Christmas, Again Review – This Laidback Story of a Lonely Christmas Tree Seller Boasts Authentic Charm
This constitutes 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 an ultra-low-budget debut from debut filmmaker Charles Poekel, set almost entirely on a 24-hour pop-up Christmas tree stall. Poekel’s style is far too genuinely independent and unaffected to become 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 perfectly for a modest dose of festive warmth.
A Jaded Seller Amid the Brooklyn Cold
Kentucker Audley stars as Noel (it took someone in the film to joke about his name for the connection to be made). Noel is back for his fifth year peddling Christmas trees in Brooklyn, working outdoors in the freezing cold and resting in a not-much-warmer caravan parked next to the trees. Several patrons inquire after the girl assisting him last year. But this year Noel is alone, broken-hearted and on the night shift.
There’s an observational quality to many of the scenes, with customers posing pointless random questions. A customer requests the same Christmas tree as the Obamas (the story is set in 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 hadn't always been like this.
Quiet Encounters and Flickers of Hope
Frankly, the plot is minimal. Noel rescues a woman, Lydia (Hannah Gross), who has passed out drunk on a bench. She pops up again later in some genuinely moving scenes as Noel drives around New York, making tree deliveries – and these sequences could ignite a little flicker of good cheer even in the most cynical viewer. Poekel has not directed a feature since this, which is regrettable – it is unmatched for naturalness and ease, and it’s filmed on gorgeously textured 16mm film.
A picture of understated charm and real atmosphere, capturing the solitude and fleeting warmth of the season.
Christmas, Again opens in UK cinemas from 12 December.
