Plot: What’s it about?
It’s hard to create new “event” movies and even more so when they revolve around what many consider the most important time of year – Christmas. I suppose in this P.C. world we’re not even “allowed” to refer to it as such any longer, rather it’s got to be the “holiday” season. Bah, humbug. It’s become somewhat of a tradition for many to have timeless classics like It’s a Wonderful Life or A Christmas Story running nonstop on December 25, so The Best Christmas Pageant Ever aims to be included in that mix. Do I think it’ll happen? I doubt it, but hey – who knows. I went into this movie blind, but did a bit of research and found that this is based on a 1972 book by Barbara Robinson. Ok, that makes it a bit more intriguing, but I still had an eyebrow raised. Are we ready? Ho Ho Ho, let’s go!
The film takes place in a small town, you know the same one that’s used for every Hallmark movie. There’s perfectly fallen snow on the trees, Christmas lights are strung with utmost perfection and every year the local Church puts on a pageant telling the story of the King of Kings. When its director is sidelined, we meet Grace (Judy Green), who lacks experience but nonetheless volunteers to oversee the production much to the amusement of her husband, Bob (Pete Holmes) as well as her daughter (Molly Belle Wright).
The nostalgic story takes place in a small town, the kind that absolutely glows when there’s snow on the trees and Christmas lights strung everywhere. Each year, the local church puts on a great big pageant telling the story of Jesus’ birth. When the fastidious woman who usually runs it is sidelined, the inexperienced but eager Grace (Judy Greer) volunteers to oversee the production, to the amusement of husband Bob (Pete Holmes) and the horror of daughter Beth (Molly Belle Wright). Adding fuel to this fire are the six children who want to be the stars of the show. They’re, of course, not the most well-behaved out there and have very little, if no knowledge of the production or its meaning. They question things and are looked down by some of the townsfolk who think they’re just a smidgen “below” what and who should be telling us this story. This begs the question (and anyone who’s ever been in a production knows this) “can we ever manage to pull this off?”
I trust we all know the answer to the aforementioned question. Yes, of course they can. Otherwise we wouldn’t have a movie. I will say that I enjoyed this movie a little more than I thought I would. Running at 99 minutes, it’s not a huge investment of your time, but I just have to ask myself if this really is a new “modern classic.” And I think the answer to that question is “No.” I’m sorry. I just don’t see this film replacing some movies that I’ve seen over and over. Heck, I’ll even take Die Hard as my go to Christmas movie. Judy Greer is great here, she was the perfect choice for the role. And as obnoxious as the kids were, they do make the movie. Who seems to get lost in the mix is Pete Holmes, who does a fine job, but nothing really stood out to me about him. Then again, he was the least significant person on the cast, so maybe that’s why. If you’ve been waiting for a film adaption of this since the novel came out in the early 70’s, your wait is over. If not, enjoy!
Video: How’s it look?
Lionsgate’s 2.39:1 AVC HD encode gives us a pretty good-looking transfer. I have to say that I was a bit surprised at how dark this movie was. Not in tone, of course, but a lot of the shots are indoors and seem to emphasize a more earthy color palette. It’s not bad, by any means, but rather just not what I was expecting. Then again not every Christmas movie can be bright and bold with snow falling in every scene. Or can it? Well, no it probably can’t. That said, contrast is strong, black levels are on par and detail is razor sharp. Again, not what I was expecting, but there’s nothing technically wrong with the way this looks.
Audio: How’s it sound?
When filling in the bones of this review, I’d just assumed that there was a DTS HD Master Audio mix included (I fill out the template prior to watching, if anyone was curious and I’m guessing no one was), but much to my surprise, there it was – Dolby Atmos. Is it me? Am I judging a book by its cover in that there might be something inherently wrong with a holiday-themed film with a Dolby Atmos mix? To be sure, there’s nothing at all awry with the mix, it’s kind of like killing a fly with a sledgehammer, though – I didn’t find it necessary. Still, vocals are rock solid, surrounds aren’t used as much as I’d like, but still deliver. It’s a good mix, just a bit of overkill.
Supplements: What are the extras?
- Audio Commentary – Director Dallas Jenkins and Producer Kevin Downes sit down for this track which, much to my surprise, wasn’t half bad. We learn of what they discuss most on tracks: information about the shoot, the cast, the “script to screen” shenanigans and more.
- Herding the Kids – If I wanted and/or needed one more reason not to like little kids, this is it. We get a look at dealing with the little rascals on set. Fun.
- Director’s Diary – As is the case with most of these “diaries”, we get somewhat of a “day in the life” of the director – in 7 minutes.
- All About the Pageantry: Creating the Look – The obligatory production design feature that shows how some of the sets were constructed, etc.
- Legacy of the Christmas Pageant – The cast and crew regale us with memories of their own Christmas pageants.
- The Least of These – If you’ve wondered how director Dallas Jenkins came to be in this whole big thing, that wait is over. We get the genesis (pardon the pun) of the project.
- Bloopers – Oh my God, they’re having so much fun on the set!
- Deleted Scenes – Seven minutes in heaven? More like seven and a half minutes of what was missing from the final cut!
- Theatrical Trailer
The Bottom Line
I don’t know if this is “destined to be a holiday classic” like a lot of other Christmas movie, but there was more to it than I originally thoguht. Still, I can think of a handful of other films of this genre that I’d watch before popping this disc in again. Your experience may vary. Still, it looks ad sounds good and has enough supplements to warrant a purchase if this movie is your thing.
