older point of view, there are some moments where the plot gets quite dull. If you’re in for a family Christmas movie, then this would be an alright one to put on.
Favourite Moment (Spoilers):
My favourite moment in A Boy Called Christmas was the escape scene from the tower. That whole series of events was quite fun to watch, and it was nice seeing the Trust Pixie in action. I also liked seeing that some elves could see the good in humans as well.
