Christmas, Again Film Review – This Relaxed Tale of a Forlorn Christmas Tree Seller Boasts Genuine Charm
This is a New York drama so laidback that it has taken a decade to reach the UK’s cinema screens. Initially unveiled in the US in 2015, it’s a micro-budget first feature from debut filmmaker Charles Poekel, taking place largely on a 24-hour pop-up Christmas tree stall. Poekel’s style is far too authentic-indie and unaffected to get slushy or sentimental about Christmas; in his view 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 Weary Seller in the Brooklyn Cold
Kentucker Audley portrays Noel (someone had in the film to comment on his name for the connection to be made). Noel is back for his fifth year selling Christmas trees in Brooklyn, working outdoors in the freezing cold and resting in a barely warmer caravan parked next to the trees. A few customers ask about the girl working with him last year. But this year Noel works solo, heartbroken and on the night shift.
There’s a documentary feel to a lot of the scenes, with customers posing pointless random questions. One woman 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 weary and disillusioned, though Audley’s understated acting clearly indicates that he hadn't always been like this.
Quiet Encounters and Flickers of Hope
In truth, not much happens. 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 drives around New York, making tree deliveries – and these sequences could ignite a little flicker 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 gorgeously textured 16mm film.
A picture of quiet charm and real atmosphere, capturing the loneliness and fleeting warmth of the season.
Christmas, Again opens in UK cinemas from 12 December.
